Direction in life
In the past few years I have let myself start drifting, without any real ambition or direction in life. Work is still enjoyable, and will always (well, most of the time) be challenging and mentally stimulating. I really can see myself staying in my same position until I retire. The pay is good, and so far in my 2+ decades working there, I have never had a bad boss. Home life is another story.
I used to exercise semi-regularly (2-3 times a week). I used to read books often. For a 8-year stretch I volunteered Spring through Fall at a therapeutic riding program. I used to cook my dinner at least 3-4 times a week. It has been a couple of years since I have done any of those things consistently, and my mental and physical well being has suffered for it. I still have hobbies, the two biggest right now being poker and riding my motorcycle (which amazingly the weather still let me do today, in what should be the heart of Winter but was high 60's instead). I just do not feel like that is enough. I am not unhappy in my life now, but nor do I feel particularly happy either - unless I am on my bike or at a poker table. The trouble is, until Spring actually comes, my riding time is limited. I can't seem to win money at local home poker games so I need to drive 1 1/2 hours to the nearest casino, which excludes playing during the week, unless I want to be sleep deprived at work the next day. I keep trying to get myself to get out more during the week (to do anything), but once I get home from work, all motivation to leave the house again disappears quickly.
Since I am having trouble finding the inner motivation to get active, I am thinking of volunteering for my city's fire department as an ambulance EMS person. That way, I'll feel obligated to go out and fulfill my volunteer shift when I am scheduled to work. I stopped by the local station earlier this week and their volunteer coordinator called me back tonight to schedule a meeting for next Wednesday. I still am unsure whether this is the right path to take for my life. It, like weekday poker sessions, would leave me somewhat sleep deprived at work the next day if I end up working the night shift and there is a lot of calls for an ambulance. It is also a volunteer *job*, not a volunteer position you can do whenever you feel like it. I am also in my upper 40's, so more sleep is definitely nicer than less sleep.
I heard a radio program on NPR where a guy was saying that some people get paralyzed in the decision making process, and the more information they have the more difficult it is for them to make a choice. In some ways I can understand that, since I do have a wide variety of options for how to fill my free time, but I just can't seem to be bothered to start up any of them. I told myself that if no one called me back about the EMS position, I would not pursue it. Well, since the woman did call back, I will take that as decision made. I think. :)
I used to exercise semi-regularly (2-3 times a week). I used to read books often. For a 8-year stretch I volunteered Spring through Fall at a therapeutic riding program. I used to cook my dinner at least 3-4 times a week. It has been a couple of years since I have done any of those things consistently, and my mental and physical well being has suffered for it. I still have hobbies, the two biggest right now being poker and riding my motorcycle (which amazingly the weather still let me do today, in what should be the heart of Winter but was high 60's instead). I just do not feel like that is enough. I am not unhappy in my life now, but nor do I feel particularly happy either - unless I am on my bike or at a poker table. The trouble is, until Spring actually comes, my riding time is limited. I can't seem to win money at local home poker games so I need to drive 1 1/2 hours to the nearest casino, which excludes playing during the week, unless I want to be sleep deprived at work the next day. I keep trying to get myself to get out more during the week (to do anything), but once I get home from work, all motivation to leave the house again disappears quickly.
Since I am having trouble finding the inner motivation to get active, I am thinking of volunteering for my city's fire department as an ambulance EMS person. That way, I'll feel obligated to go out and fulfill my volunteer shift when I am scheduled to work. I stopped by the local station earlier this week and their volunteer coordinator called me back tonight to schedule a meeting for next Wednesday. I still am unsure whether this is the right path to take for my life. It, like weekday poker sessions, would leave me somewhat sleep deprived at work the next day if I end up working the night shift and there is a lot of calls for an ambulance. It is also a volunteer *job*, not a volunteer position you can do whenever you feel like it. I am also in my upper 40's, so more sleep is definitely nicer than less sleep.
I heard a radio program on NPR where a guy was saying that some people get paralyzed in the decision making process, and the more information they have the more difficult it is for them to make a choice. In some ways I can understand that, since I do have a wide variety of options for how to fill my free time, but I just can't seem to be bothered to start up any of them. I told myself that if no one called me back about the EMS position, I would not pursue it. Well, since the woman did call back, I will take that as decision made. I think. :)