Recently, I found myself at a crossroads with an important decision to make. I'd avoided it as long as the Universe would allow, or so it seemed. Have you had the same experience? Have you ever had to make up your mind?
As I say, I could put it off no longer and a choice was required. The thing would have lasting effects on the rest of my life.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not talking about that Robert Johnson or Bob Dylan kind of crossroad. I don't plan to make a pact with Satan or Beelzebub, Mephistopheles, Iblis, The Tempter, The Adversary, Ash-Shaytan, or Old Scratch.
I understand why you might be questioning the Genome sanity if any, especially if you read that piece I posted recently about my Evil Plan for World Domination. That little missive could confuse anyone, really. Let me take a moment to explain the Evil Plan and then we'll get back to the decision that could shake the earth's foundations.
First of all, the Plan isn't really evil. At least I don't think so. You may think differently, of course, and if you do think differently, please leave your thoughts in the comments below.
My plan is intended to become my personal path for escaping fear, depression, and anxiety for good. I did it once. At least I thought it was for good but here I am again up to my neck in the soup.
Oh yes, for a number of years I was sitting on top of the world with a rainbow around my shoulders being serenaded by bluebirds. But that was then. I'm not there now. The bluebird has left the stage, the rainbow has evaporated, I slid down the lines of longitude and I've been wandering along a muddy, logging road for the last few years.
You probably know about all that, if you've been here with me, and I want you to know that I'm eternally grateful for your support.
My personal adversary is a trinity made up of Pandemic, Politics, and Princess Amy. I can't do anything about any of those, can I? I'm powerless to stop them just as I was powerless over alcohol and drugs. But there is a solution. I know there is because many other people, people like me, have found it, and I will find mine too.
The idea of an Evil Plan didn't originate with me. The credit and the attribution go to Hugh McCloud, the author of a book titled, Evil Plans: Having Fun on the Road to World Domination. It's an excellent book and I recommend it highly to anyone who feels stuck in a rut and would like some help getting underway again. You can learn more by visiting his website at GapingVoid.com but please don't go there now. Read the rest of this post first.
So the decision that I'm facing, is the one that will either get me back on top or leave me in a heap on the floor until the End of Days.
As I say, I've felt lost and out of place for the last few years and I'd like to change that. I realize that action is demanded--proper steps through the proper channels is the way P.G. Wodehouse phrased it--and for the record, I've taken steps, plenty of them, really I have. The problem is that I always remain in the same place; no progress and no changes.
In my baseline recovery program, I'm told that repeating the same actions while expecting a different result, is a type of insanity. Makes sense to me. Reminds me of the results of a study that found that most people, when faced with setbacks, do more of the same thing hoping for a breakthrough, or else they accept defeat and settle for what they already have.
I don't accept defeat (I usually phrase this as I don't eat pine needles, but that's a subject for another post.)
Did you notice that I skittered off the road and am back in the ditch again? Me too. Let me get to the point and wrap this up. And thanks again for being with me. Your attention makes all the difference.
The punchline is that I'm making a new plan and to get it started, I'm following that old admonition that the Round Table Knights were given when they began their quest for the holy grail, If you find a path in the enchanted forest, ignore it! You must make your own path.
When I put all this mish-mash through the colander, what comes out is that I must take action and I must take action that I've never taken previously. I'm not sure what the right action will be and so I plan to follow the advice of my old school pal, McGoo. Do something even if it's wrong. Maybe that's where the evil part comes in.
Stick with me. I'm having a little trouble getting started but I promise to stop repeating myself and start getting results. You'll read it first right here.