Single-malt scotch and a Duncan butterfly yo-yo.
Only then will you know inner peace.

The whole religion aspect is lost on me. Seen to much to believe in hocus pocus. There has to be a better solution than believing in an imaginary friend for grown ups. No direct offense intended.

If you have a nice house, a job you like, cool cars and a hot gf, and you're still not satisfied... I think you should consider hard drugs.

I dont like cocaine I just like the smell, lol. Been there, done that.

yeah, coke is a hard monkey to kill. moving to kansas was probably the smartest thing i've ever done!!

terry, a little buddhism never hurt anyone...

Damn I missed the picture of the hot gf - again!

My advice for you - and belive me I have BTDT. Now a little wiser (I hope).

When I start getting that feeling for change - (and I have definitely screwed up a few good things in my life because of the itch). I sit down and come up with a plan - usually a written one of where I want to be - no more than a year. goal wise - personal goal - money goals - relationship goals - when I have a plan - I start working toward those goals and usually the itch to f up the status quo goes away.

I agree. I think that's one big reason Christianity didn't work for me. Studying martial arts helped me learn to look inside to myself rather then looking outside to some external god. How you get there is really up to you. It sounds like you are looking outside as well, but instead of religion it is to material things or activities that keep you busy.

I was amazed how Tai Chi worked for me. I started attending the martial arts school because I wanted to learn Kung Fu. This school made all the students learn Tai Chi as well. The movements are so slow that my brain was always racing ahead of my body. I would lose track of what move I had to do next, and mess up not because I didn't know what to do next, but because my brain was so cluttered with other thoughts. Eventually I learned to clear my mind of all the clutter, and concentrate on the moment rather then everything I needed or wanted to do. It was life changing for me.

Like I said, how you get there is up to you. Becoming a mindless bible beater works for a lot of people, but not me, and obviously not for you either. Good luck on finding what works for you.

Very insightful. Thank you. Might have to give meditation a shot.

Buddhism..nooo..take it from someone who was raised Buddhist. Even Buddhism is a money affair....create your own religion out of what you accept to be good about you and the world...free yourself...not free yourself from one cage to a larger cage with better rhetoric...

"Religion and morality say: Do this and you will be happy. Nietzsche says: Be happy and you will do this. "

As for the rest....I know what you mean. I'm never satisfied. I'm restless as hell, and I need to always be chasing something. Before I got to where I could afford the cars, the house, etc,...I was chasing those things. Working hard in school and getting a degree was a great distraction and a means to achieve those goals.

I saw myself as an achiever then...not wanting to settle for anything less but the best I could do. It kept me moving, and I had an utltimate goal...when I got there...I was fine for a while....but now I need something bigger...the next ultimate goal.

There's nothing wrong with you Terry. You're just chasing the wrong goals perhaps...

"For what purpose humanity is there should not even concern us: why you are there, that you should ask yourself: and if you have no ready answer, then set for yourself goals, high and noble goals, and perish in pursuit of them! I know of no better life purpose than to perish in attempting the great and the impossible..."
- Nietzsche, unpublished note from 1873

i think any organized religion is a money affiar. to me, the term "organized religion" is an oxymoron. but that's just me. i wasn't raised with any religion, except to work my a$$ off on the farm--which was probably the best religion to have i suppose. maybe "Emersonian" is a good fit? i dunno.
a pragmatic approach seems to work for most people, particularly those who are "seekers". if it works, use it; if not, move on.


meditation is one of those things...uuhhh....kinda like a good steak. everyone likes to cook their steaks the way they like them, and most everyone has a different palate. i went through a variety of different types of meditation before i finally found something that worked (an Islamic technique, of all things). don't be afraid to shop around---but don't fall into the trap of always shopping for the ultimate style either!! it takes some really serious self-discipline to make meditation to what it is supposed to, and it certainly doesn't come right away. learn to listen to your belly and your spine, they're rarely wrong.

Interesting thread...

I find I start to get comfortable and am ready for change every two years or so. To this end I have another big change coming up this October.

Rewind 3 years. I had been in the Detroit/Windsor area for about 3 years and was starting to get the itch for something. I decided it was go back to school and get my MBA or buy a house and settle down for a bit. I closed on a house and moved in December 2002.

March 2003 I come across an ad for a French company that is looking for someone to come to France for a couple of years and then go back to the US to work as a liason. I seem to fit the profile and decide to fire off a resume. Had an interview shortly after and another one with the higher-ups a couple weeks later.

It took a while to get the response back, but in the meantime, the thought of working overseas started to consume me a bit. Thankfully things worked out and I moved to France in Oct 2003. Well, things worked out but I left a girlfriend behind. She wanted to come with, but I wasn't ready, and she wanted to come for the wrong reasons.

