What do I miss the most about being a teenager? Certainly the lack of responsibility is up there on my list. However, coming in at a strong number one, would have to be my indifference to politics and world events. In my own little world, even drama one street over didn't affect me.
As I got older/wiser, I picked up what I considered to be more mature habits. Drinking coffee, subscribing to the local and state level newspapers, scratching lottery tickets...
I also noticed, that I wasn't any happier than I was when I was 15 and free. Despite having everything I wanted. I was in the Army, had a lot of friends, a new Chevy truck... Always had cash in my pocket. No curfew!
When I really sit back, and try to focus on the exact moment I stopped living vicariously in my 15 year old self, I can pinpoint an exact time, date, and location where everything got more stressful.
September 11th, 2001.
I was 19 years old, living in Budingen, Germany. Cleaning weapons in the barracks.
It wasn't just the attack on our freedoms that changed my otherwise positive outlook on the world. It was the subsequent 24/7 news coverage that did that.
See, after 9/11, I felt that in order to protect myself and my loved ones... I needed to keep an eye on global events. I had to be acquainted with places to stay away from, and the nationality, race, or religion of people to be wary of.
Moving forward 16 years up through this last election cycle... I continued to stay “informed”. This caused me the worst possible strife. I had two sides to choose from, and had family and friends on both sides of the aisle.
United we stand, divided we fall.
It wasn't until May, 2017 that I finally quit the media. No more click-bait on Yahoo!, no more Twitter, no more political arguments on Facebook. I literally, and figuratively stopped, 'Keeping up with the Kardashians'. And never felt better.
Please stay tuned! Tomorrow- I will give you 3 bulletproof, unarguable reasons, on why you should quit the media. And I think you will agree with me.
_Rob