I’m not sure I have ever been less happy about the political choices for President than this year. And the campaigns are not helping. Both sides are just downright mean and honesty is paid more lip service than actual practice. There are days when I think I just want to get away from it all. And indeed from people in general.
I once had a poster in my room. It was Lucy from Peanuts saying “I love mankind – it’s people I can’t stand.” The older I get the more that makes sense to me. So there are days when I think being a hermit somewhere out west might just be a good life. And then I realize that I’d miss my wife and son and several other people. In fact it makes me think about my current work life – working at home alone most days.
By the time the weekend comes I really feel the need to be around people. You know you’ve been working alone a long time when you start to look forward to in person meetings even though them mean long painful drives (like into Boston) or airplane trips half way across (or all the way across) the country because there will be actual people there. You’ll be able to se faces, watch body language and in general be actual and not virtual for a while.
Phone meetings are ok as far as they go. Instant messaging can actually be really good. Twitter can become downright addictive – it makes me feel like I am in a virtual room with people. It’s actually more like being there than phone meetings in some ways. I’m less shy in virtual rooms than in physical rooms. That makes virtual rooms easier but at the same time they are still less satisfying. I really don’t expect virtual meetings to completely replace in person meetings. People who think that is possible probably don’t work remotely.
I think I need to find the right balance. There are times when it is good to be away from people. I can really enjoy being all alone, thinking, praying, relaxing, clearing my mind, rebuilding a need for people. And other times I really just need to be with people. Talking, listening, experiencing. Right now my days are sort of in between. Some people interaction with my wife and some virtual interaction with people online. I’m not really alone and I’m not really with people. I probably need to get out more. 🙂