Nothing in Particular

A new hobby

I need a new hobby. My current one could best be called, "Contemplating the Many Ways that I Suck". I don't recall every deciding that this was going to be my hobby. I just somehow ended up practicing it every day for most of my life. Seriously. You talk about dedication. By comparison, it looks like Michael Phelps has not made a real commitment to swimming. I've put more time into this than some people have put into basic hygiene.

One advantage is that it can be practiced anywhere: In the car, at the gym, half way through a large helping of tuna. It's versatile that way.

And I don't mean to brag, but I have become pretty good at it. I can bring myself down in record time. I could win a Nobel prize and convince myself that it was just because I was the only person available to attend the ceremony that weekend. I'm not into sports, but let's say I hit a home run that won my team the World Series. I would feel good for 10 minutes and then dwell on something stupid I said to the bat boy. I'm that good. Call it a gift. Call it a talent. Call it whatever you want, I am still looking to get rid of it.

Gary Vaynerchuk: I Suck

To build on the previous "Drum Channel" post, yes, I have a bad habit of focusing on what I suck at. Call it a gift. Where others might have to work at this, it kind of comes naturally to me.

To counteract that thinking, though, I thought I would link to this post by Gary Vaynerchuk.

Depression: Advantages

One advantage to having depression is that the doctor check-ups for that don't involve you removing your pants. I mean, you probably could if you wanted to. Although that might require you to tip the doctor a little something extra. But for those of us who don't have that urge, it's nice to have one medical visit that doesn't start with you unzipping.

Self Doubt

There is a cool posting about battling self doubt on the blog Self+Made. And I don't mean to brag, but I am rather gifted in the area of self doubt, the way Michael Phelps has a talent for swimming or the French have a talent for doing things with cheese. Unfortunately, though, self doubt is not an Olympic event, mainly because it would be difficult to sell tickets to a sport where the athletes just rocked back and forth and made low moaning sounds. I can't imagine Wheaties would be too excited about putting you on their box either. "Wheaties: Something to eat while thinking you suck."

(image copyright Microsoft clip art)

Depression

For several years I have battled depression. I have been able to keep it in check with the help of counseling, medication, and TV shows where someone accidentally gets hit in the groin. That last treatment doesn't always work, though. And I've found it is not as funny if you make it happen on purpose, especially at a funeral.

Depression eats away at you from the inside. Worse is that it doesn't even entitle you to use the handicapped spots. This is why it is called "the silent killer". Or maybe that's what they say about gas leaks. I'm not sure. Either way, you still don't get to park near the entrance to the mall.