It’s funny that we think of, “middle age” as somewhere around 50. Assuming a 100 year lifespan is pretty darn optimistic. Don’t get me wrong, I’d be happy to experience mid-life around 65 or so. But unless we make some major medical/robotic advances in the next 30-40 years, it’s likely my mid-life is in the rear view mirror. (And not that, “objects are closer than they appear” one either…)
Today is my 49th birthday. Being born in 1975 makes the birthday math pretty easy, especially when thinking about quarter centuries. While I’m not having some sort of existential crisis about approaching 50, I have to admit it’s a bit unsettling to run out of 40s! Nevertheless, today starts Season 49 (or Series 49 if you’re in the UK). I want to make this a year where I squeeze the joy out of each day. I don’t want to just, “get through” the weekdays in order to stress about Monday on the weekends. If there’s anything getting older has taught me, it’s that we need to live life as it happens. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed, and things will NEVER slow down.
I couldn’t sleep last night. That’s not uncommon, unfortunately. Once my brain starts thinking about something, it figures, “hey, nothing is interrupting me — we can get some serious thinking time in! Yay! Think all night!” UGH.
Personally, I think my brain is a bit of a douchebag, but I’m stuck with it. (Unless we figure out that robot thing in the first paragraph…) My thought was that if I really wanted to make sure to live every day to the fullest, I should document it. Vlogs aren’t cool anymore, but if I just wanted to record stuff for myself, it wouldn’t have to be popular or profitable.
Seriously, I thought about it ALL NIGHT. It wasn’t the first time I’d considered such a thing either. Just ask me who owns the season49.com domain… lol. The problem is, I’m not sure *recording* every day is conducive to actually squeezing the juice out of every day. It sounds fun today, but will episode 149 be a frustrating burden not even halfway through the season? I did the 90DaysOfMayhem challenge, and did really enjoy it — but the self-made rules were I just had to upload some sort of video every day. If I’m documenting my entire day into a Vlog, that sounds like a lot of hours of forced editing.
So maybe instead of a daily Vlog, I commit to a daily Blog. I do want to write more often, and my Patreon supporters listed blogging as my most valued creative endeavor. Heck, maybe Season 49 can just be a commitment to reflect on each and every day in some manner. Maybe a blog post. Maybe a Vlog entry. Maybe a TikTok if some wisdom is bestowed upon me in the supermarket. What do you think, noble reader? Does, “reflect on the day, every day, in some way” fill the role of trying to squeeze the joy out of life? I realize it’s totally my call, but as a full night of thinking demonstrates; deciding is not my strong suit.
But look! If that’s my plan (which it sorta feels like it might be), I’ve already finished Episode 1. And you just watched it. Whatdoyathink?
I’m pretty sure I love it.
@shawnp0wers I'm just glad you crosspost these to Mastodon where I can see it. 🙂