Peace out Wisconsin and in other news, a self help post.

I'm simplifying, consolidating and eliminating. All of this in anticipation for the big move...back home. The opportunity sort of fell in my lap and it felt like one of those surreal, fate like situations where saying no didn't seem like an option. And if there is anything I do well, it's make quick, ill informed life decisions.

Last night I found myself in the middle of one of those deep conversations that sometimes happen amongst old friends. This one occurred over some well mixed margaritas in a dimly lit suburban bar. It began with a simple question directed towards me that went something like "on a scale of 1 to 10, how happy are you?". I blurted out, without the slightest hesitation, 10, always 10." The response to that was a bewildered, "how?"

Duh. Happiness comes from within. You can't find it in your friends, your job, a significant other, a margarita, your family, or some lofty goals. Sure, many of those things can contribute to your happiness or lack there of, but you can chose how you let any circumstance affect you. Make your own rules, do things that make you happy and don't feel guilty about it. Be kind and genuine.

This all ultimately led into a discussion of finding "the one" and the revelation that most of my friends refuse to be happy until they can live out their childhood fairytale of love, marriage and children. But what about now? And how about when they've checked marital bliss off their lists? I know it's part socialization, part biology that women especially allow this whole pursuit to be all consuming, but let me tell you, it's so very liberating to dismiss it all. This is not to say I don't want to fall in love, I do, I want to fall in love thousands of times, over and over. If I could fall in love again and again with the same person, fine, but I don't think that's my reality or anyone's really.

But be alive, be happy, because why not? More often than not, people forget about the moment. Be random, never say no to a good idea. Make your friend, who you sometimes sleep with, run through the torrential down pour while holding your hand. Jump in the puddles, spin around in circles, laugh so hard that you can't tell if you peed your pants since they were already wet, take off your clothes and love somebody, fall asleep in a tangled mess of sheets in his unairconditoned bachelor apartment and wake up with a smile on your face. You know, just a real life example.

Photos from 2005, before I was this smart