Tales of Strude

Gen-Xer ... Social Distancing Before It Was Cool

Daily Prompts

Okay, Maybe Not Daily

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Perhaps the term Daily Prompt was a bit ambitious, maybe a bit hasty, a bit misleading. But, let’s face it, The-Sometimes-Daily-Maybe-Just-Weekly-Okay-Let’s-Be-Realistic-Most-Likely-Monthly Prompt is quite a mouth full. And it’s not very exciting. But the truth rarely is.

Every free minute I have had this week, and I define free minutes as those not occupied by my 9to5, has been spent trying to get a consulting gig across the finish line. So, I have had little time to think, let alone get my prompt on in a daily fashion.

When I was unemployed this summer, I took a consulting gig for a former employer. I was grateful for the opportunity to try and bring in a little cheddar while my normal cheese factory was not available. (And they got me for a steal because I was trying not to lose too much unemployment while the CARES Act money was still there.) However, nothing was really ready for me to get working on it until, of course, I got my 9to5 back. So, now I am doing both.

Definitely not complaining … much. I’ll just be glad to get it wrapped up so I can get back to providing the five of you with the high-quality content you desire on an every once in a while basis.

Okay-ish

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What are you good at?

I don’t know, really. I think I know what I am okay at.

I’m a decent actor with an okay singing voice … depending on the role, I guess, so maybe not even okay, just okay-ish in certain, limited situations.

I am learning to draw. I want to be good, but I am still very much a beginner, so I don’t even know if I am okay, let alone good.

I like to cook, but am still tied to recipes and get pretty flustered at times, so, yeah … okay-ish.

I am okay in the SQL world, but every day it seems that I come across something new to learn. I also spent the last several months trying to find a job and striking out each and every time … so maybe not even okay there.

Well, crap, this took a turn. I don’t know what I am good at. I don’t even know what I am okay at.

Remember Me

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What do you want to be remembered for?

This is a strange question coming after the previous prompt … isn’t wanting to be remembered after you die just another way of caring about what others think about you?

Worrying about how one will be remembered is like throwing darts at a target in the dark while blindfolded. You’ll never really know if you hit the target you were aiming for or not because, you know, you’ll be dead.

Note: this should have been published 9/4, forgot to hit publish.

What Others Think

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Daily Prompt: How often do you find yourself concerned about what others think?

Of course, we all know the correct answer, right?

“Never. What other people think of me is none of my business.”

Of course, I think for most people this answer is just bullshit. It’s the goal, to be sure. I don’t know if I have ever met anyone who has achieved it, though.

How often do I find myself concerned about what other people think?

All the time.

During meditation my mind often wanders to thoughts of me explaining what I am doing to someone else, justifying my methods, explaining my why. I do this with other things as well. From writing code to designing a database at work to making even the most mundane of life decisions, I tend to picture myself explaining whatever it is to a nameless face.

Why? Because I care what other people think of me, of what I am doing, and if I am doing it correctly. I really spend a lot of energy trying to know the unknowable: what is in someone else’s mind.

In reality, every single person in our life is an NPC. A Non-Playable Character for those of you who don’t know the joy of gaming. And we should care about the thoughts of those real-life NPCs as much as we do about those NPCs we interact with in games.

That is a big ask for most of us. After all, evolution has molded us into social creatures whose survival has relied on fitting in with others. We naturally care about what other people think of us.

I’d like to say I don’t often find myself concerned about what others think of me, but I have to tell you that isn’t true … because I care about what you think about me. Don’t want to seem untruthful here, Skippy.