When we moved into this house more than 10 years ago, all the cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms were of a very humble sort. They were intended to have an old fashioned, rustic look, but in actual fact what they were was cheap!! We soon upgraded the kitchen to something a little more substantial, but the bathrooms just didn't merit the expense. We've just lived with the annoyance of doors falling apart, and drawers sticking. One particular drawer always annoyed me like hell because it would jam occassionally for no apparent reason. I could tell you that for 10 years I was always too busy to fix it, but my wife tells me that's just an excuse for choosing to not make something a priority. Not that she ever bitched about the drawer mind you, which could only mean that either it wasn't a prioity for her either, or to give her the benefit of the doubt. she was just too busy bitching about everything else!!! I'll let you think about that one.
Regardless of the reason that it never got repaired, today, I decided I suddenly had the time. The whole undertaking required; for tools, one green Robertson screw driver; for materials, the corner of a pizza box as a shim; and for time, about 45 seconds!
It was a nice distraction from the bigger problem that I've been wrestling with for the last couple of days, that being our internet connection. I've talked to a technical guy at our ISP, bought and connected a new router, and played endless games of trial and error, all to no avail. In fact I've spent a lot of time on it, and made it my first priority. And yes, in case you're wondering, my wife has found plenty of time to bitch about it!!
When considered together; the two problems of my drawer and my internet, I admit to feeling a little unsettled. I like fixing drawers, and I know how to do it. I don't like fixing electronics, and I don't know the first thing about it! Why was I spending my time this way? And furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, why was I stressing over it?
Upon some reflection (I made that a priority), I'm sad to report that the answer is painful, and painfully obvious. The internet is more important! Pretty sad eh? But what really hit me hard was when I realized that it's not important to me for any good reason. I don't depend on it to do my work, or discuss religion with the Dali Lama. I don't even depend on it to watch movies, or to check the hockey scores. I don't use social media other than my blog, and I can easily post and review that through my phone. No! And again, No! The scary truth is that I depend on it, because I'm dependant on it!!!! I depend on the effin internet to kill time!!
Funny thing is, that once I realized this truth I felt a sense of relief. The first step in dealing with any addiction, no matter how minor (relatively speaking I think mine is), is acknowledgement. I'm actually excited about the potential. It's the right time in my life to re-evaluate how I spend my time, and I appreciate this little push.
So there you have it. Tomorrow's a new day, and when I get up in the morning I'm not even gonna open the browser. If any of you fine people choose to leave me a comment on my post I will receive it via e-mail on my phone. And while I admit that that's still the internet, it is not a vehicle which gives me any grief, or more importantly costs me any significant time. And after all....that's what the whole issue is...time! Besides, I can always read my e-mail while I'm driving :)
And I have at least one idea as to how I'm gonna make use of the extra time I'll now have on my hands. I've moved from Charles Dickens to F. Scott Fitzgerald, and I feel motivated by both these amazing gentlemen to try my own hand at something simple. I will keep you posted on that. The interesting thing is that the intimidation I felt in reading Dickens was considerably ameliorated by Fitzgeralds' The Great Gatsby. Also considered a work of art, I found the writing much less complex, but still entertaining and thought provoking. And after all, isn't that what it's supposed to do?
Oh, and if you're wondering why I distinguished my screw driver as being green, its actually a color coding that tells you it's size. That's the first reason, but of course you're all gonna tell me that you knew that. And while I won't argue your assertion, would you also be able to tell me that the Robertson screw is a Canadian invention? The offical head office of Robertson screw company is still in Milton Ontario. The second reason I describe my screw driver as a "green" Robertson, is to distinguish it from a "Phil" or a "Pat"…ha ha
And on the trivial topic of Ironman training, it generally continues well. My bike workout today was not overly difficult. Perhaps even a little too easy. I think that's a good thing because the workout intensity is predetermined by last weeks test, which if you recall was a bit disappointing. The fact that the workouts are not that tough may imply that I was simply a bit off, on the day of the test. Time will tell. Also I say that things 'generally' go well, because I am struggling a bit with my body composition. I'm simply eating too much! That I know is a psychological problem not a physical one, so while that doesn't make it any easier, it should make it surmountable.
computrainer, week 6, day 2--tempo ride, 1:15 total
"The Internet is the first thing that humanity has built that humanity doesn't understand, the largest experiment in anarchy that we have ever had."---Eric Schmidt
Love
Peter
Regardless of the reason that it never got repaired, today, I decided I suddenly had the time. The whole undertaking required; for tools, one green Robertson screw driver; for materials, the corner of a pizza box as a shim; and for time, about 45 seconds!
