The paralysis of choice

Hello Everyone, 

Unquestionably, winning the lottery and becoming instantly wealthy is a benefit, but it's not an unalloyed good. It brings a new set of problems to your life. I'd certainly take them, but I'm naive enough to believe that my life would be all sunshine and rainbows were I suddenly worth millions.

In a certain sense, I have won the lottery. I'm not rich in a financial sense, rather in the sense that I have a wealth of time. Like being rich, I have a large pool of a resource, but one that is not infinite. I can do a lot, but not everything, and thus have to make choices. I just have a wider variety of choices, and that can bring it's own probkems.

Yesterday for instance , I was in San Francisco, trying to decide how to spend my day. I have about a week until I have to be back in San Diego, and so have to figure out how to spend that time - hang out for a day there, or drive to Santa Cruz and do some biking. Conditions haven't been great and I haven't been able to put many miles in, so despite it being a sunny day in the city, I opted for the drive and bike.

I started to regret my choice when I stood on a railroad track, amidst a homeless camp, having climbed a muddy hill with my bike, but not having found the trail. I had been turned around several times, trying to find parking and get to this trail. Wondering how likely it was that I would accidentally anger someone who's home I just came upon and who would react badly to the intrusion, I started to think a day in the park with a view of the Golden Gate may have been the better option.

When you are in a hole, first thing to do is stop digging. So, I turned around, headed back down the hill and to the truck. To my fortune, I found a couple of bikers there, and after a short introduction, joined them as they tried to find the trail as well. There is safety in numbers, after all, and they were older, so I figured if we got into a pickle, Arthur and I could hightail it out of there, leaving them to slow our pursuers. You don't have to outrun the bear, as they say.

But it worked out great. We found the trail and had a nice ride. Now that I know where to go, and where definitely not to go, I'll head up there again today for another short jaunt. 

Wes