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In a society that almost demands life at double time, 

speed and addictions numb us to our own experience. In such a society

it is almost impossible to settle into our bodies or stay connected with our hearts, 

let alone connect with one another or the earth where we live.

- Jack Kornfield

Wishlisted

Why yes, yes that is a camera bag. Currently swooning over one of the newest additions to the always delightful collection by Lo & Sons. Wouldn't this be a chic alternative to those clunky, hey-look-I'm-a-tourist camera bags when traveling?

Very Busy People - Part 2

I feel like the access more of us have to a widening range of experiences is completely unprecedented*. Not only can we travel abroad for a year or return to grad school, but we fully expect that we can simultaneously manage a blog, start a small photography business, volunteer at a community farm (or at least learn how to compost properly!), and become a yoga instructor.

We were raised to be well-rounded and from that same mold, opportunists. The world has become our oyster is so many ways and we’d like to experience all it has to offer. If two roads diverged in a yellow wood, we would hike them both and then set out to blaze a newer, better trail altogether.

Furthermore, modern-day gadgets plus social networking and daily deal sites such as LivingSocial, Groupon or Jetsetter have made it even easier to fill our time with seemingly enriching activities (Explore Merlot & Monet!, Unlimited Skydiving in West VA!, D.C. Monumental Photography Tour!). Not only that, but there’s the additional pressure created when, in your “down time” cruising Facebook, you see how busy and accomplished everyone else is! The question now is, if a tree falls in a forest and no one posts about it on their Wall, did it really happen?

Very Busy People - Part 1

On the return bus ride from New York to D.C. last night, I was listening to my iPod on shuffle when The Limousines’ song “We Are Very Busy People” came on. Not only was I reminded of how much I like this song, but it also reminded me of the recent NYT article “The 'Busy' Trap.” One of my friends half-jokingly said she was too busy to even read it! After putting the catchy song on repeat, I watched the scenery pass by and mulled over our culture’s obsession with being busy.

When I was eleven or twelve years old, my parents enrolled me in a summer course (I’m pretty sure it wasn’t my idea) to help me plan, prioritize and multi-task better. We were encouraged to list our short-, medium- and long-term goals on a regular basis. A lot of parents must have been on the same wavelength as mine because now that I think about it, I don’t believe adults from my generation* have any problem identifying their goals. The problem is that they don’t know when to stop.

Over the next few days, instead of posting pictures from California like I said I would, I want to explore a bit more the preoccupation we have with well, being occupied. But for now, my short-term goal is to finish my pizza, drink a beer and catch up on some well-deserved TV (Breaking Bad, anyone?). 

So instead of photos from San Francisco, I will leave you with this clever video of SF Bay Area-based The Limousines.



THE LIMOUSINES from Mathieu Wothke on Vimeo.

*probably from my socioeconomic background, as well. But I'd like to think this behavior is increasingly present across the board.

S.F.

Pem and I had the most amazing time in San Francisco for the Fourth of July. As expected, there was tons of great food, wonderful company and lots and lots of walking!

Far more to follow soon... Stay tuned!