I saw this interesting book, The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less, at Border’s during lunch. The main thrust of it is that our lives are filled with an overwhelming amount of choice, which ends up restricting our own satisfaction with life. Modern life is filled with too much sometimes. I agree with that. I even felt this when I was in the book store. There were so many things I could have looked at that I felt uninterested in shopping around. I just didn’t want to deal with it. It’s the same reason I don’t go to a lot of places. It is too much trouble to navigate all the chaos and the array of endless junk. Maybe the human mind works on a much smaller scale.
I have noticed that when we visit Jody’s parents in rural Oklahoma I feel more relaxed and I think it’s related to the fact that it is a much smaller and less-chaotic existence. When you step outside you do not hear traffic or any of the usual noise of city life. Many times you just hear the wind or birdsong, which is extremely calming. None of the usual distractions are available in the same way. There is spotty cellular phone service. There are exactly two broadcast television channels. There is no high-speed internet service. There is exactly one fast-food restaurant, one small grocery store, and two convenience stores and that’s just within the city limits proper. There is nothing outside the city limits. When I go to sleep it is absolutely dark and quiet, and it’s the best sleep I get. I would seriously consider moving to the country, yet the isolation that makes it peaceful has its downsides.