stay tuned for the meaning of life
ha ha, just kidding, but I reference this title bc I really did find a book (an advance copy; publishing date is in september I think?) called "The Real Meaning of Life." The copy I have is only a sampler (and it's neon orange and yellow too) but I do plan on buying the 240 page real edition when it comes out. From the intro by the editor, David Seaman (he's 19 now I think?): "I'm afraid you might have picked up the wrong book. You won't find a glossy cover with some well-dressed guy towering triumphantly over the embossed promise of his book. You won't find a day-by-day checklist for improving your life. You won't lose any weight. This isn't Prozac in an easily digestible paperback format. Please, don't waste your money if all you want is another typical self-help guide. This book is about the meaning of life. What could be more important? The meaning isn't always pretty, but it is almost always enlightening. Let me steop back in time for a moment. It is the fall semester at New York University. I am a freshman. I have just failed my second calculus quiz in a row. I have a ton of acquaintances, but few real friends. My Barnes & Noble discount card is dangerously close to expiring. In sum, my life is not steaming ahead at full speed. Oh, and I'm at Starbucks, where I am supposed to be writing a long paper on God only knows what. (No exaggeration: The paper was about God and the cosmic order in Dante's universe.) Instead, I am doing what any responsible student would be doing: surfing the Internet on my laptop. In a moment of despair, I type, "What is the meaning of life?" into one of my favorite online forums and hit Enter. I expect the usual level of Internet discourse: a handful of nonsensical responses written in broken, abbreviated English. To my surprise, When I refresh the forum page fifteen minutes later, there are forty responses awaiting my attention. Within an hour, the number grew to sixty--almost all of them deeply insightful commentaries on the human condition. Sure, a few people suggested 'boobies and beer,' but they were in the definite minority." To make a long story longer, Seaman "desperately wanted to receive more insight from everyday Internet folks." So he created the website: realmeaningoflife.com--which I still haven't had a second to visit but I will soon. Or maybe I'll just buy the book since he's edited and condensed all the answers he sees as meaningful--and since I like his writing, and who he seems to be, I think I'll just buy it. He wrote on that website: "At some point in your life, you're going to look for meaning. Maybe at eighteen, maybe not until you're seventy-two. Let's face it, you have no idea what's going on. Neither do I. Be original but useful to your fellow human beings." I can't wait for this. I love hearing what he calls everyday Internet folk are thinking, and I think everybody else will too--that's part of the reason reality tv won't go away. I realized I don't think I can surround myself or be interested in people who aren't interested in finding meaning.but I'll finish talking about the different people I met this weekend.
2. Eric: my mom was punishing me for coming home at 430 that morning (me, Maura, Katie, Will, Melissa, Jill, Zach, and Suz Teegarden--back in town and dating Joey Gladston!--went to this dive in Countryside called the Natural and stayed there til 230 or 3, ran into our high school, and some other people, then went back to Zach's and were loud/drunk until 430--I'll have to talk about that another time bc I finally learned how to step, as in R.Kelly "step in the name of love" and Ciara "1,2, step"! This 43 year old black man named Nathan taught me when he requested James Brown from the deejay booth--I guess that's the sountrack to him teaching honky white girls how to step? he was great), banning me from use of any car, and I had told my brother that I would come downtown (among others, like Margi and Dave) after I finished babysitting, but then my mom apparently forgot that I'm TWENTY TWO and started acting like an immature teen mom, so I walked to the train. He sat down next to me and we were wearing the same shoes (just the boy/girl versions of each other; I had the salmon/crimson pair, he had black/black pair of Nikes weirdo strap-on fashion gym shoes ). So weird bc I I bought mine in Osaka and he bought his online from Europe and we were saying how everyone makes fun of us for these shoes. THEN I find out his girlfriend dropped him off in a red bug and Katie and Maura dropped me off in the Tracy's orange bug! Even weirder! Oh, Kate and Maura saw me crossing Ogden on their way to drop off Jessica, and we hung out at the Tracy's for a little while, then they drove me to the LG Rd stop. The train was late of course, since it's the last one into Union Station from Aurora and it's summerfest time and people are wanting to be drunk, so they ride Metra more. We sat together on the train and I found out he's 18, lives on the South Side but teaches kids at a circus camp in Skokie! (Another weird connection since my dad used to be a principal, and then an administrator there.) He hailed me a cab at Union (le Chris told me he'd pay for my cab once I got to his apt) and I told him I wanted to come up and see the circus show this Thursday night. He said some of his kids can do the types of tricks in Cirque du Soleil! I'm there. And I think I want to see if Matt Holmes wants to go, since he was involved in that whole carnie lifestyle thing, even though Eric and I talked about how carnie types are NOT circus folk. Pretty different.
3. Joanna (and her boyfriend Vincent): I'll also have to finish this part later, since I get off in ten minutes and I have to catch the 418 train back to LG. Plus, I really should use my last ten minutes to stock books and not type! Lazy!
posted by SES @ 5:49 PM
2 Comments:
hey, i read STAR cover to cover on a plane from CHI to boston, and I had SO many comments for you. but i left it in the damned seat pocket and, naturally, forgot everything.
do you think AJ is pregnant with brad's baby?
glad to know you're a true Star fan now...it's coverage is amazing, am I right? However I haven't yet read this issue (the newest I plan to read tomorrow at work, bc the cover has a pic of Britney overweight-ly pregnant, with the caption, Brit: Looks Like Twins! Can't wait)...interesting news though...I thought AJ was more interested in adopting. Maybe her Cambodian son will have a Vietnamese sister or something? I think she's got Brad into adopting now too. But I guess they have intense sex so we'll see if she's soon on "bump watch" (another reason I'm annoyed by US weekly)
but anyways, you know I could talk about celebs all day...Will and I are trying to figure out the going away festivities. My lakehouse is available (maybe the 3rd or 4th?) AND it coincides with summerfest in Milwaukee. On the night of the 4th, we could see Bret Michaels of Poison! That would be a pretty fantastic send-off. Call me this week--not sure what others are planning
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