Obsessions of a Wandering Mind

This is not the first time I've had a blog. My first blog was a rather selfish thing, used only to fuel my ego and sense of "rightness." It's long since been deleted, and I'd like this one to be different. It's a hard thing to share one's mind with others, at least for me, so I think I'll start with something simple. I was inspired to start this blog because it recently came to my attention that several of my friends have blogs (Enroute to Marse, Snatchings of Brilliance, and Wanderal), and I have to admit that I can be a bit of a sheep at times. Still, it does seem like a great way to just get your thoughts, feelings, and views out there (something I am in dire need of).

So to start off this new experiment of mine I figured I'd talk about obsession, after all it is in the title of the blog. I've found in my life that obsession is my constant companion. What do you think of when you first think of obsession? Are your thoughts negative or positive? People often associate obsession with the negative, such as stalkers and control freaks. I admit to being a bit of a control freak at times (ask any of my former lab partners) and sometimes my obsessions have led me down a dangerous road (i.e. my former engagement). However, I've often found my obsessions to be benign and to occationally have a positive influence in my life.

There is one particular obsession that comes to mind when I think of where I am today: Stargate SG-1. I was introduced to this sci-fi series when I was in the hospital for a week after falling out of my tree house of the 4th of July. By seemingly random chance I happened to catch a late night rerun of one of the episodes and was instantly enthralled. Since that night I have grown deeply attached to the show and the characters. How has this shaped my life? The character of Samantha "Sam" Carter is a theoretical astrophysicist in the Air Force. I'd always loved science and thoughts of outer space, but this was the first time I was truly introduced to physics. I was also raised in a military home. My father, a member of the Army National Guard, has instilled in me from a very young age a sense of patriotism and the importance of service to your country. The idea of being able to study the science I enjoyed whilst serving in the Air Force deeply appealed to me. It wasn't long before I wanted to be Sam Carter. I even went so far as to apply to the Air Force Academy, though I never completed the process. Still the desire to learn physics never left me once I found out that it was something that I truly enjoyed. It was an obsession with Stargate that led me to my future occupation.

One thing to understand about my obsessions is that they come with an intense desire for knowledge. I have a need to know everything about a topic. The prime example of this is my love of the Beatles. Ask me a question about either their lives or their music and their is a very high probability that I either know the answer or know where to find it. Here you can find another example of how my obsessive personality formed my current self. My love of the Beatles' music branched into a love of the music of the 60s and 70s (music which reminds me of my childhood listening to my mother's music in the car). It is now frequent to see me wearing a pair of bellbottoms, and my collection of vinyl albums is testament to my love of a bygone era.

Well...I seem to have strayed from my original topic, which oddly enough brings me back to it. The title of this blog is "Obsessions of a Wandering Mind" and the previous paragraphs are a testament to that. I suppose I only have a final thought before I'll go wandering off to bed. It is our obsessions that shape us. Whether they last for years or only a few days, they are the things that influence the choices we make at the time. Our obsessions show so much about our character and personality. To be able to become so fully engrossed in a single topic, person, or event shows where our passions lie. I for one am an obsessive person, and I don't think it's a bad thing at all.