why we work

im in a small dilemma. i like studying. but then my diabetes sort of gives me a lot of trouble. i find it hard to sit through my 3 hour classes and manage my blood sugar levels. theyre up, down and all around sometimes.

reading through socrates/plato for my philosophy class, it was the belief of ancient greeks that our destinies were decided. that we should do what comes naturally. what fits us. not try to go outside out our circles. that does not mean that we should resign ourselves entirely to fate or be depressed about it, but that perhaps there are some of us who are meant to do some things, and others who are meant to do other things.

i work in the meat dept of a local grocery chain. i love my job. and i cant say why. lol. but i love it. the work, the team, the varied tasks that i get to do in a shift.

i like working with the public. i want to enter public life someday. i've actually been toying with the idea of running in the next municipal election for councillor.

anyways. sometimes simply having a plan gives us comfort. and my comfort thus comes from my plan to take only 1 class next school term. 3 is too many. i want to work more. i hate my days off. im bored, depressed, and aimless. i wander from the fridge to the computer to the tv to my homework to the cat to the fridge and so on.

i want to work. i keep moving and it keeps my blood sugars good. i enjoy the place. im making money. and im interacting with the public.

i've recently taken up boxing and i can tell you there is salvation in that. alice cooper beat alcoholism by taking up and playing golf. im not an alcoholic but boxing helps me stay grounded. boosts my confidence and keeps me healthy.

i think challenge is important in life. you look at the idle rich. the stars, hollywood and a few hundred years ago, the aristocracy. they often seem depressed. endless drinking and partying to keep things lively. they have no challenge in their lives. the rest of us ask ourselves what we'd prefer to buy, that new jacket or the PS2? we can't have both. the rest of us ask ourselves what we want to eat on thursday night when we get home from work at 6:30 pm. there are no leftovers, the pasta cupboard in empty and were tired of pea soup from a can. we don't have our own personal maids and chefs.

at work i have a great time. how many people in the 90210 know what they're missing? take off the rolex, sell the 2nd mercedes, roll up your sleeves and get into town. work at a burger joint, a soup kitchen, a car wash. interact with the PEOPLE. us, joe public.

and i dont think im the only one to think these things. how many of us prefer to go into work on a weekend than stay home sometimes? i look at my own friends and co-workers. a lot of them work on weekends and take extra shifts. heck. we dont know what TO DO with our extra time.

sociologist robert putnam wrote a book: "Bowling Alone" re: the declining rates of participation in local groups/clubs/activities. its true. our lives sort of revolve around work. and its an unfortunate reality for people like me who sometimes long for the past. a time when families spent sundays at the lake. lulling in the sun. picknicking.

as kids we played everyday after school. we were outside with the hockey sticks, forging homemade stanley cups with sheets of tin scrap in the backyard fire pit, tearing up back alleys on our bikes, waterfights, neverending games of kick the can.

we've sort of lost that today. kids just go home after school and fire up the xbox.

thus. i think i will join the masses. i will work more. because its true. our lives revolve around work now. ill bet half of our friends are co-workers these days. we spend as much time at work as we do sleeping. (for those of us who get our 7-8 hours)
work is where we have an identity. outside of that, we are just sort of blowing in the wind. wandering aimlessly from the fridge to the computer, to the tv....