Greece is in Ireland

One of my crazy (but great) friends is fond of saying his ideal life would be that of a "wandering hermit" with no emotional attachments who exists in the world but is not in any real (read: painful) way of the world. (It occurs to me in hindsight that perhaps he's a Buddhist in waiting and has been giving alms at the wrong temple, but that's a whole 'nother ball of wax.) What he more or less claims to aspire to is the role of permanent eavesdropper, taking delight in other people's engagement with each other without engaging with anyone himself and thereby living an entirely meta-life. It may go without saying that this guy watches a lot of TV, but I should also point out that he's wicked smart, as the Massholes would say, and very clever, witty and fun to be around. And I think we probably all have similar tendencies. Who among us doesn't want to live in the world but deny the world the power to destroy us? Who wouldn't like to take away the sting of rejection and loss and, ultimately, death and float by in a straight line landing softly and gently at the end of our journey on a billowing cloud? But most of us in the end choose attachments, choose the here and now and the wild rollercoaster of human relationships and love and real, messy and occassionally joyous interaction with fellow humans. I have certainly chosen that path despite my fair share of the normal course of human agony (on the low end of the curve I'll admit happily), but that doesn't make the urge to just check the hell out any less enticing.

Being the guy alone at the end of the crowded bar is a postion with which I am very comfortable, is my point, and that's one of the reasons I love to read the Overheard in New York website. The snippets of (allegedly) real conversation are hilarious and provide a full dose of wandering hermit-ness for the eavesdroppers among us. One of my current favorites:

Guy #1: Naw, you's retarded! That's Greek, yo!
Guy #2: Where's Greece?
Guy #1: Dude, Greece is in Ireland.
Guy #2: No it ain't.
Guy #1: But they look the same, man!

Check it out. Then go hug your mother and kiss your dog.