Last night I got to enjoy one of my favourite traditions – ‘The Deck Chat’ with The Ron. This ritual can only be performed in spring and summer – with alcoholic beverage in hand, gazing out at the twinkling lights of Jozi’s northern suburbs from the pool deck at The Ron’s Sandton complex.
During last night’s Deck Chat, we got onto the subject of The Ron’s 27th birthday, which is this weekend. The Ron has decided that he’s not celebrating at all, because he feels he hasn’t achieved anything notable since his birthday last year. I pointed out that this isn’t entirely true – for one he’s found a wonderful girl who’s on the verge of moving in with him. Secondly, he finally bought his dream car, a Golf 5 somethingorother.
Essentially, The Ron was most concerned about not having found a new career path… his current job, which he’s absolutely brilliant at, unfortunately has a ceiling which he’s already reached. On top of that, it’s the kinda job you can’t really do past the age of 35 and that’s at a push.
This made me think about human nature – why is it that we always fixate on the one thing that’s missing from our lives, and ignore everything else that’s going swimmingly?
I’m just as guilty – career-wise, things are going brilliantly, my friends and family are all happy and healthy and I’m about to head off on a free trip to the Kenyan coast for a few days of frolicking in the ocean. Yet I ignore all of this and instead completely obsess over the absence of a significant other in my life.
The Ron pointed out that this phenomenon was best described in The Matrix, by the supercool Agent Smith when he said:
“Did you know that the first Matrix was designed to be a perfect human world, where none suffered; where everyone would be happy. It was a disaster. No one would accept the program. Some believed that we lacked the programming language to describe your perfect world, but I believe that as a species, human beings define their reality through misery and suffering.”
But I guess this isn’t necessary a bad thing… if we focused only on the positive, we wouldn’t bother with self-improvement. It’s just weird to think that we’re constantly striving to reach a state of perfection that we’ll never find - and even if we somehow managed to, we’d remain unsatisfied.
3 comments:
I am exactly the same. I forget the fact that my career is going along so well, I live in a wonderful house, I have such good friends, I've achieved quite a bit this year but I still feel pathetic because I haven't managed to get the relationship thing down right.
In fact I can barely meet a decent guy. It makes me feel like everything else is stupid and I'm pathetic cause I can't manage this 1 little thing.
Girls are stupid aren't they?
Girls are stupid - perhaps this is why you've chosen to slowly become a boy.
But at the same time, everyone I know is making it look so easy... people are hooking up right, left and centre... I think this is AGAIN fuelled by Facebook! I can't handle people with profile pics of them together with their significant other!
Yes MsMozi, that is the reason I am turning into a boy ;) That and I think it would rock to be able to pee standing up and anywhere! hehehe
I'm tired of reading on my friends profiles the stupid couply crap.
"Hey babes, just wanted to leave you a note to tell you how much I adore you. *mwah* *mwah* "
JEES WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP!
Post a Comment