In Flight

Aloha from the flight from Maui! There isn’t any wireless service on this flight, but there is plenty of turbulence. This post will be put up once I get to my room the resort, which is—get this—one of the VIP suites. That’s right. Mols, Trav, and I are living it up for the next six days. It’s hard to believe, but as I sit here sipping on my hot, sweetened tea, I feel incredibly lucky. We are lucky. Our good room fortune is entirely out of our hands and is an extreme act of generosity. I'm sure you'll see some pics soon.

There are still a couple of hours to go on this flight. The last time I flew, I typed away on my resume and admissions essays for graduate school. It’s strange to think about that and how, very soon, life as I know it will shift from a 9 to 5 office routine to hours in a classroom and evening spent typing up assignments and papers. It’s terrifying and thrilling that soon I will be on my way to becoming…a social worker.

This is my first time wearing shorts in—I don’t know—ages. For the past few years, skirts and capris have comprised my standard summer year. This year, I’m saying Yuck! to capris and moving on to Bermuda shorts. That sounds sort of grandma on a cruise, I know, but I’m charmed by their shortyness that doesn’t expose too much. I can spruce them up with a cute pair of strappy sandals and feel somewhat hip and cool, literally, yet covered.

The movie Up in the Air just started. I saw that one in the theater, and I didn’t love it in the way I thought I would. But, I found the “interviews” with the unfortunate people losing their jobs both timely and powerful in this economy. I’m watching while typing. The Boyfriend is a total sweetheart. He loaned me his pair of noise-cancelling headphones and a carry-on suitcase for this trip. This is my second trip packing light, which isn’t The headphones have been particularly helpful with this child-packed flight. Kick! Kick! Kick! to the back of my seat. The flight isn’t full, though, which is giving me extra space to stretch out and a bit of privacy.

I’m finally reading The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs. I read an article about it a few years ago and intended to read it then, but I never got around to it. Friends have since recommended it to me, so here I am. It’s a fun and entertaining read. I laugh a lot. Spending a year learning all you can about the Bible and living in accordance to the often kooky rules is a fascinating experiment to me.

Jacobs discusses the freedom from choice vs. the freedom of choice, reminding me of Elizabeth Gilbert’s thoughts on this in her book Committed. They’re similar in the examination and acknowledgement that sometimes too much choice can actually be limiting. You can become paralyzed or overwhelmed. People make bad decisions when faced with too many options, opting to jump to a path that appears smoother rather than stick with the original, tougher road. I’ve been thinking about this concept a lot again lately. It’s a repeated theme: The Negatives of Too Much Choice.

I’m used to viewing choice as a positive. I’ve never liked the idea that by committing to one path, you ultimately close the door to unexplored possibilities. This sometimes freaks me out, and I'd want to stick my foot in the closing door. But, lately I can see another point of view. Limitless choices may allow us to endlessly turn to new doors, which is exciting in many ways, but deciding to commit to certain choices can give us the opportunity to truly explore the depths of our experiences and ourselves. The freedom to do this bring a richness to our lives.

I’m also realizing that I’m not just a little bit terrible at crossword puzzles, I’m really terrible. I love working on them, though, so I continue to plug away, leaving a trail of half-completed (or less!) crosswords behind me. Back to work.