Of Stress and Marginless Life

Margin is having breath left at the top of the staircase, money left at the end of the month, and sanity left at the end of adolescence. Marginless is not having time to finish the book you're reading on stress, margin is having the time to read it twice -Richard A. Swinson, M.D.

As I was musing over these new gadgets I got, I started to feel stressed. I don't want to come across as being ungrateful, I am, but I feel that I have to learn to use these gadgets to it's maximum potential and my brain is too overloaded already to process new stuff. I remember the book that Dr. Swinson wrote in 1992, titled Margin - (Restoring emotional, financial and time reserves to overloaded lives.) At the time he wrote that book which was 17 years ago, I only had to stress on how to program my coffee maker to brew right after I wake up not 2 days after I awake.

There are at least 3 contemporary causes of stress : 1.The alarming increase in crime and violence makes us more afraid. 2. The rapidly changing job market, technology and the economic factor makes us more professionally insecure. 3. And because of widespread separation or divorce, we are more alone. And if I may add to that, I say that even married couples living under the same roof, feels isolated from each other because of the remote control. When you're glued to that remote, well, you end up feeling....remote.

I know you're thinking I'm crazy for stressing over things that others consider to be fun.My engineer friend who gave me all these gadgets enjoys reading manuals, I don't. Manuals stress me out, period. Especially now that my brain has cobwebs in them. I have books that are still packed in my garage and the thought that I don't have time to read what I have already unpacked stress me out. But wise man Solomon says: "Of making many books there is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh." So I chill, but this touchpad still drives me nuts and the thought of having to read the manual still stress me out.