"To live fast and die young"

-MGMT

Is it better to live, if just for a little while, or to stay alive?

Now, let me clarify. What I'm trying to say is, is it better to fully live? To have fun and awaken your senses in new and bizarre ways. Is it better to experience the world in a completely different perspective or is it preferable to just abide by rules and laws and guidelines and completely lack the excitement and enjoyment?

I was on Facebook, looking through pictures of an old acquaintance of mine who ended up moving out of state. We had the same musical interests and we were into the same sorts of stuff, so we talked occasionally. Her mother had married a friend of my parents. She was a really nice girl and I enjoyed talking to her, but as I said, we were only acquaintances so we didn't know too much about each other.

I looked at some of her Facebook pictures and saw some things that didn't look like anything my friends and I would ever do. Or things that would even be at all legal.

Some of her status updates read, "I'd rather live fast and short than live forever."

It kinda made me wonder whether or not she was completely right on that matter. Should we just totally live by the laws, not let ourselves venture out of that sphere of control society, our parents, the government try to enclose us in? Or should we step across that invisible line that they've laid down for us?

Some of what they tell us is to benefit our own health and well being. It's to keep us from making serious mistakes in a moment where we might not be thinking so clearly.

However, those who experiment and go beyond that safety zone sometimes say that it's the most interesting and fun experience you could ever have.

Are those few out of world experiences really worth all the baggage that they come with?

Some may tell you absolutely, while others, facing the downside of their decisions, would disagree and say that nothing could ever be worth the pain and hardship that comes later.

Should we just follow our impulses. Should I follow my dreams of moving to Paris and living a bohemian lifestyle, living off only salt and crackers? Find people who share similar interests and a similar style to mine, and write novels together? My fantasy carries out in my having met so many interesting and insightful people who somehow find me insightful and interesting and through them and the many life changing experiences I have, publish a book that is so popular, but only among those who are as interesting and insightful as me and the people in my life. Then I will later go down in history as being one of the most charming and intelligent and interesting authoress with the most insightful things to say.

Possible?

Yes.

Probable?

No.

That is why we will keep our toes under control as to not accidentally cross the line.

"We'll choke on our vomit, and that will be the end."

"Oh, for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money."

-Author Unknown


Customers:


At Target, however, we like to call them "guests". It's all a marketing ploy, really. We call them guests so they feel more welcome, relaxed, and comfortable. AND THEN...we get you to buy a lot of useless, stupid Target junk.

Before I started working, the only insight into what consumers spend their money on I had was to what my family bought, so when they brought about the whole idea of an "economical recession" I didn't think that it was because people were stupid, just the government's fault.

Well, after working at Target I realize that people seriously have no idea how to employ the concept of "saving money" into their lives. I mean, really, ma'am do you need to buy your dog a $30 dollar hot dog costume even when I had to tell you that your credit card's not been approved?

Let me share a story with you. I bet you've heard of the dollar section at Target. As long as you haven't been living under a rock for the better part of your life, you've deffffff. heard of it. Well, sometimes you really can find some pretty good deals, there. However, most of the time a majority of the stuff you'll find is cheap, easily breakable, very small in quantity, lacking quality and not worth a quarter, much less a dollar. Well, people, thinking that they're geniuses for buying 25 packets of stationery paper, instead of just buying the regular pack you'd find in the office supplies section for like, 8 bucks, waste a TON of money. They trick you into thinknig you're actually saving money, when in reality, they've got you wrapped around their twisted little corporate finger.


ANYWAYS...I was working a grueling 8 hour shift, the other day (yesterday), when a lady came through my lane. I do what I always do, and I greeted her with a smile and a "How are you doing today?" and "Did you find everything you needed okay?"

She laughed and told me that she'd found everything she needed and a lot more she didn't. I politely chuckled and told her that it was hard to come to Target and buy only what you need, pretending to sympathize. She agreed, and I asked a little bit about their plans for Halloween. We then ceased conversation so I could focus on my mindless task of checking out items.
Her grocery list included:
-Expensive frozen dinners that would have just been cheaper had she just bought the ingredients needed to make "Stouffer's Gravy Dinner"/"Kashi Cultural Rice Entree"
-Apples
-Toilet Paper
-Costumes
-Coloring Books
-Candy
-Markers
-Toys
-Lots of crap from the dollar section
-Lots of other crappy crap
Her bill came up to about 125 bucks. She first tried using a credit card. This is what flashed on my screen and her card reader:
"Card not approved. Use another payment."

We went through this process a couple more times with a couple more cards. Until finally, she split up the payment amongst:
-Some cash
-Her debit Card
-2 credit cards

Wow, I thought. Really? Why are you SO STUPID? You are obviously in no situation to buy all this extra junk that (I'm pretty sure) you don't need.

I don't know what kind of crazy spending I'm going to witness when Christmas comes around...when people instist on buying their friends the latest, newest, and (most of the time), most expensive stuff they can possibly get their hands on. Just the thought of the amount of customers who are going to get pissed AT ME because I'm the one who breaks the news to them that they don't have enough money for the Wii console they want to get their nephew, makes me want to barf up some of the Halloween candy I had today.

Whatever, none of my business, I guess. I'm just saying, I feel like if people weren't so dumb about how they manage their money, the world would be a whole lot better of a place.

"Commit to be fit"

-Unknown

I was at work today as one after another customers would come through my lane and describe the beautiful weather out to me. Then they'd add; "Oh, I hope you'll get off to catch it!"

Normally, I hate when people do that because a majority of the time, I don't get to catch the nice weather. Most of the time, I barely catch the last glimpses of the sun once I leave. Pretty, but it leaves me wanting more.

Finally, today, I was scheduled to get off at 2 PM.

Exciting?

Very.

So I decided that once I got home, I'd pull on the old sweats and go out for a nice jog, something I used to do all the time, but haven't done in about a millenium or so. Give or take.

So I'm on my usual course, down by street, turn up the next, and I keep going 'till I hit the park. That's half a mile. Then I usually go one full lap or two half laps around the park which equals one mile. Then my run back home would be another half mile. So altogether, I usually get about 2 miles. Occasionally, I'd push it to 2.5-3 miles. Rarely (meaning only once), I do 4.5 miles.

I used to love running. I'd have my iPod on a playlist of fun, peppy songs that were psychologically energizing. The sky would be perfect and sometimes, I'd run with my head up and just watch the clouds.

Which was a very stupid thing to do. I'm very klutzy, so more often than not, with my head up at the sky, looking like an asshole, I'd trip over something or run into something or, in the most embarrassing cases, somebody.

As I was saying. I would have such a good time going on a jog. I'd get my good breath of fresh air and the park where I ran was so pretty. It especially was today, with the leaves all sorts of autumnal (<---is that even a word? I'm too lazy to find out, so we'll just honor it as one for now) colors.

As I was saying. I was on my usual routine. So, by the time I'd gone to make my second lap around the park, I felt something terrible. Pain.

My body was obviously not releasing enough endorphins because I was not feeling very good at all. I was sweating profusely, my stomach was turning, and my legs burned.

Then it hit me.

I had an epiphany.

I was

Out.

Of.

Shape.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

It was true. I'm 17 years old and already my body has turned on me. Oh, woe is a friend of mine.