On the Sunny Side of the Street

[Originally written on 10-15-2009 - slowly catching up]

Ok, so i'm not used to being consistently in a good mood for weeks and months on end. My zany side has re-emerged with a vengence; seems like i'm either excited or amused about something at all times, and i've been busting out laughing much more often than before. Even the silliest of little things will set me off. This, for example:



I watched this video at least 20 times and laughed uncontrollably until i was gasping for breath and had tears streaming down my face. I mean, it's not *that* funny, is it?

For the most part i'm just enjoying the ride, but there are brief moments when i wonder if there's another shoe about to drop. I've always kindof believed in Becker's rubber band theory.

For those unfamiliar, Becker was a late-90s sitcom starring Ted Danson as the awesomely cynical & bitter title character. I actually only started watching for Terry Farrell (Jadzia Dax from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - homina homina), and only watched the first season or so. I did enjoy it, though; maybe i should Netflix it now. Anyway.

The rubber band theory was from an episode in which Becker has an incredible string of good luck. He wins the lottery. Someone returns his lost wallet. His most annoying patient announces that he's moving to Florida. He finds his favorite gold pen which he'd lost. The streak continues, but with each fortune Becker gets more and more irritated. Why? Because he believes that life is a giant rubber band, and the farther it gets pulled in one direction with good luck and favorable happenings, the harder it'll whip you when it eventually snaps back. Everyone thought he was just being superstitious and paranoid, and he starts to wonder about it himself. But then - at the very end of the episode - he gets mugged. The robber gets away with his wallet, the winning lotto ticket, *and* the pen. And then the afformentioned patient happens to walk by and announce that he was staying in town after all. Becker just looks up at the sky and with a resigned sigh says "Very nice; i like the way you operate."

...

So because i'm me i can't can't help but analyze Dawson-style what the deal is.

I think it comes down to this: I've managed to stick a pin in all of the long-term issues that worry me. Actually they're too big for just pins; more like i impaled them with spears. "Long spears - twice as long as a man." (Bonus points to the first person who can identify that quote (without cheating) and supply the appropriate response.) I don't want to be alone anymore but have yet to find success with doing something about that. I'm worried that i'll never get my happily ever after. I'm behind schedule (originally i was supposed to be married with a kid on the way by this age; even under the second revision, i was supposed to at least be engaged). I don't know if i want to stay in software long term or not, but i can't think of any other career path i'd rather follow. And so on.

So anyway, i haven't been giving much thought to that stuff recently. I've been focusing on travel with my weekend trips this summer, binging on concerts, a few one-offs like the lindy hop workshop a few weeks ago. And working hard on guitar (yet another blog post is pending).

Maybe it's ok to take a break and just enjoy life for a while. Or maybe the Hakuna Matata approach will just make things worse. Or maybe i don't care right now because i'm too busy laughing my ass off at stupid stuff:



"Ooh, Burger King..."

And yes, if you're reading this then it's likely that one day, when you least expect it, i'll jump out of your fridge and scare the crap out of you.

:-)