everything seems to be in motion these days.
the world is changing… take a look at culture. overall, society’s rules of operation seem to be more in flux than ever before. things that were taboo 10 years ago are now commonplace, and vice-versa. in the states, in europe, in asia, globally and locally, macro and micro changes are happening.
where does that put you and me?
i’ve always considered myself to be independent. an independent thinker, with no reliance on religion, peers or family to steer me away from my true path. yeah, right. i think perhaps a better way of describing the situation is that, since the world is changing, it’s difficult to figure out where the hell we’re going.
it’s easy to say “i’m going to study medicine for 8 years” or “i’m going to go teach english in peru for a few years” or “i’m going to settle down and raise a family with my wife”. those are one-time decisions that lock your life into a certain course of action. we choose these paths because others have chosen these paths before… society encourages and promotes a certain set of þnormalþ life paths.
but, what about me?
okay, for starters, i can’t manage to stay in the same place for more than a few years. this concept of “settling down” is one that i fully understand but can’t see myself following. i crave new experiences, new stimuli, and the easiest way to do that is by unrooting myself every few years.
what about career? i have a certain skillset, and can perform certain tasks. i am a front-end technologist. i am a webdesigner. a programmer. a visual designer. an interface designer. myjob title changes about every three weeks. as does the company i work for. as does the type of work i’m doing. a year from now, the internet, the world, and technology will be a different place. i will be fitting in to that mix in probably a slightly (or drastically) different way.
and settling down? when i was 17, i wanted to settle down and raise a family. honestly. i felt that way probably until i was 20 or 21. i still feel mostly that way — i want to meet mr. right and be done with it. dating and all that is a tiresome chore, if you ask me. but, in london especially, you can’t play the game that way. compared to my life experiences (say, looking at indiana, los angeles, germany and san francisco), london operates within a different set of rules.
so, looking at my life over the past few weeks, and looking at how much london is changing me (or, perhaps, looking at how much my london life contradicts the rest of my life), i’m left looking for a guidebook. an example. a target, a trophy, the prize of this london game. what am i trying to accomplish? is true love a viable option? a solid career? pure happiness? a lasting impression on future generations? maybe i should just aim for some sanity?
i need a positive role model.
a positive role model.
