Nature Schmature

I've noticed a rather disturbing trend since I got the new computer.  I spend a lot less time out in nature.  Time was, if I were bored, I'd go for a walk, take a bike ride, or -- less healthy but just as much fun -- just go and sit in the sun somewhere.  Now I'm starting to return to my old ways, and I like it a lot less.

Walking or biking over to one of the coffee shops in the area and sitting my fat ass down to surf the web is just too easy.  And it's not like it's any more fun than those other activities would be.  In fact, it's considerably less fun.  I keep finding myself wondering what the hell I'm doing sitting in yet another chat room talking to a bunch of locals who really don't have anything to say to me, beyond some pick-up lines.  I'm beginning to suspect that the chat experience has pretty much played itself out for me.

Especially when I could be sitting on the grass, watching the world go by, smelling nature, being a part of it all.  There are things that need doing.  And I don't mean chores - I mean there are breezes that are never going to rustle over my skin again, clouds that will never reform, skies that will never again be quite the same shade of blue to be wondered at, pigeons that will likely never appear in the same place again, begging for food, and squirrels who will never quite beg and prance around in hopes of scoring a free peanut in quite the same way.  There's a peace to be found in these things that I just don't find in communing with other cyber geeks from the remote stretches of a crowded coffee house.  I suppose I should be trying more to hang out with people of my tribe, but I don't know.  They seem to interest me less and less, even for their carnal uses.  Am I just getting old?  Or am I just growing up?  Or maybe I'm not doing either, I'm just moving on.

All that having been said, it sure is cool to have access to e-mail again, and not have to do it while I'm on the job.  It's nice to be able to send a leisurely answer to an e-mail, and not continually promise to "write more later."  I'm a long winded correspondent, and all that putting off 'til tomorrow what you shouldn't be doing at work today was growing tiresome.

Vive le computer!