8 miles at lunch with Quint. The best part of the run was when he climbed a fence like Spiderman to avoid a huge puddle in the middle of the bike path, thought he was clear, then jumped in the middle of it.
No run this morning. Woke up to a drizzle that turned into a downpour as a storm moved in from the gulf. Not that I would have run anyway, having been out late at the company dinner party.
We had a good last year, so they took us to an expensive restaurant and ordered a ridiculous amount of food and drink. On one hand it was fun, but I found it impossible to tune out the sheer excess. It reminds me of being a kid at Christmas, and of course I loved the toys, but I also felt a lot of shame when I saw all the presents, and knew the situation of kids elsewhere in the world.
Maybe it's just the weather, but it seems that the default human condition is to take care of yourself and your family, then maybe your immediate social circles. People seem to fall into three categories in this regard. The first group doesn't care about the massive inequality that exists, and if anything enjoys explaining why others are less fortunate. The second group is just as bad, people like me, who don't like the way the world is but don't translate their feelings into actions. Then there's a minority who volunteer their time, money, or choose careers like teaching or social work where you forego lavish dinners and higher salaries in exchange for directly helping other people.
At some point I want to move into the third category. I already regret living most of my life too selfishly thus far.
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