Back to the routine.  I have mixed feelings for sure.  It’s nice to be comfortable within a day to day but I can’t get this sense of round and round out of my head.  Thanks Rust Cohle, “Time is a flat circle and we are trapped in eternity, doomed to repeat our lives over and over again.”  This quote goes a little bit more macro than my scenario but similar premise.  Off topic but if you aren’t watching True Detective, you are missing one of the finer TV series of our generation.

I spent 10 days traveling around different places and everything had a new excitement to it.    I plopped down into a foreign country knowing virtually no one and had a life experience that I’ll never forget.  It was exhilarating learning about a different culture, seeing new places and people, and getting out of the glass ball known as America.  Having someone tell me, “America is on its own island”, helped put things in perspective.  The people of America only care about America and our Gov’t sticks its nose in all international matters for one reason or another with no clue from the people.  How many Americans do you think could locate Ukraine on a map?

There were many things I preferred in Europe including laid back, friendly, incredibly intelligent people for one.  There was a kindness from the people that I don’t always feel in the States.  Unfortunately I wasn’t able to communicate with the locals but I did notice one amazing thing in Cologne that I particularly identified with, there aren’t fat people.  People take care of themselves.  This obviously isn’t an all encompassing statement but the morbidly obese are far and few between.  I spent one day in Vegas and was repulsed by the slothfulness of Americans.  I’m not talking 10 or 20 pounds either.  People who take care of themselves tend to have a higher standard in things they do.

So I ask myself the question, why do I live here?  The easiest answer is because I grew up here and I know people in this area.  The thing is, I’m not stapled here.  Maybe I’d live a different, better life in another part of the world.  I think the answer lies in the saying, “the grass is always greener on the other side.”  Meaning that if I were to move to another area, I’d work into a similar routine just somewhere else.  This unavoidable routine is both the best and worst parts of life.

I need a routine to have structure and complete tasks.  It allows me to make sure I maintain personal hygiene, educate myself with books and video, exercise, or have time to myself to “be happy”.  When you are thousands of miles away, this doesn’t come as easy and sometimes not at all. Balance is one of those words that is perfect to use in just about any scenario because balance is a good goal to achieve.  What I want to take away from these above points is to always be doing different things and forming new relationships to keep things fresh.  The same is an evil in life that lurks quietly but is extremely dangerous.