It was a nice distraction from the bigger problem that I've been wrestling with for the last couple of days, that being our internet connection. I've talked to a technical guy at our ISP, bought and connected a new router, and played endless games of trial and error, all to no avail. In fact I've spent a lot of time on it, and made it my first priority. And yes, in case you're wondering, my wife has found plenty of time to bitch about it!!
When considered together; the two problems of my drawer and my internet, I admit to feeling a little unsettled. I like fixing drawers, and I know how to do it. I don't like fixing electronics, and I don't know the first thing about it! Why was I spending my time this way? And furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, why was I stressing over it?
Upon some reflection (I made that a priority), I'm sad to report that the answer is painful, and painfully obvious. The internet is more important! Pretty sad eh? But what really hit me hard was when I realized that it's not important to me for any good reason. I don't depend on it to do my work, or discuss religion with the Dali Lama. I don't even depend on it to watch movies, or to check the hockey scores. I don't use social media other than my blog, and I can easily post and review that through my phone. No! And again, No! The scary truth is that I depend on it, because I'm dependant on it!!!! I depend on the effin internet to kill time!!
Funny thing is, that once I realized this truth I felt a sense of relief. The first step in dealing with any addiction, no matter how minor (relatively speaking I think mine is), is acknowledgement. I'm actually excited about the potential. It's the right time in my life to re-evaluate how I spend my time, and I appreciate this little push.
So there you have it. Tomorrow's a new day, and when I get up in the morning I'm not even gonna open the browser. If any of you fine people choose to leave me a comment on my post I will receive it via e-mail on my phone. And while I admit that that's still the internet, it is not a vehicle which gives me any grief, or more importantly costs me any significant time. And after all....that's what the whole issue is...time! Besides, I can always read my e-mail while I'm driving :)
And I have at least one idea as to how I'm gonna make use of the extra time I'll now have on my hands. I've moved from Charles Dickens to F. Scott Fitzgerald, and I feel motivated by both these amazing gentlemen to try my own hand at something simple. I will keep you posted on that. The interesting thing is that the intimidation I felt in reading Dickens was considerably ameliorated by Fitzgeralds' The Great Gatsby. Also considered a work of art, I found the writing much less complex, but still entertaining and thought provoking. And after all, isn't that what it's supposed to do?
Oh, and if you're wondering why I distinguished my screw driver as being green, its actually a color coding that tells you it's size. That's the first reason, but of course you're all gonna tell me that you knew that. And while I won't argue your assertion, would you also be able to tell me that the Robertson screw is a Canadian invention? The offical head office of Robertson screw company is still in Milton Ontario. The second reason I describe my screw driver as a "green" Robertson, is to distinguish it from a "Phil" or a "Pat"…ha ha
And on the trivial topic of Ironman training, it generally continues well. My bike workout today was not overly difficult. Perhaps even a little too easy. I think that's a good thing because the workout intensity is predetermined by last weeks test, which if you recall was a bit disappointing. The fact that the workouts are not that tough may imply that I was simply a bit off, on the day of the test. Time will tell. Also I say that things 'generally' go well, because I am struggling a bit with my body composition. I'm simply eating too much! That I know is a psychological problem not a physical one, so while that doesn't make it any easier, it should make it surmountable.
computrainer, week 6, day 2--tempo ride, 1:15 total
"The Internet is the first thing that humanity has built that humanity doesn't understand, the largest experiment in anarchy that we have ever had."---Eric Schmidt
Love
Peter
I can't tell you how good it is to know that you will continue to keep in touch. It is very important to me and I don't care how you do it, as long as you do! Thanks, I love you.
ReplyDeleteWanna co-author a mystery novel?
ReplyDeleteLove,
gail