Escape

Escape

At what point do we need to escape? I’ve been pondering that lately. Is it something everyone does or needs? I wonder.

I tend to have a lot going on in my life, whether good or bad or somewhere in between – no matter what there always seems to be something happening. I guess I like the action, I always have. It makes life interesting and often fun.

On the other hand I do have a saturation point or breaking point or a ceiling for such things. I sometimes just hit a wall and think, ‘shit, that hurt!’ And when that happens I have to escape. Get away. Turn off my brain and get stupid.

Unfortunately, I’m not independently wealthy or even financially independent so I can’t exactly jump on my private jet and go to Tahiti to chill. I can’t call my limo driver and take an impromptu road trip or have my travel agent book a European walking tour for me so I have to come up with other solutions.

When I need to escape I have to do it in my mind (mostly) – I have to sit on the patio and drink iced tea while I watch the resident birds haggle for limb space on the Mimosa. Or find a channel that shows non-stop reruns of my favorite television shows. Or if I’m lucky stumble onto a big dvd blowout sale at Blockbuster and buy up as many movies my budget will allow. Add a little microwave popcorn to the mix, unplug the phone, turn off the computer and the escape is complete.

Usually the need to escape only lasts for a day or so, but sometimes it goes on for weeks. It gets tricky when there is a long bout because I still have to go to work, buy groceries, do the laundry and talk to other human beings – fulfill at least the minimal obligations of human co-existence – but it’s still doable.

It’s dawned on me lately that I’ve been doing a big escape for some time now. So many landmines and so few limbs to give. Head in the sand or up my ass (six of one half dozen of another) and been living in that twilight world of distraction and denial. Weird because I didn’t really notice it. It just sort of happened. Not even the ever growing population of dust bunnies floated me a hint.

I guess the good news is that I’m thinking that being an island may not be such a great idea – at least not for me. That sticking my head out the window could be fun and well shit, there is a great big world out there and somebody’s got to live in it. So, perhaps adventure awaits me.

How about you – what do you do to escape?

WC