He’s handsome, sweet, very patient, and kind. He can be a bit mischievous, but never maliciously so, at least not towards me. He’s not afraid to get dirty, or to play the nurse for a bit. He is quiet, and is an amazing listener, but when he does speak up, he always makes me smile. He comforts me when I’m upset, and wipes my tears away. When I look in his eyes, I see the most gentle, loving soul.
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For the record, I’m referring to one of my dogs, Frik. 😉 He absolutely qualifies as a family member.
I’m astonished at the level of coincidence surrounding this prompt. Just yesterday I posted about my fascination since childhood with the question “Why?”. Today, I see this prompt, and within it, a quote from Neitzsche that I literally just saw on Monday during my Trident Mindset lesson.
Why? Why am I seeing this quote for the second time in a week? Why is “why” following me around in real life instead of being trapped in the maze of thoughts in my mind? I ask why a lot, but this kind of recurrence from external sources is a bit much.
So many questions. Is it simple coincidence? Is it serendipity? Is it god or the universe giving me a metaphysical smack in the face because of my trend of posts about the possibility of life being random and not orchestrated? Is it kinda like when you are thinking of yellow cars, you see more yellow cars, but only because you notice it more not because you’re actually seeing more yellow cars than usual?
I don’t know. But I am tired. I’m quite sure my brain will continue to process this while I sleep, giving me more inspiration for tomorrow.
I have come to realize that people are nice for different reasons.
Some people are nice simply out of adherence to social convention.
Some people are nice because they are manipulating you; they need or want something from you.
Some people are nice because they are just a nice person, and may even be a bit naive.
Some people are nice because they have walked through hell and fought demons every single day at some point in their lives, and perhaps still do. All the while, the world goes on as usual, expecting normal things from people in very abnormal circumstances.
The problem lies in the fact that you never truly know which category a person falls into, and you may never know. This is why it is important to always be kind, but also important to protect yourself. This may mean saying no if you need to, establishing boundaries, and so on. This may also mean not taking advantage of someone’s niceness, because you may not want to find out what the other side of that person looks like.
What alternative career paths have you considered or are interested in?
Oh good grief, what haven’t I considered? And for the record, that consideration is for a primary career path, which I believe is a prerequisite for having an alternative. And should I end up with a primary career path, I would think the alternative would be on the list of those already considered. Or not, who the hell knows?
Here’s the list, in no particular order:
Particle physicist, astronaut, veterinarian, anthropologist, drummer, tattoo artist/piercer, surgeon, emergency physician, neurobiologist, CPA, forensic accountant, think tank member (don’t know what that’s actually called), financial advisor/advisory business owner, mathematician, theoretical physicist, cardiologist, paleontologist, massage therapist, author, philosopher, poet, game tester, actress, therapist, technical writer, editor.
*takes a breath*
I have, apparently, considered lots of different things covering many different fields, but so far I’ve wound up focusing on none of them long term and just learning lots of different things in the process.
Currently, I am essentially a professional problem solver, though that is not my formal title. I don’t have a career path, per se, because I haven’t chosen an area that I want to spend the rest of my life focused on. I think there are far too many fascinating things in the world to pick just one to focus all my energy on for extended periods. There is so much I wouldn’t be able to learn if I did that. And that would make me sad. And screw that, nobody wants to be sad.
I suppose my optimal career choice would be student. I can be a student at the same time as doing what I need to do to support myself. The two are by no means mutually exclusive.
This is my favorite question; has been since I was a little kid.
I remember one instance in particular, I was maybe 4 or 5 years old. I was walking into a store with my mom, chattering away about whatever crossed my mind, likely asking a bunch of questions in the process. I remember asking my mom why the sky is blue. She got exasperated, sighed, and told me that I ask too many questions.
In all of my 4-or 5-year-old glory, I was unphased, and responded adamantly, “Mommy, why do I ask too many questions?”. She sighed again and told me to hush. I continued to, and to this day, ask a lot of questions. I actually have a tattoo on the back of my neck that says “question everything”.
I know that I may never have the answer to all of the “why” questions that I ask, either out loud or in my mind, and that’s ok. I also understand that the answers I have now may change as science evolves and uncovers even deeper truths. Either way, I will continue to search for answers.
I’m probably gonna date myself here, but I don’t care.
I liked the yellow pages for finding companies. You could look up a category – lawyers, furniture, dentists, whatever – and get a listing of all the businesses of that type in your area. You know your area, so could tell by the town names how far away they are. Maybe you had a friend who used a particular company and told you they loved dealing with that company. Noted. Maybe a coworker had a horrible experience with a different company. Also noted. (Mental filing cabinets are your friends!!)
My point is, I don’t want some algorithm to show me only the results that it thinks I’d be interested in. I also don’t want another algorithm to bombard me with ads for shit I have no interest in just because I was curious about one thing on a random fucking Tuesday a few weeks ago. I don’t want to see sponsored listings for something only remotely related, or from companies that pay to subvert other companies by having their info at the top of the results list. I want to see ~all~ of my options, speak to a human being when I call, and make my own informed decision about who I’m going to give my business to. Just sayin.
My brain is a sponge living in a body with self-destructive/murderous tendencies.
I will elaborate.
I can learn just about anything pretty quickly, and love to do so. Hence, sponge. I also have an autoimmune condition which attacks and damages my brain. Hence, self-destructive/murderous tendencies.
Just a random, slightly fucked up, oddly funny thought that crossed my mind as I was getting ready to sleep, so I figured I’d share.
I think this prompt is meant to inspire people to write about things they’ve done or created or accomplished, and while I certainly have things like that that I am proud of, none of them really feels like they fit.
The thing that I am most proud of is the fact that both my parents, most of my uncles and both of my grandfathers served in some branch of the military. Being raised in and around that environment gave me such an appreciation for what all servicemen and women do. This applies to the police force as well, where two of my uncles have served and at least one friend currently serves.
I have a deep and profound pride in the fact that I live in a place where men and women voluntarily serve for the sake of others. This is a beautiful thing, and though I personally never served, I am proud of those who do or have.
There are lots of things I work on every single day, but the best way to summarize is to say that I am working to create and be the best version of myself, whatever that ends up looking like.
Do lazy days make you feel rested or unproductive?
For the most part, unproductive.
Even if I desperately need a lazy day, I tend to put it off until I literally can’t function at all, and I’m not able to fully recover anyway, so I tend to spend my days in various states of tired.
I have been learning to be better about this, however. Resting when I need to, allowing myself to just be instead of constantly doing.
Ask me again in a year and I’ll be able to give you a better, more informed answer. 😉
A Peculiar Cerebral Tangle 