The banana peels are properly placed…
It’s kind of amazing how much unemployment has ruined my creativity. I used to be this overflowing font of imagination, but in the last year, I’ve barely painted, not really thought up any ideas for stories or games, and haven’t actually sat down to play RPGs with my friends at all.
I used to think that work was the problem. Too much work drained the well, and I’d need a few days off to recover, gain that inspiration back, and paint or create. Now, I’m starting to think it’s not like that at all. Having a daily purpose throws the rest of my life into perspective. Knowing that at least 8 hours of my life is going to be eaten up by some mundane task makes me take greater advantage of the time I’m not working. I might be failing at the Samuel Johnson ideal, instead I am someone who wants to work so that he can afford to do the other things he wants to.
This all came up when I was talking to a friend last night. She’s a super go-getter, running herself ragged from 5AM to 11PM every day, just to suck up as much of life as she can. She goes to the gym, to work, out with friends, out with more friends, gets some sushi, does some work from home, gets a late cocktail, and finally crashes out around midnight, almost every day. She travels a lot, too. She seems to think that NYC would be the ideal place to live and she says she’s looking for jobs there, too.
Since I’ve been unemployed, I’ve been kind of a lump. I sit and stare at the internet job postings for a few hours every day, play some warcraft, idly peruse blogs, and sometimes try to study or learn something. I’ve made a few improvements, in that I’m becoming a fine baker and all, but it’s really a small trophy for a year of sloth. I’m looking forward to getting back to work, full time. When I think about it, I start looking for my paintbrushes again.