I liked the country, job, life etc. Decided to sell the house, knowing that I may come back (it wasn't so certain after arriving). And decided the money would be better invested here.

Fast forward to the end of last year, and while I'm in the midst of the "house closing from hell", work asks me if I'd consider going back sooner than expected (to help jumpstart things back in the US). Said I would consider it but want to stay a bit longer.

We spoke some more this spring and they made me an offer. I accepted, and will be back in the US come October. I'll probably keep the France house for a couple of years (doing renos currently to make it rentable).

Oh, and I broke up with my girlfriend (who lives in Paris) yesterday. I think the impending move was more of a catalyst than the cause.

The problem I find is that I take on too much. But things seem to work out in the end regardless. Same thing with school. High school was a joke--too easy, which gave me poor work habits. University (engineering) was a bit tougher but I still got by with a minimum of work, got OK grades, and had no shortage of job offers.

Now having moved several times (with some of the same boxes not being unpacked!) and living in what I would consider a less materiaistic society, I feel less interest in spending money. I'm a form over fashing sort of guy so I wasn't really buying stuff to impress others--it was more or less normal I guess.

I often feel like I'm underperforming, but when I look at what I've accomplished, it would be tough to argue that. But I know I could do more. Not sure how as I seem to take on too much, but I think I could... Oh, and add on the fact that I don't feel very motivated unless I had deadlines and lots to do...

I'm 29 BTW.

Thoughts?!?

:)

The Prophet Speaks
 

Close but no Cigar for Souk......the rest of U Boyz are advising that Terry substitute one form of drug for another....to fill the void.... It's like exchanging one form of keeping your hands busy for another form...U ultimatley have not solved the problem.

The one sure way is to go into the void...let yourself feel the emptiness, it's kind of like forcing yourself to hold your hands still...then Grasshopper after you feel the grief (sense of loss) you can pick yourself up and mover on...for you have met the demon within....I don't think the grief really goes away unless the cause of that grief should change...but you woun't be running from it anymore and U will have the clarity to know what and the why of what your doing....so your complusion to buy and exchange cars will be done at your bidding and not out of seeking some inner solace...

As the Firesign Theater was heard to say:

"There's a Seeker born every minute."

But seriously, work a little charity into your list of things to do -- expecially hands-on stuff like volunteering. it helps you see yourself in relation to other people and gives you something more nearly pure than 'having stuff.'

Nothing wrong with having stuff, but it doesn't make you a better person like, well, like simply being a better person.

"Look! I can walk the dog!"
"Another please?, you can use the same glass..."

Ahh...Tabs has arrived. :) I don't disagree with you completely Tabs, but I think some folks don't necessarily have the void for which most would blame their restlessness or discontent.

Some more Nietzche:

"“One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.”

"“I teach you the Overman. Man is something that shall be overcome. What have you done to overcome him? … The time has come for man to set himself a goal. The time has come to plant the seed to his highest hope.”

I practice organized Chaos....or havn't U bin reading what I write?

There is nothing wrong with goals...it's the achievement that you were able to attain the goal that has meaning...not the glittering object itself...whether that be material or a personal achievement as in your career etc ....

and this is usually when I get itchy- when my goals have been met - I have to direct my energy - now for good, not evil ;).

"In Christianity neither morality nor religion come into contact with reality at any point. "
Friedrich Nietzsche

Souk - quoting Nietzsche -

Now one of my favorite Nietzsche quotes...

"the secret for harvesting from existence the greatest fruitfulness and greatest enjoyment is - to live dangerously."

Oh yes I've been reading Tabs :)...your escapades in chaos is what a fraction of me was programmed to do...fortunately, the other parts of me were programmed to provide balance :D ... nothing wrong with chaos... ;)

Meaningful goals make for a better journey....once again "I know of no better life purpose than to perish in attempting the great and the impossible..."

What I'm suggesting is that Terry aim higher for greater goals...the cars, etc,...are not satisfying because they were acquired (relatively) too easily. With a greater goal, your journey will perhaps be more trying, but you will find longer lasting pleasure and satisfaction...until the next itch...

I think that's a natural human trait. If not, why do we bother. Why live for the next day? Some might look to religion to give them reason to live for the next day...but that doesn't work for everyone.

All this is not to say that the suggestions for charity and volunteerism are bad...but as Tabs more clearly stated, it's just s a replacement drug.

Re: The Prophet Speaks
 

I think this addressed you point Souk....Achievement, or curosity is part of human nature....a job well done or seeking whats beyond the forest is part of human nature...but the reasons for doing it is what is at question...is it compulsion to salve or a desire to find something new...the desire to find something new when found would fill you up as in yeah look at this ..., and complusion is the new is thrown into the void in the hopes of filling it up...which it will never do..

And now comes the can of worms since we are human and thus limited...the dividing line between complusion and the desire to achieve is often blured....