“Time is on my side. Yes it is.”
-the Rolling Stones
Uh huh. Sure.
I would like to begin by stating that I respect the Rolling Stones. I enjoy their music and listen to them on a regular basis. But is time really on our side? Is time on anyone’s side? Time has the most inelastic supply of all goods. Everything comes down to timing. Late or early? Out or safe? Finish the AP exam or have the proctor call time with a page remaining?
We talk about land as the classic example of inelastic supply. But it’s not, really. You can always build up, tack another story on to a building or tear it down and build a taller one if you need more space. But time. You can reorganize your time, but how much of it can you really control? Things start at specific pre-determined times and you are stuck trying to conform to that schedule and make it to the three places you’re supposed to be at that time.
Time is what’s lacking in my life, not lack of ambition. I’m just as smart as many of the people in the Top 20, I’ve just never had the time to do the work required to get a 4.0. I’ve been busy doing other things, some necessary, some not so necessary and some many people wouldn’t understand until they’ve been in the situation. I try to please everybody, but I can’t. I can’t manufacture enough hours in the day for me to accomplish everything I want.
I just can’t do it. I don’t know where I get these brilliant ideas of I’m going to do everything I can, but I just can’t do it anymore. Something’s got to give, and usually that “something” is me. My thoughts, my feelings, my hopes, my dreams. I want to sit down and pet my kitten and get to know this cat that will be a part of my family for the next fifteen years or so. And I, like all kids, love the cat and I just want to say this right now, that regardless of what you say about it, I’m gonna keep it.
And her name isn’t Checkers.
1 comment:
I'm going to invent a time machine, just so I can contradict your blog and make time more elastic. And because I think it would be just so freakin' sweet. Ha ha.
But back to the matter at hand, you're right about somethihg having to give. There's just not enough hours in the day for... anything.
And some time is so much more valuable than others. Yes, I could be out there trying to save the world with every spare hour I have, but the fact is, I'm not. I'm doing normal high school stuff, and the periods where I'm sitting at home doing busywork are much less valuable for me right now than those periods when I'm out interacting with people. Opportunity costs vary not just with how much time you're losing with which you could be doing other things, but what other things were possible during that time period.
Last week I should have written my English essay before the day it was due, but there was nothing in my life that would have equaled the massive opportunity cost of ignoring the time I got to be exactly where I wanted to be at that point in my life. A relaxing, guardian-free evening just lounging around with the person I care about gave me so much more utility than discussing Troy Maxson could have.
So I know where you're coming from when you talk about time with your cat... except that I'm deathly allergic to cats, so my utility would be somewhat lower than yours, lol.
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