The Serial Sane Man

Yesterday I turned 23

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 19:40:00 -0600

My mom brought up the fact that at my age she had already been married 5 months. Also, she pointed out that by my older sister’s age, 26, she was already pregnant with her second child. She then went on to say that she still finds us very young, which seems odd considering what my parents were doing at the same ages. I am in absolutely no hurry to grow up and find a wife and start making babies. I can’t even begin to consider the possibility of those things and just the thought makes me cringe. With certainty, I can say that I am glad I am in the position I’m in. Lately, in numerous conversations, I have highlighted the phenomenon that I will now coin the rush to thirty. I feel that in America we have positioned ourselves to shoot for this arbitrary age. The path we take kind of goes like this:

Go to school ages 5-22, during that time scraping some knees, breaking some bones, killing some ants because that is what kids do, kissing some girls, failing some papers, maybe scoring a few touchdowns, disappointing our parents, getting that college tattoo that you just had to have, joining a Liberal Student club in college because all the hip kids were doing it, staying up way to late, learning that life is life and that your mom and dad can’t save you from yourself and the world

At the age of 22, maybe 23 in some cases, you’ll graduate from college with a degree of some sort, probably in an area you show an aptitude but have no real invested interest. But, hey, you landed a solid job working for some consulting firm in the city and now get to live in a pretty nice pad on the North Side somewhere sipping french pressed coffee on your way to the nearest L stop. By 26 you’ll have moved up in the company surpassing those in your peer group. By 29 you’ll have been made a partner just for the sake of doing so. And by 30, you’ll have married, still had no children, purchased a house in suburbia not to live in but to rip down to build a house that is grossly bloated for the lot. Did I mention that you have paid off all your debts, bought an English bulldog from an impeccable bloodline, sport a custom-made wardrobe? You will have one kid if you so desire the tax benefit and maybe donate some money because that is what affluent people do. In all senses of success, you have made it. Truly you have. By 30, you amassed many things, objects deemed pertinent to survival. Now coast until your death.

Or maybe you chased your dreams and chose to major in art, painting to be exact, and now upon graduating, you find yourself working at the Arboretum watching some rich persons screaming child while they learn about the tranquility of the bonsai tree. But who the fuck cares because at the end of the day you can look at a Salvidor Dali painting and delineate between art, insanity, and what it means to imagine while exploring the deep interworkings of the brains of a genius. Not only that, but you have honed your skills as a painter deftly acquiring a taste for surrealism. You cherish these gifts. You can be you. But to some you may be a failure. What will happen to you by the age of 30? You don’t have real aspirations and that is a problem. How will you support yourself living this wreckless lifestyle? Your story, being too unpredictable due to your circumstances, cannot be predetermined here on this page, but it is widely known that you will most likely fail, not because you have struggled to achieve happiness, but due to the fact that you missed out on acquiring other necessary objects such as money, real estate, and a successful rise in the corporate world.

You may create brilliance in your backyard shed art studio, but if it doesn’t bring you success by 30, give it up. Join the ranks of the millions who are zombies, consumerists who have forgotten the fact that mankind has a propensity, a predilection to create. They’re telling us that life expectancy of the children of baby boomers will not match that of their parents. Our overconsumption and lack of motion will be our downfall. Pundits spew that there is a dire backlash against sloth and stuffing one’s face with virtual killing fields and reality shows, but that is all rhetoric. We have become trapped in the mold of what it means to gain success. So instead of achieving success on a broad scope here in the US, we have become afraid, choosing instead to sit around and watch others live their lives of demigod fame. We fear that if we don’t achieve the same success what is the point in trying. We need to break free of the stigma. Who gives a shit what others think if we’re using our talents to create brilliance at any age. Really, we need to rediscover what it means to be timeless, ageless, free from such restrictions that have made us slaves to our most awesome day, our birth date.

Money

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 21:36:32 -0600

Making it brings a smile to my face, but the thought of its fleeting presence brings angst to my soul, slowly dropping my heart into darkness.

*The Emo Kid on The Economics of a Paycheck

Absurdity

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:38:07 -0600

I miss all of my writing cronies because of the quirkiness and the oddity that accompanied life at every turn and angle while they were in my presence

Looking through my great grandmother’s button collection....

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:34:55 -0600

Looking through my great grandmother’s button collection. She was a seamstress in a Chicago factory when she came to America to carry on the tradition of “making clothes” that my family has practiced for centuries.

Hollywood casino, a battle of wits and your deflating wallet.

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 01:29:45 -0600

Hollywood casino, a battle of wits and your deflating wallet.

North by northwest. Gotta love the month leading up to the...

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 22:06:18 -0600

North by northwest. Gotta love the month leading up to the oscars

Cat and little girl

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:43:06 -0600

Cat and little girl

Shaving

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:20:21 -0600

I have been growing out a beard for about 3 weeks now. today, my mom got me a pack of razors, which she claims isn’t a hint to shave off my beard. The beard, for utilitarian purposes, must be kept. It keeps the face mighty warm during these cold days and attracts the babes from miles around, especially those of the hipster variety and class.

Halloween at u of I…my ghostbuster friends

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:18:37 -0600

Halloween at u of I…my ghostbuster friends

Kitchen Update Underway….imagine fake brick backsplash and...

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:08:12 -0600

Kitchen Update Underway….imagine fake brick backsplash and floral wallpaper, but no longer!

Holy Crapola, Batman! That chick scares the shit outta me.

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:30:57 -0600

Holy Crapola, Batman! That chick scares the shit outta me.

March for Life 2010

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 21:46:49 -0600

March for Life 2010

Tebow moves up in my opinion for standing up for what he believes in

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:01:48 -0600

Tebow moves up in my opinion for standing up for what he believes in

Fate is all bullshit in the end, a series of fantastical dreams and allure constructed to mean...

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:17:14 -0600

Fate is all bullshit in the end, a series of fantastical dreams and allure constructed to mean anything at all.

PBR make my insides hurt.

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:18:36 -0600

PBR make my insides hurt.

bigsunglasses: babrahamlincoln: (via tamburina) why i don’t...

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:18:11 -0600

bigsunglasses:

babrahamlincoln:

(via tamburina)

why i don’t wear pants….And neither does GaGa for that same reason…clearly

Truck broke down in downtown aurora. Awesome!

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 13:53:24 -0600

Truck broke down in downtown aurora. Awesome!

veins pop like pistol shot to the alarm clock of fury pupils built by blocks of last nights scotch...

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 12:24:00 -0600

veins pop like pistol shot

to the alarm clock of fury

pupils built by blocks

of last nights scotch and whiskey

Feign interest in the coming sun

Been hitting the weights, getting my fitness straight.

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:26:56 -0600

Been hitting the weights, getting my fitness straight.

"Shrouded in the black thunderheads the distant lightning glowed mutely like welding seen through..."

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:37:40 -0600

“Shrouded in the black thunderheads the distant lightning glowed mutely like welding seen through foundry smoke. As if repairs were under way at some flawed place in the iron dark of the world.”

- Cormac McCarthy, All The Pretty Horses