Boring Things

I haven't written in a while... but I've been taking pictures.... so here's what I've been up to since the RKelli wedding.

I've been under two waterfalls. Here's Bridal Veil Falls -- the other was Stewart Falls.

Are named waterfalls plural or singular?

I got a new computer to use at work. It's a beautiful new iMac. I have it hooked up to another external monitor that I had been using with my laptop -- so I have a ridiculous amount of screen in front of me. Every time people come behind my desk, almost without exception, they exclaim, "Wow... that's a really nice screen." I'm lucky for sure.



And lastly, something about me: I like boring things. I really do. I sometimes tire of our American life (I say "American" because not all "modern" lives are the same): constantly doing things; constantly stimulating our senses; never letting the earth hold any sort of sway in life.

Today I walked to Harmon's for lunch -- for the Matt Value Meal (corn dog, big croissant, string cheese, mnms, pint of OJ, banana, can of Pringles -- all for $4.50). I've driven to Harmon's many times -- it's a trivial drive, though it consists of too many left turns. But I've never walked. And as I walked today past all the old-style houses... some with unkempt lawns, others with very kempt lawns, some with wooden fences, some with none, some with kids swinging or playing... and a whole lot of birds singing... I remembered how wonderful life can be when we're not rushing from place to place or worrying so much about everything. All this time driving to Harmon's for lunch, I've been skipping something great -- I'm glad I caught it today.

Around the corner from the oldish neighborhood and set off by a small field, there's a much larger and much newer house. It's a beautiful home -- it seems like it has a room for everything. It's not any larger than many of today's homes, but juxtaposed with the old neighborhood, it seems a little gaudy. And it reminds me of a thought I've thought many times before:

I am much happier living patiently and contentedly with imperfect things than I am living with exactly what I think I want. I could come up with reasons for having every single room in the larger house. And when compared with the smaller houses, if I could afford the larger, it would seem foolish to take the smaller. But so many times, life is just better when I don't get everything I want. There, that's how I wanted to say it:

Life is so much better when I don't get everything I want. It's nice to want for at least some things.