Two Days Late and (more than a few) Dollars Short

In no world can I claim that Thursday is the new Tuesday.  I am late with this week’s post, and I am still trying to find someone else to blame, other than any of the people in my head.  This week, which is not even over yet, has felt like the longest week of my life.  Time has flown faster for kidnap victims in Somali pirate captivity, than it has for me.  Perhaps my self-imposed house arrest, due to my renewed attempts to save money would have something to do with that.  Don’t let anyone fool you, poverty is a sin.  That crazy nun at my Convent high school was right:  I will never be seen in a habit, because I don’t understand how anyone in their right mind can live life without any money in her bank account.  (Unless, of course, you have the Catholic church and its bottomless coffers of pilfered currency and goods, as your bank account.  I will stop here before I cause any offense;  I have been known to do that from time to time.)

Seriously though, this week has been a very somber one for me.  I attended the funeral of a work colleague on Monday.  She died suddenly, after a few days of illness, at the tender age of 25.  She was three days short of her 26^th birthday.  Her family chose to begin her funeral ceremony with the attendees walking in to strains of Alicia Key’s iconic song, “New York”. She had always wanted to visit New York; one of her closest co-workers would have made the journey with her.  They never got a chance to plan a date.  It had all remained a dream that she spoke about with aching frequency.

I barely knew this girl; shared passing pleasantries with her in the ladies bathroom, worked with her briefly on a few projects.  My knowledge of her as a person was quite limited, to be honest.  Yet, I found the entire scenario extremely sad.  She was so young.  She had so much of her life to live, and, according to her tributes, so much love to give.

Moments, and occasions like these resonate with us all.  They remind us that we all have just this one life, and the clichéd phrases relating to living each day like our last become all the more poignant.  I try not to tell my extreme personality phrases such as those, for fear that I will stand on a table in the middle of the office, dance like nobody’s watching, and “work” like I don’t need the money.  However, living our lives to the fullest is exactly what we should be doing – every single day.  We spend so much time obsessing over the little things, or the big things (like a mortgage, and that fancy schmancy BMW), that we don’t stop for a moment and place it all into perspective: If the world, or our world ended tomorrow, can each of us as individuals say that we lived our dreams? Or at least tried to?  I suppose, given our complete lack of knowledge of the afterlife, we don’t really need to answer those questions.  And perhaps I should not attempt to, given my proclivity towards weekly existential crises.  Yet, the thought is worth mulling over. 

In essence, yours truly has a renewed resolve to stop focusing on the things that don't matter (like how I have managed to gain 3 pounds after alllll that work, why am I suddenly so addicted to tiramisu, did I really forget to pay my rent this month and why am I not at Glastonbury this weekend?). I've reviewed the bucket list, and made some firm decisions about the pursuit of my most fervent goals.  Perhaps I'm being slightly obsessive (who? me? nooooo), but I would prefer the soundtrack of my life to be filled with songs dedicated to all the things I did, as opposed to the things that I didn't do, but always wanted to.  

Contemplation of one's mortality is a morose activity.  The end result though, should be a renewed resolve to live in the now.  We all should take a moment to look at our bucket lists,  and start planning the long-awaited trip to that sweet wherever.  

Love of the Week:  London’s latest obsession with everything Aloe Blacc.  His music is all over the mainstream radio, and his quirky, personal style was featured in an issue of this week’s London Metro.  He is a true musician, the kind that rarely becomes appreciated by the masses.  I accidentally discovered You Make Me Smile on youtube a couple months ago (which was filmed live in the Paris Metro), and I have been a big fan of his ever since. I’m thrilled that the rest of the city is catching on too. 

(and for the record, I would definitely give him a dollar – or two)

Peeve of the Week: People who lack a sense of humour.  Or rather, people whose ability to appreciate humour is limited by their underdeveloped intellect.  I have genuinely aspired to approach every situation from a place of peace, but when someone gets grossly offended that I have (and cleverly, if I may say so myself) likened a job in the corporate world to intellectual prostitution, with your boss as your pimp, I feel no pity for that person.  Get a life, open your mind, and stop using the bare top of your desk to make your sandwiches.