Well, well, well. It has been about a year since I begun this jaunt into unfamiliar Internet territory — before then, blogging existed in a known but seldom-visited corner of the InterTron. I have lived in this place for one year. I know few of my neighbours, and I doubt that they know me. Our only commonality is our obscene idol, which is known only as “Blog”. It demands sacrifices regularly, gradually consuming the entirety of our minds into its grotesque form.
That being said, it was one year ago (or so) that I examined my socially unpopular pastimes. At the time, I came to the conclusion that nobody should dictate how my leisure time is best spent besides myself. I come back to this issue today for two reasons:
1. I have recently landed a job (my title: toadie) working at a game and hobby store, catering mostly to children and bizarre man-child hybrids such as myself.
2. It makes a good connection with my very first blog (it’s all cycles).
I am still of the opinion that I shouldn’t be worried about what other people think. However, my concerns have shifted — I now wonder if I am making the best use of my time. Sometimes other activities, such as chewing my way through the rest of a forgotten book, seem more productive. In other cases, I feel as if I should be broadening my horizons — perhaps keeping up on my areas of academic interest.
Books often seem more legitimate, and I most definitely do not read enough (novels, that is — I read plenty otherwise — why, I’m reading right now). Making things more complicated is my desire to constantly have a to-do list, even going so far as to have a list of games and books to make my way through. The upshot to seeing leisure as a task is that it feels like you’re getting something done. The downside is that it’s not very relaxing, which is supposed to be the point, no? Even as I write this, the almost satanically-powerful urge to “catch ’em all” (that’s Pokemon, for all three of you who didn’t catch the reference) is burning into my very soul.
These concerns seem unlikely to go away anytime soon. However, the Summer months are only just beginning. Perhaps working in the games business will push me away — I anticipate that it will only build my knowledge and affection for the subject, however. Regardless, I feel that I must either reconcile these feelings or else make a concerted effort to take up more diverse interests.
In parting, Connor has put up some of his music. He recently moved in with me for the Summer and we’re going to be joining our Voltron-like forces together once more to form some kind of giant musical robot. This can only bode poorly for our neighbours, but it also signals a return to my undying love for the stage, with any luck.
Mattherobot 