We live in a world where everyone seems to be in a hurry to get somewhere fast. I often fall victim to this as well. There have been times in my life where I have wall-to-wall distractions. Things that must be done or things that I really should do stand between me and living life. Rushing headlong into the next something, ramming through speedbumps as if they aren’t there, I forget to stop and think about what I’m actually doing. Thanks to a decent job with good benefits, I’m hitting the brakes later today. I’m burning some of my hard-earned paid time off, aiming to go nowhere slowly.
100% All The Time
In my line of work, things are always changing. It happens fast and often without notice. You simply find out when you find out. Fortunately, most of my colleagues understand how to deal with this gauntlet: Finish the job and evaluate the impact of changes later. Yes, this means you complete a project only to find a better way to accomplish the task. But you completed the project. The alternative is a never-ending loop of going nowhere fast.
Nowhere Slowly
I do have plans for my extended Thanksgiving holiday, but they are simple. Do a bit of this, a bit of that. While I will put in 100% on some things, there will be ample times when I just cruise through. Not everything in life needs my full attention. And there are plenty of things that deserve more attention. This is what vacation is for: Focusing on other things.
Standing On The Corner
No, not in Kansas City. Give yourself ten points if you get the reference. Otherwise, enjoy your “young people music” and maybe that photo from Chicago up top. Taken during a photowalk at a convention a few years back, I was standing on a corner, playing with long exposures. Traffic was quieter than one might expect for a big city, but I still captured a few fun images. I feel like it shows what I mean by going nowhere slowly today. Find a spot. Relax. Let the world go by and enjoy whatever happens by. You can get back to racing with it when you return to work.
