by Mz. Penny
I lead a pretty full life, and I never seem to have those moments where I say “I’m bored”. I wake up early each morning eager to start my day and go through, in my mind, all the things I want to achieve before the end of the day. It’s quite a long list, and most of the time, I never do get through that list.
I have a project that I am working on right now, and because I am not liking it, I have been prolonging it, and finding ways to distract myself from finishing it. This project is keeping me from moving on to things I really want to do. One of the distractions I have is an online game, a game I love playing because it helps my memory and has no ending to it. It is also interactive with other team players, who are my ‘friends’? I feel that as long as I play it, I won’t get Alzheimers or dementia. Or at least that is what I tell myself. The game is quite addictive, and I have an addictive personality. I keep telling myself, I am going to delete the game, and refocus my brain on other more important matters such as this latest project.
There are so many distractions in life, especially with social media and easy access to addictive games. that I see myself slowly slipping away from things that are important to these kinds of distractions, which were not there for me five years or so ago. I was more focused on my projects, household, reading, music, socializing with real friends, etc., things that created meaning and value for me. I have a list of all of the things I want to do, or should do, but I easily slip back into that ‘other world’ of online games. Some days, I easily find myself scrolling through my Facebook page, checking out what’s going on with friends and family, and looking at their latest posts, another distraction that can easily take up hours of my life if I let it.
Having this full life, and knowing that I am wasting my time on the internet, I wonder what it is like for our younger generation, those who are being brought up with this new norm? I see them on their phones constantly, and how easily distracted they become from real tangible things, such as the arts, reading, writing, etc.. Maybe those things aren’t as important to this younger generation, it seems all about creating an alternative world on the internet with ‘friends’.
I have forever in my mind the memory of an animated movie I once saw called Wall-E, from 2008 I believe. At the time of watching it, it seemed so surreal, but now it seems to become more and more of a reality. I encourage people to watch it, if available on the internet. Ah yes, everything is available on there, from how to string your weed whacker to how to make the perfect bread. I have this love/hate thing going on with the internet. It has enabled me to work from anywhere in the world, which means everywhere I go, my work comes with me.
So today, I will focus on this project that I have, and my goal is to finish it. Will I have spent hours wasting my time on this project? I have spent my time on enough useless things, it will be the client’s decision in the end, and may perhaps bring some value to them.
