"I see that it is invariably where I lacked a political purpose that I wrote lifeless books and was betrayed into purple passages, sentences without meaning, decorative adjectives and humbug generally."
George Orwell, "Why I Write"
Dear neglected blog,
The reason I write is usually boredom. It is seldom to elucidate, rarer still to motivate. Many of my posts are curiosities only - an interesting tidbit on World Heritage Sites or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame or Nobel Prize winners. Partially this is my fascination with lists, but partially it is because I blog when I've nothing to do. When there are no books to read (or more honestly I am avoiding reading a book because my humor dictates whether I devour or shun a work at a specific time) no television shows to watch, no friends to drive home from karaoke, that is when I write.
Things have been busy recently. That History of the Novel class I thought I was teaching needed a lot of prep, then was cancelled, then I was told I'm teaching AP Euro, which now needs a lot of prepping. I had an annual get-together to attend in upstate New York. I discovered one of my pupil's father worked for Lehman Brothers. Lehman Brothers! That's a month of reeducation right there.
Suffice to say what with all that stuff, combined with getting a new apartment and on and on, I've not been bored enough to write.
But the fact I write mostly due to boredom is slightly troubling. I find my best, and favorite, work is that which, like Orwell's quote, is political. I told myself years ago I would enter politics. Now I am seriously considering it.
I could put off seriously considering it for a long time. During my twenties I was going to teach. Teaching is a noble, and respected field. It's a good background from which to get elected. Also helps that I'm pretty good at it. Politics is my passion, though, and what I always knew I'd do eventually. The question was what do you do to start. You can't just go in and run for office, you need to learn things and build up a base, etc.
And the reality is that if I want that base, and that experience, I need to start transitioning now. I'm 27. If I want to run for office in my thirties, to build up to a national career in my forties, the time is ticking. 2014 will be another election year. The initial steps will have to be taken shortly.
So there may be a shift, then, in why I write. These days I write because I'm bored. In the future I may write when there's information concerning America you need to know.
Things have been busy recently. That History of the Novel class I thought I was teaching needed a lot of prep, then was cancelled, then I was told I'm teaching AP Euro, which now needs a lot of prepping. I had an annual get-together to attend in upstate New York. I discovered one of my pupil's father worked for Lehman Brothers. Lehman Brothers! That's a month of reeducation right there.
Suffice to say what with all that stuff, combined with getting a new apartment and on and on, I've not been bored enough to write.
But the fact I write mostly due to boredom is slightly troubling. I find my best, and favorite, work is that which, like Orwell's quote, is political. I told myself years ago I would enter politics. Now I am seriously considering it.
I could put off seriously considering it for a long time. During my twenties I was going to teach. Teaching is a noble, and respected field. It's a good background from which to get elected. Also helps that I'm pretty good at it. Politics is my passion, though, and what I always knew I'd do eventually. The question was what do you do to start. You can't just go in and run for office, you need to learn things and build up a base, etc.
And the reality is that if I want that base, and that experience, I need to start transitioning now. I'm 27. If I want to run for office in my thirties, to build up to a national career in my forties, the time is ticking. 2014 will be another election year. The initial steps will have to be taken shortly.
So there may be a shift, then, in why I write. These days I write because I'm bored. In the future I may write when there's information concerning America you need to know.
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