Here I lay in grimy clothes, just wasting time, just growing old.
Though I look like misery, I am more than you see.
I was once a little boy, I laughed and danced and skept for joy.
No one told me then I would ever hurt this way.

Well I guess I'll just dream my life away, cuz I cannot stand the pain.
Well I guess I'll just dream my life away, cuz I cannot stand the pain.

All these burning memories of every wicked thing I've seen,
tear me down throughout the day and haunt me at night.
I wish I could get away, but I cannot escape the constant pain,
of everything I've suffered on this broken road.

Well I guess I'll just dream my life away, cuz I cannot stand the pain.
Well I guess I'll just dream my life away, cuz I cannot stand the pain.

I see you walking by, in your clean clothes with your white washed smile,
your lips are full of holy words, but empty of life.
When it comes to push and shove, my heart around with plastic love,
but you, just like everyone, will walk away when the words are done.

Well I guess I'll just dream my life away, cuz I cannot stand the pain.
Well I guess I'll just dream my life away, cuz I cannot stand the pain.

If you do not love your brother, then you cannot see.
If you do not love God, then you cannot see, then you cannot see, then you cannot see....

An unknown author once wrote, "The mark of a successful man is one who has spent an entire day on the bank of a river without feeling guilty about it." American writer Elbert Hubbard wrote, "The man who doesn't relax and hoot a few hoots voluntarily, now and then, is in great danger of hooting hoots and standing on his head for the edification of the pathologist and trained nurse, a little later on." Man, I couldn't agree more! It is so important for one to be able to take time to relax and not feel guilty about it! I currently find myself at a Starbucks on the outskirts of downtown Colorado Springs, CO with views of mountains, beautifully blue southwestern skies, and the laid back culture that goes along with all of the above. It makes me long for the days I spent growing up in Albuquerque, NM and could easily go out mountain biking a short ten minutes from my house, walk to cafes and bookstores, and otherwise live a slower, more enjoyable lifestyle.

Life and culture on the East Coast are very different from that here in the American Southwest. On the East Coast, particularly so in the Mid-Atlantic to New York area, the culture is "go go go and go all the time." People burn out. People get stressed. People sit around with big red puffy bags underneath their eyes drinking coffee in the morning with hopes that it will wake them up, and drink alcohol at night when they have even bigger, redder, puffier bags underneath their eyes in hopes that it will help them sleep, in reality, either activity is likely to give them even bigger, redder, and puffier bags under onetheirs eyes and make them feel more like a piece trash, to put it politely. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the East Coast in that there are plenty of things to do, concerts to see, jazz clubs to go to, people to spend time with, work to be done, and many good things, however, it is too easy to get clawed into the non-stop culture, which is often unhealthy. The importance of vacation and time to relax is unbelievable and all of those wonderful activities need to be kept in balance with time off, time with God, and time relaxing.

Work life balance is an interesting issue to consider. It is an issue that interests me so much so, in fact, that in college I even wrote a term paper on work life balance and related issues, discussing steps that both employees and employers can take towards a healthier lifestyle and the benefits thereof, such as increased productivity, lower costs on multiple fronts for employers, and happier, healthier, and more productive workers. In the time since entering the full time work force myself after having graduated college, the issue of work life balance has taken on a nearly completely different look. Now am I not only thinking about the issue, but have to actually strike my own balance between work and life. Often it is hard to balance the "demands" of the workplace with certain life activities, such as spending time with my family or exercising or otherwise doing things that will refresh me and otherwise help me become more productive while at work.

Something I often find frustrating, although at times have been guilty of myself, is when people make a judgement on a particular issue without truly having the life experience to backup their position. Work life balance, for example, is a much more delicate, challenging issue when one tries to address it while in the workplace, as making such changes within an organization can often be met with difficulty, such as culture change, management hesitancy and opposition, and other difficulties. At times, in regard to many different life issues, I have found it frustrating when people approach problems by reasoning through the issues from a purely "academic" standpoint without really having the experience and "know-how" to back it up. For example, one could make a compelling argument that organizations who help their employees achieve a healthy work life balance experience greater productivity, lower costs, and other advantages, but sometimes there needs to be an element of life experience to know how to implement those changes.