Alright, It's Over. So What Happens Now?

Today marks the seventh and last day of the living experiment. Am I going to become a vegetarian? I don't think so. Am I going to read the newspaper daily? Well honestly, I can't stand it! Will I give in to a couple of elevator rides? If the opportunity presents itself.

These resolutions don't concern me though, and I hope they don't concern you. I'm not a big ol' quitter. For one thing, six significant changes is a lot to make at once. Ever heard of baby steps? They're actually necessary, as I've found out. Another thing is, choosing not to adhere to any of the goals of the experiment doesn't directly point to a failure or a lack of morality or motivation. In fact, I think the insight and awareness that I gained about my current way of life is much more advantageous to both myself and society as a whole than a vow to read the newspaper, for example.

Like I had mentioned in my last post, I realized that I am "living unconsciously." From sheer shock, this realization has no chance of leaving my brain. It's going to be a like a little weight on my shoulders, reminding me to back up for a second and take a breath. I need to keep in mind that, despite all the pressures of finding a job and providing for oneself in our country's dire situation, there is more to life than being a machine. There is spontaneity, letting loose, and socialization to add color and vigor to our structured days.

In addition to an awareness of my human consciousness, I have gained a greater awareness of how the modern world works in not only my college writing class, but also a class on the Third World and a global health class. Discussions and studies in these subjects have enlightened me about the issues of factory farming, mega-corporations, aid to developing countries, structural violence, and environmental destruction. Thus, I feel like I am a better informed being, and therefore I am better equipped to make ethical and morally sound decisions and judgements in and about the world. Basically, I feel like the combination of this experiment and what I've learned in my college classes makes my existence more of an advantage to the world as a whole. This is beyond important--I think we could all agree that there are many people who weigh down the progress and cooperation of man rather than contribute to it.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting myself on a some all-righteous pedestal; I'm just glad that I am at least moving in a more positive direction rather than remaining stagnant or being seduced by the intriguing lifestyle of ignorance.

I wouldn't say I am the epitome of a "deliberal," but now I have the capacity to make deliberate life choices. This could mean that I become a vegetarian. It could not. Drawing from the ideologies of the great writer and thinker Ayn Rand, as long my life choices and actions are making me feel like a good being and citizen, I am doing what's right. If the world was made up of morally coherent and content individuals, the world would be a great place, wouldn't it?

Still Unconscious...

With a few more days of this experiment under my belt, my most poignant realization is that lately, I am living pretty much in a daze. This is quite ironic; instead of getting me to learn to "live deliberately," this is experiment is causing me to discover that I "live unconsciously." But I guess that could be the whole hidden point.

It's startling to realize that you are living unconsciously. It means that you've gotten caught up in a monotonous routine and have lost a part of your inquisitive and inquiring cognizance as a human being. My daily activities and my mental processes have recently all been revolving around getting through each school day until I get to the great big relief that a weekend is, only to restart the whole process over again. My prospects for the future revolve on finishing projects, preparing for finals, planning my fall semester, and so on. My reflections on my actions all center on how I performed on an exam, how well my meeting went with a professor, how I can improve, etc. It's not that we shouldn't devote part of our brains to our studies; as students, I understand that our studies are like our job and are key to our futures. However, I feel like I have reached a point where I am completely ignorant of all other aspects of life right now, to the point where I can't even focus on this living experiment!

In my last post, I had indignantly stated how I would not allow myself to follow the experiment so loosely any longer. Well, I've followed my guidelines about just as loosely, perfectly exemplifying my inability to focus on anything but academics. (And yes, I can see how it can be argued that technically, this experiment is academic. However, since it requires me to do unorthodox academic activities, my brain doesn't see it in quite the same light). Honestly, I barely remember my experiment goals for a majority of the day. Anyways, here's a categorical look at my progress (or stagnancy):

Food.
-I had been doing pretty well in this arena. But here was my Saturday night: we went to see the fireworks at the cherry blossom festival. We wanted food from the famous food truck rally. We waited in line for an hour. They ran out of food. The fireworks started. The fireworks ended. It was almost ten o'clock by now, and we hadn't eaten since two. The only restaurant for miles was Z-Burger. It didn't end well.

Consumerism.
-Luckily, I've been able to eat all my meals with reusable utensils. The only exception was the emergency trip to Z-Burger's,  where they use an insane amount of paper packaging.

Technology.
-My Facebook addiction still gets the best of me, but at least now I am very aware and actually quite disgusted by how much time I waste online.

Political Action.
-I read the news on my newspaper app on my I-Phone a couple of times when I was bored waiting for the metro or a meeting. I'll keep this as my "waiting room" activity from now on.

Transportation.
-One of my friends actually helped me out here a couple of times. As she and my other friends routinely got on the elevator, she'd yell "Hey! Living experiment!" to me. This is mostly out of humor, but it's effective! Thanks, buddy.

Happiness.
-I haven't been able to do pleasure reading out in the sun yet, but I have at least been able to sit outside and do required readings. It's still nice (and an effective way to get some summer glow).

Wait, it's Day One?

Oh man. First days. Usually, on my first-day of something, my enthusiasm is through the roof--each step I take brims with gusto as I march into my task.

If my usual first day is an “A,” then my first day of this living experiment was a big, fat “F.” I’m accrediting it to a case of bad circumstances. This week and the week before it, school has gotten significantly more exhausting and merciless. I think I’m finally getting out of my college freshman fantasyland. Unfortunately, Tuesday, the day we started, was one of the more rough days of the bunch. I didn’t sleep, I didn’t have a spare moment, and I certainly wasn’t conscious of the living experiment. Fatigue and frustration do a great job of making a person a complete zombie.

Needless to say, by luck and chance, I did manage to adhere to some of my experiment measures. Considering I didn’t have time to go fiddle with my phone, I truly did only use it for necessary calls and texts. My desperate need to finish reading both a book and an article for a class I had in the next hour facilitated me taking my half hour to sit in the sun. Although I wasn’t reading something of choice, it was still revitalizing to absorb some rays. And, it was much more pleasant than cramming indoors in the library or something. A free dinner at a required pre-med banquet meant an opportunity to get container-free food, so my consumerism goal looked like it would be fulfilled. But, my incessant illness and mid-day fatigue coerced me to buy a bottle of OJ to get that vitamin C boost I needed to make it through my block class. Darn. I was close on that one!

Technology, check; happiness and wellness, check; consumerism, sort-of check. The other half? Let’s see.

As for my transportation vow to never take the elevator, I realized that social circumstances can really work against you. I mindlessly took the elevator with my friends, forgetting about my rule as I laughed and joked around. By the time I remembered, I was already off the elevator and onto the next topic of conversation. Oops. (I should also note that I took the bus to Georgetown for the Ben & Jerry’s National Free Cone Day; being that I had a time restriction and it was free ice cream, I’m considering that use of public transport completely necessary).

Food. Like I said, there was a free banquet with catered food that I had to attend as a pre-med student. The sight of a non-TDR buffet completely took over my brain as I wolfed down delicious green beans, strawberry salad with champagne vinaigrette, eggplant Parmesan, and…chicken.

Reading the newspaper just didn’t happen. My free reading time was eaten up by academic readings, and by the end of it all, I had absolutely no motivation to look at any more written text.

The good news is, that day is over. Today is fresh and new, and although no less chaotic, I have a better outlook on it. No more excuses! (Even if free-food related).