The title of this blog is in reference to the 90’s tv show in which Angela (Claire Danes) attempted to navigate her way through her confusing and frustrating teenage life.
Now maybe it is because I have never left education or schooling and have always been in aschool environment that I feel not much has changed for me since that point or maybe it’s just as I get older, I realise how little I know.
Yes, I am now used to dealing with confusing, painful, strange and annoying situations but they don’t seem to have lessened or become easier as life has gone on?
Is anyone else in agreement that we put a label ‘adult’ on ourselves but really the school days mentality and situations never really leave us?
For the next week and a bit I will be covering someone else’s role in the school and therefore in a way living ‘my so called life…’ It’s quite difficult to navigate my way through this year as I currently have no defined role and this does not work with my love of structure and clarity.
On top of this the same family issues which have haunted me for the last fifteen plus years continue on with no sign of coming to any resolution.
Do you think we put too much pressure on ourselves to have our lives sorted? To have carefully ordered each aspect and be in full control? Is this ever possible? Self help books like to make us think so, tv therapists convince us we can ‘move forward’ and we all live in a facade with each other to worried to admit life is just as hard and confusing as it was when we were fifteen years old.
I do not wish this blog post to come across as depressing or negative quite the contrary I just think maybe if we just lived ‘one day at a time…’ and stopped striving to have everything perfected maybe we would enjoy ourselves a little more?
I’m not suggesting we start lamenting the difficulties of life to each but how about we stop the pretence all the time?
One of the reasons I have stopped using Facebook so much is that it epitomises ‘My so called life…’ it is all a facade, a perfect representation of our lives, the parts we want people to see, the fun we are having, how much we are enjoying our lives. I prefer twitter because you can say what you really want to say but it’s slightly disconcerting that we are happier to be honest with strangers than with our ‘friends’.
The answer? I don’t know. All I know is that I don’t get it right all the time, I don’t feel happy and bubbly 24/7 and sometimes I wish other people would be more ready to admit it.
thoughtcroquet 
Hi
You are not alone. We’re all just kids in the playground, all be it a more serious one that relies on earning money to play and ultimately survive in it.
Pretence – the average person spends approx a quarter of their time/ life pretending to be someone they are not, which leaves them less time to relax and be who they really are and happier (always worrying about dropping their guard in front of peers etc) #sadbuttrue
As for organisation and getting things right, it’s difficult, but one thing I do know is that keeping it all as simple as possible helps. Having less in mind and all other aspects of life provides clarity and less to have to think or stress about.
When you have a minute and you are next alone say to yourself in your mind ‘I wonder what I’m going to think about next’ and see what happens:)
Good luck with the teaching!
Kev
Hi, thanks for your comments – you are right. Keeping it simple is good and that’s why I am now taking one day at a time rather which is doing wonders for my stress levels.
It’s a shame we do pretend, the thing is once we start, we have to maintain it and as you say it is stressful and tiring.
I totally see where your coming from about Facebook, I see friends who I know in real life post on there like their life is perfect and all rosey when in fact its far from it. I think many people try to portray their lives as being fun and perfect. It used to depress me thinking how my life was so not like other peoples until I realized that people tend to post things that they want people to know and not what they don’t.
The life choice I have chosen makes my life very difficult and I make no bones about that I don’t see the point in putting a front on. I admire honestly greatly.
A very good article though you raise some good points.