Between the Ears: Think, but don't think so much

It's been about 60 days since I left Seattle and the past two months have let me slow down a bit, enjoy time with family and friends, and do some things I've wanted to do but didn't have the time, interest, or access to prior to the move. The blog is one of those things, since writing is something I've always enjoyed, and its kind of fun to have the freedom to write about whatever I feel like.

To my surprise, there's been interest in the blog from friends (and a few randoms) here in Chicago and elsewhere, which means I'm either selling the hell out of myself (and the blog) or folks are finding whatever I'm putting together reasonably interesting. The interviews with friends will continue, but I figured I'd spend today with a field trip between my ears to let you know what I'm thinking about.

I've mentioned my plan for life several times, so I'm not going to revisit the whole thing (you can read about it here if you want), but one of the things I wanted to push myself with was reading more in 2009. My older sister has always been a huge reader, and when I mentioned I was looking for some fiction to read she suggested Blindness by Jose Saramago. The story was turned in to a film a few years ago, which I am not going to watch until I'm done with the book, but its essentially a story about a contagious epidemic of blindness.

As you can imagine, the story gets chaotic quickly as individuals who are accustomed to having vision have to adapt to life without the ability to see. The story is compelling, and its given me an appreciation for my ability to see things, but there was a quote from the book that I found fitting given the choices I've made throughout life. Gramattically, Mr Saramago doesn't believe in punctuation, but I think you'll get the jist of it:

"if, before every action, we were to begin by weighing up the consequences, thinking about them in earnest, first the immediate consequences, then the probable, then the possible, the the imaginable ones, we should never move beyond the point where our first thought brought us to a hault."

Looking back on the past 32 years, it wouldn't have hurt if I thought through some of the consequences before making a few of my decisions, but ultimately I'm glad I'm more comfortable taking risk than the alternative of being overly cautious. All of my choices haven't played out the way I hoped, and it'd be easy to play the shoulda-coulda-woulda game on many of them, but the quote from the book was a nice way to capture my philsophy in a few sentences.

Maybe its because I've experienced a few of those decisions turn out not so well and found that the "worst case scenario" isn't so bad after all. Or maybe its because I've had a few of them work out better than I could have anticipated. Or better yet, there's probably something in my brain (or soul, or psyche, or gut) that likes the unpredictability that comes with taking chances. I'm sure there's an amateur (or professional) psychologist out there with a more scientific explanation for why I've turned out this way, but that's me in a nutshell.

I know everyone can't or doesn't have that same tolerance for risk, and if we all did, the world would probably turn to chaos like the fictional city in Blindness. But we can all take risks in our daily lives, and I've learned through experience that the more I think about every possible negative outcome the less likely I am to do anything. Overthinking usually ends up with me sitting still, which ultimately doesn't do well for life between the ears.

Today's risk involves going to an informational session this evening, sponsored by the Chicago Tribune. The Trib (like all other newspapers) is struggling with subscription/advertising, and have begun a section in the Thursday editions of the paper filled with articles written by "everyday citizens" about events, observations, and activities in local communities. Maybe it'll help solve their problem, but my guess is it probably won't save the newspaper.

I'm not sure they'll be thrilled about my Dear Highland Park entry from a few weeks ago on the blog, but I figure its not going to hurt for me to at least explore the idea of writing for a broader audience than whoever checks in here from time to time.

Hopefully today's entry inspires you to take on some risk you've been thinking about for a while and I always like to hear stories about folks taking chances. Friends and family members can help if you're nervous on taking risk on your own, but give it a shot, even if its something small. Off the top of my head, here's a few ideas if you're interested in pushing yourself today or sometime soon....:

• Introduce yourself to a stranger. Try your local barista, mail carrier, or a neighbor.
• Eat at a restuarant you've never been to, even if it means driving a little farther than you're used to.
• Read an article or watch a television program about something you know nothing about.
• Try a physical activity you've never done before or haven't tried in a while.
• Explore a neighborhood
• Make a plan for the weekend that invovles doing something "off the grid" or away from your usual surroundings
• Create something; whether its art, music, writing, or a home improvement project, do something with your hands or brain
  
• Check out a random concert, even if you've never heard of the band
  
• Pick up the phone (or email) an old friend you haven't been in touch with for a long time
  

And drop me a line if you try something new to let me know how it goes....you might give me some ideas for cool things to do as well....