I saw my friend Bill for the first time in ages yesterday, and it was really kind of life changing. Bill moved out to Colorado years ago, and I haven't really heard from him since minus a few MySpace & Facebook messages here and there. He just made it back to Albany for a visit after these few years, and I found out he's been roaming the country with his precious dog, Maebe. He lives in a yurt in Colorado and gives snowboarding lessons at a resort for half of the year, and then he travels around hitchhiking the other half of the year.
He shared some of his adventures with me, and it made me feel so insignificant and silly. He doesn't have electricity in his home. He doesn't have a computer. He doesn't have a cell phone. He lives such a minimalistic lifestyle. I think of how afraid I'd be traveling around like that with no way to contact people. Funny how much false security our technological devices give us.
I got home last night and all the outside lights were off at my house, and I started to get frightened, and then I thought how Bill travels around unfamiliar areas for hours in the dark. There's something about the way he's chosen to live that I can really appreciate. He's so happy and carefree. He experiences so much and each day is like an adventure. My life is so monotonous. I sit in front of a computer most days and feel like I'm living when people pay attention to my Facebook page. See, fame isn't really an adventure. It's a trap. People begin to expect things out of you when you're up on a pedestal. Having an image to protect is boring. Living to please others has never been a fulfilling occurrence for me, and I don't know why I've developed such an appetite for "success."
Success isn't money. It isn't walking around in pumps and a designer business suit with everyone knowing your name. It isn't being known simply for the gain of being known. I think I'd hate that, just happening upon fame through any avenue. I just want to enjoy the things that I love. I want to be fulfilled through an adventurous and crazy life. What Bill does really inspires me to see the world differently and not get stuck in this rigid, "normal," BORING lifestyle that I've started to create for myself.
So, thanks, Bill. :)
- erin whatley
- two-two-niine, Georgia, United States
- i never thought it would be hard to fit a nut into a nutshell, but here's a go at what i'm about. foremost, i know, love and follow the Lord. i'm a wild card. i enjoy being alone as much as i enjoy other people. i eat up anything art-related. i'm an only child. i have a BBA in Marketing & an AA in Fine Arts. i'm the marketing and PR gal for Stewbos group, a job i truly love. i do this part-time, and the rest of the time i'm a stay at home wife/mama to Justin and Vayda. i itch to travel and i delight at learning new things. you'll find i'm neurotic, intellectual, honest and somewhat naive. i'm open and compassionate, yet paradoxically hard on myself. my biggest fear is succumbing to cynicism, and my greatest joy is experiencing growth. my idol is willy wonka, because i never want to grow up. i sing and dance my way through the day. I believe the best ones are full of giggles. i think blogging is rather self-indulgent. writing about my thoughts feels selfish, yet i enjoy the exploration it brings. thanks for stopping by.
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