"Everyone Needs A Hobby"

So said a co-worker to The Fool on Wednesday night as his beer wept in the evening heat. He was sitting with a good customer in an Irish pub not too far from the Ohio River when the conversation drifted past small talk.

"At what point," asked The Fool, "do we forget how to live in the moment?"

It was a more serious question that the occasion warranted, but The Fool was tired of talking about kids and commutes and who reported to whom.

A pause. "What do you mean?"

"Look at children," The Fool replied, immediately dragging the conversation backwards. "They're so alive. Everything is fascinating; everything is new. They don't worry about next week or next month or next year. They just are. But somewhere along the way of growing up, we all lose that."

The Fool paused for a minute, running his finger through the Guinness sweat. "I'd like it back."

There were nods and general agreement that, yes, life had gotten too complicated and it was just getting worse. Blackberries kept us online all the time and nobody in this country ever takes two weeks of vacation. Five days away from the salt mines and we start to get twitchy. It's all too stressful. It's all too much, but we throw ourselves at it like dung flies into an open sewer. How do we tear ourselves away?

"Balance," the coworker told The Fool. "You need a job, a family, a workout routine, and a hobby. Everyone needs a hobby."

This was when The Fool decided to start blogging again.