What We Are

I've decided that, above all, we are who we are because of the experiences we've had. Simple enough, yet for me a profoundly interesting idea. Think about it-- what we've seen, done, haven't done even-- it all adds up to what makes us unique and special (I'll give everyone the benefit of the doubt).

Here's the kicker-- until we're a certain age, we really have no choice about what experiences and events we are exposed to. What shows we watch, what we eat, who we spend time with-- parents, legal guardians and the like all control those things with pretty tight fists until that golden age of 16. A car liberates us in ways we had never known, allowing one to choose and think about what s/he wants to do and see and experience.

The whole nature-nurture debate has been solved awhile ago and without much fanfare, because we are products of our genetic make-up and also of our experiences/ "nurture" via parents, adults, whatever. for me, the idea that I am who I am today largely because of the choices of others seems pretty ridiculous though, I guess, unavoidable.

Word.

Procrastination as a Career Choice (or "Running Away from Sheets of Bubble Jet Paper")

I've been watching a new show entitled "Californication." It is damn good. DAMN good. Essentially, David Duchovny plays Hank Moody, a talented writer who has been sans inspriation, muse or good subject for several years. The show contains a lot of nudity (usually voluptuous breasts, as it turns out), though I could really do without. Something about the show strikes a chord with me and I think it has something to do with the life that Moody has etched out for himself in the Hollywood hills. He doesn't really work, he drinks too much and rips it up on a fairly regular basis at bars, clubs, galas, whatever. His lack of productive writing has lead him to a productive, albeit contrite and shallow, social life filled with fast cars and faster women.

A career built upon procrastination, in a sense. I, too, like to sit back and do nothing. Study for a final exam? Whatever. Why not alter my fantasy NBA line-up quickly to try and snag a few more points from the hot hand of John Stockton (JK, I don't have Stockton on my team; if I could, though, I would have taken him #1 overall-- 17 ppg and 14 apg over the course of 3 seasons? Ridiculous).

Robots 1, Humans 0.