Mon-ey, Mon-ey

I saw an extremely expensive car today, whilst biking back from Gamestop. And I thought, "Why do they make these things so expensive?"

I meant in the sense that what is the real point of having things expensive besides the want of money? What do I get out of the deal besides a nice shiny new car? It would be nice to have that. A bright red convertible. But what makes us so willing to pay so much for it? The feeling of earning enough money to get it? The hard work involved to get to it?

And I thought of how easy animals get it. They don't pay for a thing and seem completely happy. Is that a positive to being unable to have the capacity to understand these things? Not having to pay for anything and living life basically stress free? They live there lives, doing what they're made to do as nature intended and die. You may think, "Yeah, but it's boring..." But then, aren't we always wondering what our purpose of life is? What we're meant to do? And here are those animals, doing what they're meant to do. They may not be aware of it, but I don't see a sparrow digging around the ground like a mole. Or a fish fixing vacuuming a carpet.

Does this mean we get rewarded if we realize what we're meant to do and continue doing it to the best we can?

I just can't see why things need to be as expensive as they are. Four hundred dollars for a gaming device. Thousands for laptops. Everything is just money, money, money. You'd figure everyone would just get sick of it. It's paper for God's sake. Especially American money--burnable and easily ripped. With such delicate things, you'd figure we'd respect it more and really see the value. And it's so complicated. Values all over the world going up and down. The value of a piece of paper that already has an initial value.

I don't know all of the things of money, so I probably shouldn't have such a strong opinion... But simple is usually best. And here's the simplicity: money only exists because we put such importance on it, and we have problems with giving things to each other/sharing. We're so worried about who gets what and why and when... Even when we're on top of everything, our big noses pop in to see how everyone else is doing, and whether they deserve what they get. Does there need to be reason?

Besides the point, it's 4th of July. The fireworks I saw were epic--though very short, Nathan, my hall director, and I were right under them, looking up in such a way that I felt I was at the IMAX of fireworks. I've never been so close, or felt that I was going to be rained upon with their aftermath. It was a lot of fun.

Afterward, Matt, an old friend, came and played Rock Band with us, all of us wanting to avoid the singing, as we only had one guitar, a drum set and mic to grab for. We all took turns. Though we didn't get to talk much, it was great to see him again. I've always thought that Matt had a fantabulous vocabulary, and I could listen to him tell stories all day. He's "grown" since I've last seen him, which is funny to say, but it's been a year, and he is some years younger than me. We set a lunch date to see each other for sure, just in case we couldn't hang out at other times.

Groups are fun, but it also means that there's very little actual talk time. I'm excited for the prospect to chat.

In lesser news, I am frustrated with my Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector, which consistently goes in and out of connection. I don't know if it's my computer or what, but I'm ready to smother something, and soon! I have Dr. Mario to play!

Random Fact: About 18% of Animal owners share their bed with their pet