how to enjoy conventional work?

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Comment by Uti on January 17, 2008 at 3:28pm

cityNnature,
In my experience I defined "who I was" by "what I did". What I am learning as a result of the dissatisfaction that belief system created is that those two things are not the same and are in fact, vastly different. It's never too late to say something isn't working, even though it seemed like a good idea in the beginning. Regret will only bog down forward movement. To say otherwise is to invalidate the lifelong process of growing and learning. Yes it's true, great things can happen if we live our life from event to event. However as I see it, it's not the stuff of great things and events that give life it's fullest measure, it's everyday ordinary things in every moment that provide the most satisfaction. I don't, by any means, have this handled, but the results so far keep me heading in this direction.

Comment by Nathalie Lussier on January 16, 2008 at 8:37pm

I very much agree with this feeling of needing to get out of the corporate factory line. It feels as though all our lives we are brought up to be good students, good employees and plain old good followers who do what they are told.

I personally need to get out of this "assembly line" and do something for myself and to really make an impact in this world, beyond putting money against a mortgage. I know that raw has been a huge eye opener for me, and I realize now that I can see things that other people cannot see about their lives and our society.

I want to be outside, work with the land, help others, grow my own food, enjoy the healing of this planet.

Here's to all of our leaps into the unknown with the inspired faith that we can do anything we set our minds to!

Comment by sahar on January 14, 2008 at 1:43pm

hi guys
thanks for sharing your thoughts.
i feel that we have alot to share and inspire.
it is great to hear that we all wish to not live an artificial lives.

like lei, charlie any probabaly many others i feel that my path at this moment is my vision and personal develpoment( you can read kristi's blog on "teaming with life") and from there like Uti mentioned taking out leaps in faith to grow and reach better places that we had invisioned for some time. and of course PATIENCE.

at my work(i wirok with 5 other people that are all over 45) one matter that in uninspiring is that they are all very afraid of change and i can not see any of them taking a leap into faith and trusting it. and when i talk about my dreams they think that i am just a simple dreamer.
i have learned to not share everything with everyone because they have very different mindsets. it is importante to find and attract the people that you share the same vision with and to make sure to share it and be constant within it.(to believe it)

afterall no matter how good change is, consitancey is also the core of getting to our dreams.

saharawluvs

Comment by Uti on January 14, 2008 at 2:20am

Sahar, Lei, and Charles,

Several times in my life I've "hit the wall" with my work not fulfilling enough of my needs. The first time I left a good paying job as a newspaper photographer to come to California to assist at a photography workshop with no prospects for employment and no friends for a support base. Just my belongings in my camper van and a few hundred dollars in my pocket. I was in my early 20's and I know I could always go home if things didn't turn out. By the time the workshop was over I was offered a job to live and work in Yosemite for my photography guru. The second time I blindly leaped off the cliff I had another great paying job as an art museum exhibits curator, but was constantly feeling stressed out and at the effect of all the negative people I worked around. I left that job, came back to California and new interesting work showed up. The most recent shift occurred when my wife and I decided to close our successful crafts business, sell our 80 acre homestead in the Redwoods and separate. The stress of running the business and paying for our lifestyle was not making us happy campers. So many positive things have accrued to me when I have taken a leap of faith; I never could have imagined them all. Now I have my yoga practice, I've made vast leaps in the direction of better health, the raw food lifestyle showed up to assist in my healing, I live a simple fulfilling lifestyle in an incredibly beautiful place with like minded loving people and I have interesting work to do which supports my needs without the stress. I've also noticed an increased sensitivity to the energy of non-vegan people. Fortunately my lifestyle and work allows me to minimize the amount of time I spend with them, but I also use that time to temper myself to their energy so it doesn't knock me off my center as easily.

Comment by Leilacita on January 12, 2008 at 11:20pm

Yes, yes, I feel you 100%!
I just don't think humans were meant to live under such conditions, period. We are creatures of earth...if you plant a flower in an office under artificial lights, it just won't grow. I think the same goes for us...
Becoming raw makes it all seem even more intolerable. Sometimes I feel like my soul is screaming "get me out of here!" when I've been cooped up in a windowless classroom all day (I'm an English teacher in Japan), and it just makes my desire for "real-earth-life-experiences" stronger.
So what's the breaking point? How long will we run around in circles like lab rats in a cage?
I know personally that I will eventually have to depart. There's no way I can spend the rest of my life in such artificial conditions...at this point all I can do is VISUALIZE the path I see my life going, and just steer myself in that direction, bit by bit.
What we CAN do now is continue to focus on our reasons for being raw, and set an unintrusive example of rawness for others. If and when one day we pick up and progress to the next level, who knows who it may inspire.
So ultimately, I'm not sure what the solution is, but I know that we'll all get what we need eventually. It also helps that we're all in this together! Let's keep sharing our experiences with this and see what happens...
PeaS and Love,
Lei

Comment by Charles on January 11, 2008 at 3:20pm

I know EXACTLY how you feel. If anyone's seen the movie Office Space, that couldn't be a more accurate depiction of my work life. Except it's not as amusing. It's dull and drab and boring. But it pays the bills.

Like you said, it's hard to stare at the screen all day, breathe in that recycled office air, and smell the various McDonalds lunches that everyone is eating at their desks.

At some point, I will need to get away from all this. I want to experience the sunshine and feel the dirt beneath my feet. I don't want to look out the window at other skyscrapers which block my view of the sky.

It's not easy to just up and quit. Philip did that and I admire him for it. I wanna have a plan in place, though.