What is The Joy of Living?
So seven years ago I decided I wanted my very own domain. But what to call it? I chose "thejoyofliving" as a sort-of ironic gesture toward the retro-kitsch that was going on at the time (see the resurgence of 80s toys & video games, etc) and a combination of "the joy of cooking" and self-help seminars. I mean, who could find any joy in living when the world was falling apart around us? A few months earlier some nuts flew some planes into a bunch of buildings, shattering every American's sense of identity, and we all still believed Bush would do the right thing. We continued our path of totally blind consumerism, buying up things to take the place of what we lost, replacing feelings of security and calm with flat-screen TVs.
Now my whole idea of "the joy of living" has changed, however. Living to live and enjoy life, living for the little things, living to learn, learning to live the way people lived before the crass commercialism of the 90s (and 00s). People are saving to buy things instead of stacking up more credit card debt. People are planting gardens and using energy efficient light bulbs and buying hybrid cars not to save the environment but to save money, an interesting turn.
Which brings me to how I've been living my life, in week #1 without a job. I haven't left the house except to go to school. I have been cooking all my meals at home, exercising every day, sleeping better at night. I swear the best part is not having the stress of going to work, and having plenty of time to get my homework done. I spent a majority of yesterday listing things on eBay (but the items all start Sunday afternoon so if you click that now nothing will show up) and basically sorting junk and cleaning up my house. It feels really good to purge my life (and space) of junk (and make some cash at the same time!).
I have also been ignoring the outside world. Last night I finally checked my email and read my RSS reader. I haven't watched the news on TV all week (though I do catch snippets on the radio) and I've been avoiding all the news websites and blogs I used to read multiple times a day when I was working. I basically dropped off the map.
It's been heaven.
Speaking of work, my last day was pretty great. Not only did I get multiple job offers from former co-workers (inside and outside Sprint) but I actually got a really great send-off too. Sprint had reserved a big section in the back of Ned Devine's for all of us who were leaving. I went down for about 2 hours (on the clock!?!) and met up with a bunch of current and former employees and a handful of customers, and had a great time saying goodbye. Then when I got back to the office the manager of my shift had gotten a cake! Everyone said they'd miss me and I said I'd miss all of them and it was about as touching as an office goodbye could be.
So for now, I'm going to stick with cleaning and organizing, getting in shape (I've lost 30 lbs so far!) and catching up with all the books and movies and bands I've missed over the last few years while doing work AND school. If I can stick to my budget I might even see a few shows this summer.
Now my whole idea of "the joy of living" has changed, however. Living to live and enjoy life, living for the little things, living to learn, learning to live the way people lived before the crass commercialism of the 90s (and 00s). People are saving to buy things instead of stacking up more credit card debt. People are planting gardens and using energy efficient light bulbs and buying hybrid cars not to save the environment but to save money, an interesting turn.
Which brings me to how I've been living my life, in week #1 without a job. I haven't left the house except to go to school. I have been cooking all my meals at home, exercising every day, sleeping better at night. I swear the best part is not having the stress of going to work, and having plenty of time to get my homework done. I spent a majority of yesterday listing things on eBay (but the items all start Sunday afternoon so if you click that now nothing will show up) and basically sorting junk and cleaning up my house. It feels really good to purge my life (and space) of junk (and make some cash at the same time!).
I have also been ignoring the outside world. Last night I finally checked my email and read my RSS reader. I haven't watched the news on TV all week (though I do catch snippets on the radio) and I've been avoiding all the news websites and blogs I used to read multiple times a day when I was working. I basically dropped off the map.
It's been heaven.
Speaking of work, my last day was pretty great. Not only did I get multiple job offers from former co-workers (inside and outside Sprint) but I actually got a really great send-off too. Sprint had reserved a big section in the back of Ned Devine's for all of us who were leaving. I went down for about 2 hours (on the clock!?!) and met up with a bunch of current and former employees and a handful of customers, and had a great time saying goodbye. Then when I got back to the office the manager of my shift had gotten a cake! Everyone said they'd miss me and I said I'd miss all of them and it was about as touching as an office goodbye could be.
So for now, I'm going to stick with cleaning and organizing, getting in shape (I've lost 30 lbs so far!) and catching up with all the books and movies and bands I've missed over the last few years while doing work AND school. If I can stick to my budget I might even see a few shows this summer.