Let me tell you something you don't already know. I hate to lose. That's the one situation I hate more than change not in my favor. Not being in control of a situation makes me cringe. To lose means a situation that was in your hands got away. I despise feeling that way and I can't imagine too many other people do for that matter.
Competition forces me to out-do myself. To strive for greatness as a constant, not rare, activity. That, in itself, creates a daily struggle to meet one's expectations. Being critical of yourself isn't bad. It requires self-motivation.
I've lacked self-motivation as of late.
My attempt to flip the situation in my favor is to start taking walks. Long walks. 50 plus minute walks to nowhere. The two feet hoisting my mind to the clouds is the navigator on this magic carpet ride.
Enter the cliche: I've been killing multiple birds with one sword thanks to the walks. Long walks count as exercise. I hate to exercise unless there's something at stake. A win-loss count has always been a motivator of mine. The walks count as a win here because that provide with the exercise I would not have gotten otherwise.
The walks are also a necessary literary tool. Case and point -- this blog entry, for starters. Granting your own two feet complete navigational control makes for an adventure you would not have otherwise taken, therefore leaving you nothing to write about. Think about it: does sitting all day in your apartment vegging out in front of the television make for interesting blog fodder or conversation starters? Not a chance.
A good coffee shop was the one destination my feet could not find. Tenleytown doesn't have one. A Starbucks filled with high school students making noise doesn't count. All I wanted was a place to cozy up with Mr. Vonnegut and some sort of latte. That's it. But no -- that dream was not fulfilled -- there was only walking and the purchasing of Abbey Road (Remastered) as a reward for a week of hard work.
It is because of this lack of a coffee shop I propose the following: my feet will take me there and I will keep you posted on my findings. The way I figure it, there's no possible way that I'm the sole individual searching for such a place.
Coffee -- that's what I, that's what I want. And coffee -- that's what I will go out and find. Hi ho.
