Free Time Isn't That Cool

When I came down here, I planned on spending the first month on vacation, and after that I'd start traveling or job hunting, whichever came first. The first month went well, I was having fun and going to the beach, fishing, etc. However, now that I've been here for seven weeks, I've gotten sick of having so much free time. A friend recently came down from NYC for 9 days on his Spring break, and we had a great time. However, during this time I realized that I need to get my ass in gear. I've spent too much money, and I feel like I need to put traveling on hold for a while. This is okay, because my main destination of Buenos Aires isn't really in condition to be visited right now. It's cold and damp, and when I go, I want it to be warm and dry.

Anyways, back to my feelings of being a bum.

Having free time is great, when it actually has meaning. However, when every minute of every day is "free" you never really feel like you're enjoying this free time. As my friend Tim described it in economic terms, you need to have a constraint on your free time to actually utilize it. When you're a bum, every minute is considered free time, yet you wind up never actually doing anything. However, when you have a full time job, those three hour chunks between ending work and going to bed are milked for all they're worth. Someone who is extremely busy and has three open hours could accomplish more than myself with a whole day available because I'm able to procrastinate.

Looking back at my entire post-high school life, I've always had a job and worked something like 25 hours per week. I wasn't raised in a family where being lazy was acceptable. I was taught that I needed to "learn the value of a dollar" and now, after 6 years of constant labor, I understand that value. I don't understand how someone could be a beach bum and NOT have a job. Working gives me a sense of value that I don't get from living the life of a vagabond. I could easily live for a few more months on my savings account, but I enjoy labor.

So, plan is, I'm applying at all the best steak houses in town. I knew I said I wasnt getting back into serving, but the money is good, and it will give me the drive to put my real "free time" into Text Marketing Miami, my text message marketing company that I'm starting down here. Looking back, I've always been at my most productive when I was working the most. During the fall, I was putting in 32 hours/week at the internship, another 15 at the Loring, and I still read 10 books, found an apartment in Miami, and focused myself better. Plus, word on the street is that servers make close to $300/$400 per night, and that is damn good money.