Limbo

Having had my mind blown recently by Inception, I will name this entry "Limbo," a term used frequently in Christopher Nolan's latest masterpiece. In the movie, it refers to the state that your mind rests in if you get killed in a dream but don't wake up in real life. This only happens when the sleeper is heavily sedated and has multiple layers of dreams. Since time slows down dramatically with each layer, at some point, things get so warped that a few moments in real life are actually decades in the several-layers-deep dream. When the dreamer finally does awake, his mind is that of an old, old, man, i.e. mushy and worthless, because of all the time spent in limbo.

This entry has nothing to do with any of that. =)

Instead, it's about me reflecting on a summer just about over. It's been a limbo-ish one. At 25, I've spent most of the last 7 years on my own but am currently living at home with my family. I spent weekdays working for a federal district court judge but took home no paychecks. I hang mostly with friends I've grown up with but many are on their way out of little La Crescenta, CA.

And even though I say this every year, I really feel like this is going to be the year that things start to change dramatically.

Or not.

Do things really change over time? Or do they stay the same, substantively, with only the outer shells changing? Let's take a looksy.

Group fun:

This is us in 2003, right after we graduated from high school. Fun back then involved getting together, eating a lot (a LOT), and sharing some laughs together.

This is us in 2010. Fun these days involves getting together, eating a lot (not quite as much), and sharing some laughs together. And occasionally having a few drinks and watching magic shows. I wouldn't say much has changed.

Moments of Brilliance:

This is me in 1991. I was in kindergarten and had just finished my most brilliant invention ever of all time (ever): a bowling alley made only of the blocks we were given to play with. As you can see, the brilliance here is not just the efficiency of the design but that my bowling "ball" made it impossible NOT to get a strike every time you bowled. Fun for all!

(When I look at that picture I sometimes wonder whether I peaked too soon as an innovator. The other kids on the playground quickly imitated my design. No one imitates anything I do these days.)

(Also, if you look at the setup right behind mine, you'll notice that some other kid arranged the pins more accurately, in the triangle. I distinctly remember cursing him in my five year-old mind for improving upon my design.)

This is me in 2010, outside the federal courthouse in Los Angeles. I have absolutely nothing significant going on in my head right now - I'm probably just thinking about how to get as much caffeine in my system as quickly as possible. I've fallen a long way from inventing new ways for children to have fun. Much has changed.

Sam's Modeling:

Winter 2006

Winter 2009


Summer 2010

Yes, going from endorsing instant noodles to women's sunglasses to fishing poles and seastars is usually a mark of change. But while it might look like a lot has changed at first glance, you have to remember that Sam is really versatile as a model. There is a consistency to these pictures - everything looks GOOD. I want to eat that ramen. I want to try wearing ladies' shades. I want to go fishing while wearing a baseball cap with a Confederate flag on it. Ergo, this is not change. This is just sexiness.

So maybe things don't really change after all. Or maybe I just don't want them to.