Out of the Loop

I am beyond grateful for my new job. It came at just the right time, when I was getting unemployed cabin fever at the house and was being dropped from my parents' insurance on the dawning of my 26th birthday. With its new presence, however, comes once again the lull in my blog writing.

Not that any of you have me bookmarked on your favorites and have been faithfully checking every day-- wringing your hands when you find an old entry staring you in the face. Ok, so maybe that's what I like to picture.

I also have to ask myself: What in the world do I even write about? I don't seem to get worked up into a frenzy about much anymore-- and that's usually the inspiration that fuels my finger-typing fury.

You've got the healthcare thing. Nah. Skip that. I would have to actually research what Marxist and Socialist and all that means. Well, now that I think about it, that's not really even necessary to be a proclaimer of vital information.

There's the election thing. I don't really like anyone in particular enough to pretend like I do. I learned to stop ingesting what people think I want to hear on a bad date with a handsy smooth talker in junior high. Why revert back?

But perhaps the controversy above all controversies is the apparent desecration of the female mind. The only gray to appear on some women's radar was the streak slowly manifesting its way across their bangs. Then enter "Fifty Shades of Grey." The only magic many mothers experienced was a card trick performed by their cape-clad 2nd grader. Then "Magic Mike" appeared on the scene. 

One scroll down on my computer screen blares a drooling cartoon woman uttering something about Channing Tatum. The next click of my mouse takes me to a blog with 15 Bible verses explaining why seeing the movie is wrong. Though polar opposite views, they both leave out a very important demographic.

People who are striving to find why this is even an issue. People wondering why a bandwagon is created for some things and completely abandoned in other circumstances. Why seeing a movie that broadcasts its undesirable plot line deserves more rebuke than one whose rating didn't stop you from buying a ticket. 

I haven't read the book or seen the movie, nor can I say that I condone their messages. But I can say that I think I have found the underlying desire here.

Women aren't watching this because they are necessarily unfulfilled in love. Women aren't reading to even the dirty magazine scorecard with men. Bloggers aren't writing their scolds in the privacy of their diaries. People aren't really seeing drastic changes post-healthcare legislation.

People want to be accepted. They want to be in a group. They want to be passionate. They want to see changes with a Facebook status update. They want to have something to talk about at work.

That's why women are flocking to the cinema and to Barnes and Noble. Channing's abs may be a fraction of the reason, but the real reason lies in the actual terminology: the flocks. Women, men, kids, we want a flock.

Something in common. Something to bring up. Somewhere that strips away the monotony of the daily routine.

The best thing I have done for myself in my adult life was to get out of the loop. Loops are exhausting. And at high speeds can make you sick. So get out.

Not because someone told you it was wrong. Or that it isn't cool to talk about anymore. Or that you can't be who you say you are and do it. 

Get out because you will find a peace that passes understanding-- and the right people will in turn flock to you.