3.13 The Book of Annoyance: Entry Three
Ah! The great outdoors. But are they really great? Or merely good? Overrated? Or not respected enough? Since the dawn of history, human beings have attempted to wrestle, wrangle and dominate nature. Although we are part of the natural world, you wouldn’t know it, based on the way we treat each other, our animalistic co-habitators and the environment that provides air to breathe and water to drink. Don’t worry, I am no environmentalist. I recently bought a car. It wasn’t my fault, I had no choice. I just couldn’t deal with buses anymore. Denial is alive and well with we enlightened human beings: “It’s not my responsibility, I recycle my tin cans – isn’t that enough?”
Does global warming actually exist? Or is it a fictional nightmarish narrative based on faulty information from those individuals that insist on putting a damper on the fun of driving SUV’s and the excitement of electricity usage abuse? It’s not my fault I take hour-long showers. After all, cleanliness is next to godliness.
I am what you may call, a city dweller. I wonder at the complexity of what nature has to offer: I am a fan of hiking in the mountains (day trips), lakefront views (from inside a friend’s cottage) and long walks on the beach (a romantic at heart). WALKS along the beach, forget about actually going into the ocean – sharks are everywhere. Even in swimming pools. Don’t ask me how they get in, but it’s possible. Think about it. The great outdoors is an incredible place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.
By now you know the thematic basis of these entries. The natural world contains evolutionary magic that surrounds and includes us, but it can also be very annoying.