Life Irks Me

Maybe it's because I've been reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, and maybe it's because of the conversation I had with my brother this morning, but I don't understand why we insist on spending our lives wasting time at jobs we hate to make money to keep up with people we don't care about in order to have possessions that are pointless. Not that I want to waste my education, but why spend the rest of my days doing something I find dull and tiresome? I wish there was a way to spend my days traveling, writing, and helping people, whether that be through disaster relief or sharing about the benefits of running. I've discovered that I'm quite the minimalist in life and would be perfectly content living out of my car bumming around the country. So why strive for a paycheck larger than what is necessary in order to live a conventional life? I feel like I'll miss out if I just stay in one spot. I'll end up doing something useless like constantly watching repeats of NCIS or Rizzoli & Isles just because I live in a house or apartment. Wouldn't my time be more well spent traveling around and sharing experiences with others, possibly writing about all of my adventures so others could live vicariously through me if they're stuck in the hubbub of daily life that is status quo America?
Why do we feel the need to torture ourselves in order to live up to supposed expectations or keep up with the people in our circle of friends? I know too many people who loathe what they're doing with their lives and it's all just to chase after the myth of the American Dream. There's no way to fill a void with possessions, friends, spouses, or children, if the root of the problem is that you aren't happy with how you conduct your life. My goal is to go against the grain and live my life to the fullest, which may not involve heaps of money. I've never been one to want much in the way of material things (except for books; I long to turn my habitat into a library), so why do I need to make six figures by working 14 hour days in the hopes that someone might look longingly at what I have? Seems like a giant circus. I'd much rather spend my time with people I love and care about than at a job I hate.

Take home points from my day:

• I have no idea why we spend time doing what we hate
• I might write a rambling book about my haphazard life
• I have no idea what to do with my life
• My brother and I are in the same boat in life

Sticking Out Like a Sore Thumb

Picture it. Great Neck. April 2013. A lone female sitting in the corner of a newly opened Starbucks in red sweatpants, a gray long sleeve, and running shoes. I figured I would stick out in this hotsy-totsy neighborhood given my appearance, but luckily the barista figures I'm going for a workout this morning. We had some amusing banter about how she would have to get up at 2am to even consider exercising. She happens to be right about me and going for a workout. It helps that one of my friends is a trainer, but in all honesty, let's face it, the workout will probably kill me today. I mean, how the heck am I supposed to pull off Olympic lifting with my chicken arms and mile long legs? It's not like I'm in shape either, but I need to be in order to drag rafts, kayaks, and canoes all summer long. But I legit might not be able to move tomorrow after this workout. I've got 5 hours to mentally prepare, mull over my impending doom, or just figure out how to run away, but I know I won't do that. That wouldn't make for a good story. Me almost dying in a gym under some weights; now that'll be a good story.

Take home points from my morning:

• I found it amusing that somebody referred to a thunderstorm as Hurricane Sandy's daughter
• Everytime I show up, my one friend forgets how to function like a human being
• Do Super Atheists wear capes?
• Ironically my brother flew to Germany on National Sibling Day...way to celebrate by escaping dude :)

Commercials

The bad part about television is the fact that we must suffer through commercials. I typically am not at all amused by them and try to tune most of them out. This evening, two commercials caught my attention; one for it not making sense to me, and the other was awe inspiring. The Payless shoes commercial is what has me baffled. It starts out with a woman saying, "Easter is normally a struggle." Now for me, Easter represents the resurrection of Jesus and the only struggle in my mind would be in fathoming how much He must love me to die for my sins. Unfortunately, this commercial does not share in my struggle, but has its own involving fashion. Unbeknownst to me, it's apparently difficult to find the right shoes and clothing to wear on Easter. Though I guess I'm the wrong person to ask about fashion since I typically just roll out of bed and throw on whatever happens to be available; not much thought involved. Now the hipster hobo classification is making more sense....but I digress. The second commercial that was awe inspiring was promoting spray on Vaseline, but that's not what intrigued me. What intrigued me was the fact that the young woman in the commercial had the ability to get dressed so fast and literally hopped into her shoes. Yes I said hopped! How is that possible and how can I learn? I need more excitement when it comes to getting dressed for my day so that I actually go through with it, rather than spending all my hours in my pajamas. Though I guess if I had a job to be motivated to get dressed for that would be an even better start, but one thing at a time. I can only do so much in today's economy and the insistence that all applications be submitted online, which is rather discouraging since I believe it would be beneficial for a place of employment to get to know me from my personality, not a piece of paper. But such is society, run by computers and efficiency, not personal relationships. Tis quite sad.

Take home points from my day:

• It's ridiculous for there to be a novel based on the Bible miniseries. BUY A BIBLE!
• I wish I lived in a community so I could see friends frequently
• Long drives aren't as much fun when alone
• Charmin commercials don't make me want to rub my face on bath tissue