Weirdness Revolution

Every Wednesday after work, my friend Nicole and I go and walk a two mile loop at Gray's Lake in Des Moines. It's a pretty easy trail, and it makes us feel like we're doing some exercise, which is always good ;) It also gives us a chance to de-stress with all the craziness of our job.

Depending on the day, it can be very busy or fairly quiet at Gray's Lake. No matter how many people are around, it's always entertaining to people watch. From the hardcore runners who pass us 4 times on our loop to the elderly couples strolling hand in hand to the random flirty landscape worker, there is always someone to observe.

And there are always the people who don't fit into any "generic" mold. The ones who march to the beat of their own drummer. I'm not talking about the groups of goth kids playing hacky-sack by the path. I'm talking about the lady who had her iPod in and would stop every few feet to shake her booty. I mean, REALLY shake it! She was gettin' down on the path, not worried about who else was around, just into the music. I'm talking about the man who was running and singing quite loudly. He didn't care that his voice was breathy from exertion or off-key. He didn't care that everyone did a double take to see if that runner was actually the one singing. He just sang. I don't know the reason. Maybe exercise sucks so bad that he was desperate to take his mind off it. Maybe he was so joyful to be out in the fresh air that he just couldn't contain it.

Whatever the reason, people like that make me smile. They make me realize that everything doesn't have to be taken so seriously. Those people will probably never see me again, so who cares if they  make fools of themselves? And who is to say they're being foolish at all?

I doubt I will ever have the audacity to be so "out there" in public. I don't like to be noticed. Sure, I'm a little weird around friends, but it's a whole different ballgame to be weird in public. I aspire to public weirdness. To show the world that I don't have to conform to be happy. To sing and dance down a walking path, no matter who may see me. Who knows? Maybe others will join in ;)

This is a video that was shown in a training last week. It shows someone who definitely marches to the beat of his own drummer. Yes, he's weird. But weirdness can start a movement...




Laugh on, friends!