Doppelganger

I got a promotion at work and a very good pay increase to go along with it, but when thinking about it this morning on the way to work it didn't seem like enough. What? Am I getting greedy? Yes, but only with my time. I'm tired of my commute. They could give me a 20k increase and I might be able to overlook the two hours I spend on the road each day, but until then it won't be enough. Sigh.

My commute-free self waved from the front porch this morning as I backed out of the driveway, taunting me. It's job is so simple - it does whatever I imagine I'd rather be doing than commuting to work. How great would that be? I wish that I could be someone else's free time doppelganger. I would love doing whatever they wished they could do and reporting back to them that, yes, it was as awesome as they thought it would be.

I need to come up with a company that provides a doppelganger service. However, there would be restrictions on what your hired doppelganger could do. This would not be the kind of service where they had to do all the things you didn't want to do. No, that is what they have administrative assistants for, but this service would take on the great things that you simply don't have time for. Want to tell people that you have climbed Mt. Everest? Sure, we can do that for you. We'll even document the climb with pictures and your doppelganger will look just like you. We would take great pride in finding the right look alike.

Want to go to every show of your teenager's high school theater production, but have to work two of the nights that it is showing? No problem! Your doppelganger will be there in your favorite seat, taking notes and pictures so that when you switch places right after the show, you'll know everything that happened.

Can't make it to the wedding of your spouse's/significant other's best friend? Don't worry, we have that covered! We will even find a gift from the registry for you to purchase and for your doppelganger to take to the event. You'll be the life of the reception without actually having to be there!

Yes, I can see it now, I will be a millionaire soon with the introduction of my new company - Doppel Dealings. Look out, World, your life just got easier and more exciting...for only $20 an hour!

Driving while...

I have started a new Master's program to get my MA in Teaching, with a concentration in secondary English. My first class is about inclusive classrooms, and as a summer class it packs a lot of information into a short amount of time. Unfortunately I got behind on my audio lectures that are stored in an online classroom. My first test is today, and I still have 4.5 hours of lecture that I have not heard. However, I have managed to read all the reading materials.

Last night my sister suggested that I listen to the lectures on the way to and from work. That would be two hours of lecture that I could combine with time spent doing nothing else (other than driving safely). In her opinion, it would be just like listening to the radio.

I had to think about that for a while, because honestly I could do that with my laptop on the way to work. How I would take notes while I was driving would be a challenge that only a good imagination and ingenuity could overcome, but listening to the lectures was perfectly reasonable.

That is when I tried to picture myself in my car, listening to the lecture, and somehow taking notes. I have heard of a lot of people doing things while driving - putting on makeup, eating, talking on the phone, texting, doing their hair, and even changing their clothes, but I have yet to hear of someone taking a class while driving.

Honestly, I have actually tried to study on the way to an exam in my car. I would keep my notebook in my lap or on the seat next to me and look at it at stop signs and stop lights, but listen to a class? I don't think I have the ability to concentrate, understand, and retain information while I am also driving that would make it a worth while endeavor.

My inability to multitask in this manner, or admitting that I am a poor auditory learner, fit in well with the course content on learning disabilities. In this case, I do not have the superior abilities needed to succeed.

Retro Vision

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to live in the late 19th Century, or even the beginning of the 20th. Besides being fascinated by the clothing and the ornamental roles of women in that era, I wonder what it would be like not to have a car.

I drive an hour each morning to work. What would I be doing if I couldn't do that? What would my life be like without the freedom to get in the car and go wherever I want to?

In a way, I believe that there would be a few benefits. For one, I love horses. I lived on a farm for eight months where I got to feed horses and muck out stalls. I enjoyed every moment of it. In fact, if I could clean stalls for a comfortable living I am almost positive that I would change career tracts instantly.

Beyond the horses, there is the idea that you would have to walk more places. I love walking, and while it is not always such a great thing in the middle of 90 degree weather, it is an enjoyable way to get around. I used to walk miles a day when I lived in Boston. Granted, I did take the "T" (subway) on many occasions, but often I would just walk where I wanted to go. Walking allows you time to look at things along the way, think, and decompress. That is one of the reasons that I miss living in Boston.

Walking and horses are a great draw for me to an era without cars. There are so many romantic views of that time that often I am caught up in seeing things in an unrealistic way. However, my solid background in history allows me to cast off those fantasies and imagine the time as it was for those living in it. It would be a hard way to live if I kept my current social status based on income. I would not be wealthy, but neither would I be poor by any means. I would be in a merchant class where there was enough money for a few luxuries, but not enough to make life easy.

Even with my informed view of the time, I still yearn for it on occasion. Sometimes I imagine having a very difficult life, but one that had more solid meaning. Meaning in our lives these days is so intangible and fleeting. And perhaps that is the whole impetus behind these yearnings.

I'm searching for meaning.

Lost

I have a good sense of direction. People call me when they want to know where they are and how to get where they want to go. My friend K in Boston has even called me since I moved back to NC to get directions. I am often seen as a personal navigational system. My ex, D, would often call for my help when lost. He had no sense of direction and used to say that his Zebra was broken, an imaginary navigation system.

I am constantly expanding the maps within my head. When I go a different way to get to a familiar place, I am often able to fill in once blank sections of my internal map. I love the Aha! moments that occur when I can connect streets and link thoroughfares in my head.

Despite my sense of direction, I can still get lost - in my head. This morning I called my husband while driving to work because I had remembered something to remind him about. I knew that he would never remember to do it today if I didn't call. Opening my cell, hitting the speed dial number, pressing send and getting my husband on the phone took only a minute. I began speaking - "I just wanted to remind you that..." - and suddenly I was lost. What had I wanted to say? What was I supposed to remind him about? I felt ridiculous. I forgot what I didn't want him to forget in a span of less than two minutes. Pathetic.

Zach tried to come up with things that he might need to be reminded of, but no guess was right. In the end, I told him that I would call him as soon as I remembered. I hung up the phone and remember not 5 seconds later. Ridiculous and bizarre!

My mind is on the fritz; a computer with a sporadic short. I blame the rain, and you know how I feel about rain.