Over the New Year’s weekend, I was reading a book The Last Policeman by Ben Winters.<\/p>\n
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It’s a police detective sci-fi novel. The police detective stuff has been done frequently, and done well. Ben Winters poses the scenario:<\/p>\n
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What if the police detective were trying to be a detective which a life-ending asteroid hurtling toward earth?<\/p>\n
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Slowly.<\/p>\n
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It will take about a year to get there.<\/p>\n
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So what does everyone do when they know this life (and that would be all human life) ending asteroid is coming?<\/p>\n
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I’ve heard the maxim, “live every day like it’s your last.”<\/p>\n
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Well, that’s nonsense. If this were my last day, You cannot reasonably do that. If this were my last day on earth, I certainly wouldn’t mow the lawn.<\/p>\n
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Or go to work.<\/p>\n
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But if it were my last year?<\/p>\n
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That’s a bigger scope. In this novel, anyone with means is considering leaving their jobs and going “bucket list.”<\/p>\n
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Which is all fine, but then how do basic needs get met?<\/p>\n
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Cell phone coverage gets a lot spottier when the people maintaining the lines are less motivated. And not even there.<\/p>\n
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Of course, reading about this story, I think about it. What would it be?<\/p>\n
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How could I really decide what I would choose to do with a consequenceless year?<\/p>\n
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What do I really like best?<\/p>\n
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I did not miss the irony that I was reading this book over the new year. Which is also my birthday.<\/p>\n
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What is it? What is the thing?<\/p>\n
Cell phone coverage gets a lot spottier when the people maintaining the lines are less motivated. And not even there.<\/p>\n
Of course, reading about this story, I think about it. What would it be?<\/p>\n
How could I really decide what I would choose to do with a consequenceless year?<\/p>\n
What do I really like best?<\/p>\n
I did not miss the irony that I was reading this book over the new year. Which is also my birthday.<\/p>\n
What is it? What is the thing?<\/p>\n
One thing I know for sure is it\u2019s not one thing.<\/p>\n
It takes a bunch of different things to make a life satisfying and balanced<\/p>\n
Like the commercial \u201cPart of this balanced breakfast\u201d<\/p>\n
It takes the mind blowing and the mundane to make life work.<\/p>\n
And it takes trying and tasting and moving on. Some of the things I loved once are not a good fit anymore.<\/p>\n
And some of them I\u2019ll never leave behind.<\/p>\n
It\u2019d fun to think about\u2014what would I do if it were really the things I like best?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Over the New Year’s weekend, I was reading a book The Last Policeman by Ben Winters. It’s a police detective sci-fi novel. The police detective stuff has been done frequently, and done well. Ben Winters poses the scenario: … Continue reading