We’re all eggshells, all the time.
Something you should read all of. Jonah Goldberg ostensibly reacting to NJ gov Chris Christie’s bridgegate scandal. But he was on an airplane with a dying laptop battery (I’ve been there), and he wound up talking about so much more (I’ve been there too; it makes you smarter):
People who choose not to dedicate their lives to getting rich aren’t making a mistake, they’re doing what they think and hope will make them happy. I almost went to law school. All things being equal, I think I’d make a pretty good lawyer. Except for one thing: I don’t think I’d like being a lawyer. I like being a writer — most days, at least. Is it unfair or wrong that I don’t make as much money as some lawyer who spends his days reading through stacks of low-flow toilet patents? No, because (a) I don’t care enough about money to spend my life doing that kind of work and (b) fairness has nothing to do with it. The market sets the price for such things.
My boss at the American Enterprise Institute, Arthur Brooks, is the foremost champion of the idea of “earned success.” It turns out what makes people happy isn’t money, it’s the feeling that you made a meaningful contribution to life. Absolutely: You can get that from building a business and getting rich. But you can also get that from raising a family, starting a charity, being a winning coach or an exceptional teacher, from writing a novel, or, in my case, from your record for fitting 37 Cheetos in your mouth at one time. (“They’ll never take that away from you.” — The Couch)
What can’t give you a feeling of earned success is getting stuff you didn’t earn. It can make you temporarily excited. But meaningful happiness comes from finding meaning. And what counts as meaningful for you might count as a huge waste of time to me. That’s why the inalienable right to pursue happiness has to be an individual right.
Rang a bell with me. Well. Read it all and then get back to me. I have a cold and I’m stoned to the gills on Mucinex. Lloyd Pye died without telling me first. And Raebert’s being a nuisance. I could use some witty repartee.
Closing traffic lanes… Oh noes! What a wanton, egregious abuse of power!!
Goldberg’s right. That closing lanes should make big headlines while the current administration is in power boggles the mind. Still, I hope it was worth it, Chris. Sure cost ya a lot.
What really disturbs me though is that bit about bears and national parks. Someone should do something about that. Maybe a bear czar?
I almost went to law school. Scored high on the LSAT. Got accepted at a 1st tier school. My pen was hovering over the deposit check. But, like Jonah, I realized I wouldn’t like being a lawyer. At least, not the kind I was going to have to be to pay for law school. I’ve got less money, and still less prestige. However, I get to spend time with my family and I’ve been allowed to keep my soul.
Sorry to hear about Pye. He had some wild ideas, but seemed like a really smart fellow and never struck me as a charlatan — unlike many folks that run in those circles. There was a part of me that wanted some really funky results to come out of those skull DNA tests, if only for Lloyd’s sake.
When I need a laugh, I watch some Phineas & Ferb with my boys. Streams on Netflix. Clever, imaginative, wry, and really, really funny. Guaranteed to make me feel better.
Sorry to hear about Lloyd also. It’s early Monday morning so I’m afraid I am short on witty repartee, though that win by the Niners & the refs over the Panthers was impressive.
I will second the entertainment value of Phineas & Ferb, too.