And by that I mean, like one of those hanky-over-mouth, hyper-ventilating, high school giggling kind of excitement.... (*not that I'd know how what the fuck means...) =D
Everything have become routine now, its like your 25-year old marriage minus the old hag you call your spouse =)
Gone are the days that you spend so much tension and aggravation, stressing over when will you be able to catch up with either work or personal matters...
Ahhh... I miss those days.... (really, I do!)
Before, it was as if everything was pre-school days to me and that I was literally looking forward of diving right in that ever-omniscient pool of knowledge and wisdom...
I was actually more than happy to get my ears wet (...amongst other bodily appendages).
Essentially, learning (everything) something new everyday is like an addictive habit of mine.
I guess that's how most of us are... right?
I in particular, always thought that the measure of my satisfaction is not how soon I can get comfortable executing a task, but by how long I can sustain that 'excitement factor' for that task!
Let me give you an example --- when I first had to "go-live" a production server (Windows NT??), the aftershock of the amphetamine-like rush lingered in my system for about 3 days!
That was the 'excitement factor' that I was referring to....
But after a couple thousand (??) server builds later.... you simply cannot stand seeing an ILO command line staring you at your face, like an obnoxious *fugly 4-year old kid mocking you in public about how weird your parted hair looked like!
Sure, I've tried learning a new skill here and there to re-kindle the 'spark' - like brushing up with contemporary network security architecture, reviewing annotations with the different IT Ops/Management standards, getting whitepapers on cloud-computing strategies and architectures, trying like mad to learn SAP's FI/CO without having a clue what its U.I. looks like or how its database back end works.... then finally, I've finally got pressured to learn Microsoft Sharepoint Services because my stupid boss said "you just gotta!"
Learning a new thing right now with my current line of work, is initially appealing, I must admit. But the excitement fails to carry anything forward after only a couple of weeks.
Reason being is I never really felt compelled to sustain the excitement since its never a "requirement" for my line of work or never really a genuine interest to begin with.
I usually end up getting bored and most often than I'd want to - kicking myself for spending my time with another 'useless' trivia, knowledge, or skill...
This year, dad retired (unofficially?).
And seeing how this lifetime event affected him, it got me thinking about the future.
For starters, I asked myself - Why have you never found a retiree whose genuinely looking forward at doing nothing after a lifetime of toiling mindlessly over their careers or business ventures?
Sure - they'll always tell you that they are 'that' excited over lazy afternoons, weekly family reunions (probably because their anxious to soak the news on who from the clan have recently developed arthritis or some other health related problem or have them "talk-till-its-time-to-take-your-pill" nonsensical discussion over something about politics, showbiz, the weather, or health), gardening, indoor hobbies, or that grand Europe tour they've been planning all their lives, but really --- who are they fooling?
I mean, lets look this for a minute --- if you're one of those whose been in the 'self-empowered' working class category all your life (*like what your parents, siblings, and yourself probably belongs to right now...) you've probably settled down with the idea of working all your life to make a living...
So just take a moment to imagine what would happen when one day, all of sudden, you're no longer compelled to wake up early for work after partying all night (some of you might probably be saying - well what the fuck is wrong with that D'shah?).
But think about it? By that time, you'd probably long gotten over your party-animal evil twin... or better yet, you're already in the process of experiencing the 'fruits' of all those years of neglecting your health (i.e. hard-drinking, smoking, or heaven forbid ganja-nippin')....
Therefore - I bet you'd agree with me when I say that you'd probably be bored out of your wits after a couple of weeks doing nothing! Am I right?
Now - Gardening....
I bet you my pathetic excuse-of-a-boss you probably wouldn't like gardening, period... Cause that would mean that you'd have to get down with your hands and knees, and probably end up all sweaty, itchy and panting after three and a half minutes... oh, wait, doesn't that sound familiar for most of you folks? ;-)
Hehehe!
But seriously? Gardening?
Okay what about the alternatives? What about that grand European Tour?
Sight-seeing in Athens, picture taking with those costume-clad plaid-skirt wearing ladies in the Swiss alps or sipping coffee in one of them posh Parisian shops....?
Read my lips --- WAKE UP Stupid!!!
That will never ever ever ever happen... not as long as your pathetic yearly salary adjustment is like, a fourth or a quarter or a third of the Philippines' inflation rate - which for most folks here roughly translates to about 0.000000000010332913% increment per year.
Thats it... we're all probably feeling screwed and loony by this point, I personally feel a little light-headed... which is my cue to end this post....
Hope that I've given some of you folks out there an minor insight into your future and hopefully, made you imagine what would you be in about 30-35 years from now...
