love you for what I am not

Howdy from the further East, boys'n'girls. I've been bunkering down with the family since Thursday night, and it's been a blast. I ordered one of them nice greasy local pizzas, rented some movies, read the last Harry Potter book, slept late, went to lunch at John Harvard's, did a whole lot of nothing and loved every minute of it.

I've also watched enough TV to kill a clump of brain cells equivalent to one possessed by a large-ish lizard or a small rodent. TV is good. If I could afford lots of TV in my apartment, I might never do anything else. Besides, you know, show up at my job when absolutely necessary.

This is vacation, boiled down to its glorious essence: mindless entertainment, good food, a dose of those family members most tolerable. Although I may be a working man now, I am not touching the work stuff for three more days. That will make six whole days of studiously avoiding my responsibilities. I daresay, that might be the longest I've consciously kept some sort of responsibility out of my mind since last August. Even then, moving and packing and whatnot encroached dangerously on my mental turf.

I venture to say that the popular conceit in the modern era is that a person, if he stops long enough to catch his breath, might veer dangerously into the habit of pathos and navel-gazing. Without something to do, this person might start thinking about who he is. Crises may ensue. I for one have never had this problem. My zen is acheived most easily when I have absolutely nothing to do. My greatest fear is that I will become defined by things that I do - or more specifically, things that I must, but do not want, to do. As a dirty, lazy, greasy schlub sitting in bed or on the couch, I'm pretty comfortable with who I am. My zen of inactivity even staves off the nervous rumblings of despair and loneliness. After all, going out and finding people with whom I wish to spend time is itself a draining experience, an unsalaried job that's vagaries sometimes seem as daunting as a bona fide profession. Much better, then, to just sit and veg out. Much better indeed.

I will confess my dissatisfaction with one thing: the lack of new video games. Nintendo has disappointed me this year by delaying loads of their most promising new Wii titles until the very last minute. August 27th will mark the launch of Metroid Prime 3, which, without online multiplayer, will be entertaining and amusing and possibly brilliant, but still incomplete. After that, it will be literally months before Super Mario Galaxy and Smash Brothers Brawl, although Soul Calibur Legends may provide some interim entertainment. But by golly, couldn't they get their shit together and get something cool out the door for MY VACATION WEEK? Honestly people. Chop chop.

A vacation post this has been, eh? It's been by turns self-indulgent, rambling, and ultimately pointless. It reeks of effortlessness, and not in a good way. But you know what? I'm comfortable with this post. And I did it while lying in a very comfy bed.