A Worthy Passage to Remember

As I grow older and crankier, I often reflect upon my mistakes and cringe at the idea that I once thought a certain way. Having a diverse readership, filled with young punks, I should probably spend more time educating the youth about learned errors.

Someone in Exodus posted this passage from a book he recommended and I felt it was worthy of your attention. Absolutely perfect prose.

Wanderer by Sterling Hayden

“And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine – and before we know it our lives are gone. What does a man need – really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in – and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That’s all – in the material sense, and we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade. The years thunder by, The dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed. Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life? ”

Compound your returns. Quit spending money on stupid shit. You’re not your fucking khakis.