Back again

Now that grad school is no longer zapping all of my time and energy and I am happy to announce that the next year of my life is going to be entirely devoted to pursuing a variety of eclectic interests that have been postponed in the onslaught of academic accouterments...

In order to maximize the margin in my life I need to consider throwing out some other wasteful excesses as well. In today's Washington Post the Outlook section ran a feature entitled "12 Things We Should Trash." Herein, twelve writers made their case for disposing of various elements of our society - virginity, tactical nuclear weapons, lawns, and many others. I thought this was a good idea and began asking myself what twelve things can I can rid myself of, and what will I add instead?

The first is going to be meat (with the exception of fish). Why meat? There are a variety of reasons people become vegetarian. They believe it's healthier, they believe it conserves energy, or because they oppose commercial farming methods. None of those reasons apply. I am basically doing it because I'm tired of food options. I'm tired of sitting down to eat at a restaurant and getting overwhelmed by the menu. I'm tired of trying to figure out what to eat for dinner. There are so many important decisions in life, why should I waste my mental energy trying to figure out if I want the chicken and rice or the steak? Once you cross all the meat options off the menu it's so much simpler. Life is less stressful with less choices. (that said, I'll eat meat if it is served to me by a host and probably won't forego my mom's hamburgers on the grill)

The truth is we are living in a society with way too many choices. This doesn't just apply to food. I rarely go to Tysons to shop, I like to just walk around and gaze at the mecca of consumerism going on around me. It's way to overwhelming to actually decide on something to buy. I rarely buy books at Barnes and Noble, though I visit nearly every week. There is so much I want to read, I can't pick just one, and I can't afford them all, so I walk out empty-handed.

There is so much I want to do with my life. So many roads to travel and things to learn. I want to take tennis lessons. I want to take a photography class, a creative writing course. I want to go to concerts and Seattle and Texas, and Chincoteague. I haven't even been to Baltimore or Annapolis yet! I love being 25 with a whole lifetime of experiences and lessons still ahead but sometimes I wonder if I'll be able to fit it all in. I don't want to walk out empty-handed from life.

That's why I'm throwing unnecessary stuff out. I don't want to become needlessly overwhelmed. Realistically, I can't have it all. I'll live without Omaha steak.