Remember the Good 'Ol Days?!

Gotta catch 'em all...POKEMON!!!

I'm feeling nostalgic. It's nothing to new for me, but I've been thinking about the past more often recently than ever before. I'm not entirely sure why, but everyday there's some new old thought that pops up in my mind that may or may not have anything to do with what's going on in my life at that moment.

For example, I went out to eat yesterday with some friends and we started talking about Pokemon. The new game came out a few days ago and it made me think about 7th/8th grade when the very first game reached the U.S. shores. I started thinking about the actual game (pretty normal considering the topic), but then my mind started wandering to other events around that timeframe. And that's how it's been recently.

Whether it's when I'm waking up, sitting at work, driving home, or lying in bed, I can't help stopping to think about the past. Maybe it's because I'm feeling unhappy or in this "life slump" for a while. I'm not really sure what the cause is, but it's starting to drive me crazy. See, there's nothing wrong about thinking of past memories, but when it starts to really affect how you're feeling, that's when it's starting to take over my day.

So what to do about it? I can think about upcoming events (e.g. my wedding...w00t!), but sooner or later those older thoughts re-surface. It could be about a TV show, video games, what I used to do after school, who I used to hang out with, my hobbies, or anything under the sun. I'm not saying that I want to forget my experiences that have led me to this point in time, but I can't seem to get a handle on them.

I have friends who could care less about the present, let alone the past. I have others who simply acknowledge that what once was is done and there's no point thinking about it. For those of you who know me (and probably the ones reading this), know me a little too well to know that I'm more than just a "simply" nostalgic kind of guy. I could have a whole dinner conversation on it (which I'm sure I have before) and sometimes it's fun to talk about the glory days.

Other times, when I'm left to my own thoughts, it's a little disheartening to remember these events and then realize where I am in my life. Sure, a lot of things are going really good for me, but the ones that aren't are the ones that my nostalgic feeds upon. In conclusion (ah the elementary school years), I'm not going to publicly post this one on facebook, so we'll see who actually reads this. As always, I'm not sure where I was headed with this post (or rant if you will), but I needed to get it out there.

Just another thought to come back to later down the road.