The Spice of Life

Do you like variety?

Do you go out of your way to achieve variety?

Does it extend to all areas of your life or just to some things?

In some things I like to achieve variety. In other ways, not so much. This notion struck me Friday as I was shuffling out the side door of the office in the evening. And as I start to describe the idea striking me, I see that my choices are varied and yet rigid at the same time.

Let me explain.

I always leave the office building out of the side door (the north end of the building). But in the mornings, Tegan and I typically enter through the main doors on the building's east side. So, there is definite repetition there but there is also variety. And I consciously choose to enter and exit through different doors. I also admit that the morning's choice is somewhat influenced by the desire to use the elevator in the morning, but then why not use that same logic in the afternoon?

More examples: I often try to think of different ways to drive places, actively avoiding taking the same route to the same place again and again and again. I find it exciting to try and find different roads and want to see new things, new streets, whatever. Now, I am not one of those people (think Perk here) who tries to catalog the mileage of each route and to cut the gas mileage or something. I just want something different, that's all.

So, I try to get into differences to make the day less repetitive. But of course, I am a constant set of repetitions as well. My morning routine is very similar day after day. I usually get into the office at the same time (plus or minus 10) every day of the week.

Another instance: in high school my friends and I often ate desserts and coffee in a local Cracker Barrel. (It was a small town and there weren't many restaurants.) Anyway, because we went there frequently, I decided that I would make it my mission to eat everything on the menu. It was another attempt at achieving variety.

So, what about you? Do you want variety or do you prefer routine?

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In other news, I saw that the High Museum in Atlanta has recently had a major architectural upgrade. The museum complex includes the museum, the theatre for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and some other stuff as well. You can see more about the museum from its official website and more about the architectural changes here.

The High was my first major museum experience back when I was probably twelve or thirteen. I remember enjoying their exhibit on the five senses, featuring computer graphics to excite your sight and learn more about hearing with a greatly enlarged ear canal. Since then I have gone back a few times, especially for the Henri Matisse exhibit while I was in college.

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Finally, I watched the director's version of Donnie Darko over the weekend. This is the second time that I have watched this movie and I enjoyed it again the second time. I can't say I truly understand it more completely now than I did the first time, but I really appreciate the originality of the story.

It's not every movie--in fact, it's only one other movie--that features a six-foot-tall rabbit as a major character. But the rabbit in Donnie Darko is also demonic, see, so that makes it different.

I've also got to give credit to the Gyllenhaal, here. It must not have been easy to play a teenager that is experiencing schitzophrenic-based hallucinations that might also be time-travel, but he did a very admirable job. He is especially creepy when he is in the midst of his communes with "Frank" the demonic bunny and hid eyes are half-lidded and his shoulders are all hunched over. It's very effective and very menacing--even though the net result of everything isn't itself menacing.

I don't want to get further into the plot, just in case some of you haven't seen the movie. But I highly recommend it. It is visually engaging, well-written, well acted. Just worth your time.