mediocre coffee, the present moment...

I'm sleeping kind of strange here lately. Five hours here a few more there. So I was up at dawn and the wife and I went down to Starbucks to get fixed up. I've been bouncing around the house listening to really loud pop music trying to find inspiration for today's blog. I really want to push the blog beyond my mental quirks and talking about meds. So today I will try and touch on some other stuff like spirituality and philosophy.

I've always gotten a kick out of the average joe, the underdog. Most of the young people I meet today are on their quest. Kids start touring college campuses at 16 years old these days already planning out years of their lives. We get taught to cheat the present moment right from the get go. In a world where everyone is so willing to trample one another for fortune its refreshing to see some people just living life day to day and doing it right. By doing it right I mean smiling, making others smile and living for the day at hand. I spent so much of my life letting each day fly by me and until recently I think I knew little about how to approach twenty four brand new hours.

My favorite group of average joes are down at my corner Starbucks. I've had better coffee for sure, but its the people that keep me coming in day in and day out. I was in the shop a month or so ago and as I waited for my drink I watched a group of baristas musing over a baseball card. When I asked who it was they motioned to one of the newer employees. Let's call him "Will" for the sake of his privacy. He's a guy in his early 40's. Not your typical young hipster Starbucks employee. I looked down at the card to see Will in an Expos uniform posing in his batting stance. "No way" I said. He smiled and explained that it was no big deal,that he had only been called up from the minors for one season in fifteen years.

"I hit a grand slam in Yankee stadium though, that was awesome..."

"No shit!" I said

Will works a mid shift so he is there practically everyday when I go in at 5:30 on my way into work or with my wife on our afternoon coffee dates. He always yells "GOLDBERG" when I walk in because I look like Goldberg the wrestler from the late 90's. Big and bald with a bushy goatee. I'd bet there are a lot of people like Will out there these days especially after the recession. People are sometimes forced to take non traditional jobs for their skill set. Working outside of one's profession just trying to scrape by can probably bruise the ego a bit, but that's what today's blog is about...

We can't try and hurry our way through transitions or put life on the back burner as we work towards a goal. We will never be complete this way. Life is an action I think. Its something we do. We walk the dog, cook the meal, write the blog, etc. We have to participate fully. If we aren't enjoying each day, each action as a single unit then we are missing out I think. As I go through my days its hard not to get caught in the thought babble of "lose 30 more pounds", "start running", "go back to school", "spend more time with the wife," but I know that just catching myself and coming back to the present moment is progress from where I was say six months ago.

Its funny...I think there is an element of zen to mastering a skill. When I do things I am really good at I'm not thinking about anything but the action. My head is clear. I think this is when we have the most potential to do good in the world. We can really affect people's lives and sometimes we may never know we are doing it. I don't think Will knows how much he is affecting mine everyday when he sells me coffee. Perhaps the purpose of life is to be this for another.

Some thoughts for you all to ponder...

mellow