a different world .

Alright, so a few years ago when I was dating this one girl, we used to both watch Gossip Girl together (don't laugh... I know...). It was in its first season, and originally I think it started out that she made me watch it, but after a while I started to kinda like it. It was just a true underdog sort of story, and that sort of success despite having the ridiculous odds against you were inspiring. And, of course, I think every guy sort of has that dream girl that he deems completely untouchable. You know, the sort of 'that would never happen in a million years' sort of girl. Needless to say, I have mine.

But that's not really the point of this post. I recently revisited a few episodes from the first season and something really hit me:


These kids are supposed to be in high school. And yet, look at the lavish lives they lead. A prestigious private school, a legacy that comes hand in hand with loads of money, nice clothes, crazy parties, not to mention frequent parties. What a foreign life.

Now granted, it's television and is designed to be entertaining, so maybe things are exaggerated a bit. But there have to be people like that out there, and I would bet that they're really not as far from the tv show than we might think. Whether such a rich community exists on the Upper East Side of New York City exists or not, the fact of the matter is, that some people live like this.

I can't even begin to fathom a life like that. It seems like everything is always a struggle. And even when it comes easy it's a struggle. And it's just so easy to get so lost in the fake world of television, the dreams and aspirations, and the sort of desires that make us lick our lips at the thought of having. Things like being able to take a private limo anywhere we want whenever we want, have our penthouse suit not only be decorated to perfection but constantly look immaculate, having all of our meals professionally prepared for us in excess. But then again, maybe we don't dream of that things. Like I said before, I doubt I could live like that.

But after all the lights dim down and the shows are over, we are left with whatever current life we are living. And I swear, sometimes I look at myself at the end of the day and think 'what the heck am I doing?!?' It's like I'm on a road to nowhere, it feels like. Sure, I'm going to college, I have dreams, goals, etc. I don't need to be rich, famous, etc. I'll get by and make do with what I have. But if there is one thing I want, it's to just be happy.

In some ways it's nice to be able to see the tv stuff and get all excited over the drama, the lavishness, etc. etc. But at some point I guess I just feel like we need to say, now wait a minute. And just take a step back to reality. Because while those things do happen, we're not a part of it. I mean, would you even really want to be a part of it?

In my eyes it's not the number of high class people you know, or hang with, or the number on your paycheck, or your address, or even your family name that makes you who you are. In fact the answer is pretty simple -- You make you who you are. You can be happy or sad or depressed or just plain angry at the cards life has dealt. Or, maybe you make like you're playing 5 card draw and trade a few in and make some changes. A guy at work was having trouble with his truck, and was talking about how he had to drive his grandma's car for a bit. I made the point of saying, "It's not the car. It's the guy driving the car, that makes a difference."

Not to get all prophetic and stuff, but let me just sort of reiterate some things I've learned, perhaps as a reminder to a future me. Live your life the way you want it. If you have dreams and wanna really get somewhere, you're the only one that can get yourself there. No one's going to just hand it to you. And believe me, it's not going to be easy. But if you have a clear mindset of what you want and where you're going... well, my friend, how can you go wrong?

Maybe the vision of this life of luxury is the catalyst that lets me know that that's not the sort of life that I want. I don't even know if I could become involved with anyone in that world. "Dan" makes a point when he says, "This is a crazy world. And you're part of it." It's weird to 'see how the other side lives' so to speak. I get a taste of that working at the country club. And I wouldn't say it sickens me or anything like that, because the type of living that the members of the club do is probably reserved compared to some stuff on TV. But it just seems like sometimes the importance of things in life is all wrong, the priorities are wrong.

I feel like I'm rambling, so I'm going to cut it off here. But these were some things going through my mind as I watched the rambunctious Upper East Siders of the TV show get into all sorts of drama and trouble. I'm thankful that my high school wasn't like that, because I'm not sure if I could have taken it -- as it is, my town has enough snobby rich people. Hmmm.... how the heck to wrap this up...

To me, it's a different world. It's foreign, it's out there, but most importantly, it's not desirable. Give me a roof over my head, give me someone to love, and enough money to occasionally treat ourselves, and I will most certainly be happy. Where I'll end up in 10 years or 20 years or however many years is most certainly not written in stone. I just gotta make the effort to get where I want to go.