It's the End of the World as We Know It and I Feel Pretty Stoked

I'm not sure when it started. My first memory is reading "The Chrysalids" in high school although I certainly got way more out of it when I listened to it a few years back. Maybe it was watching "The Stand" for the first time, or "The Langoliers", I'm not sure. The first time I remember being able to articulate it was after I watched "28 Days Later". Currently it shows up as I'm enjoying watching the "Battlestar Gallactica" miniseries. I absolutely love post-apocalyptic stories, end of the world, everything and almost everyone is gone. The truth is that as long as I can remember, since my childhood, questions like what would I do if my whole family died or our county was destroyed or I was left alone on the planet have bounced around my mind and the resulting thoughts have fascinated me. In fact I can't think of a single post-apocalyptic story (book, movie, audio book) I haven't enjoyed. It's like I'm sort of apocalypse junkie (for the record I have copyright on that term to use it as a band name).

Ironically the actual end times and the book or Revelation have never really held any fascination for me. I'm disinterested in that aspect of scripture probably to a fault. But then again I could argue it doesn't count because I know how it works out and it's not really the end just a transition and rather than being all alone I'll be packed into a jewel encrusted cube with all the rest of the redeemed.

I'm not sure why I like this stuff so much but I have a theory. I love order and simplicity. Wipe out 99.99% of humanity and suddenly things get much more simple. I hate grind, repetitiveness, and ruts and I love a worthwhile adventure. Fighting for the survival of the race seems like it would be a daily adventure. I love to create and I love to be left to my own ingenuity. A post-apocalyptic world seems like it would provide the opportunity to do that on a grande scale. I'm not sure what it says about me but the truth is I love this stuff and think about it so much, not because I worry about it actually happening or fear what I would have to do if it did. I like thinking about it because I think I'd like to live in that world. So if the end comes, and amidst the desolation and destruction you see this one guy grinning from ear to ear say hi, it's probably me.

Well, I should be going. Bed and an audio book await. What's on the play list tonight you ask? Cormac MacCarthy's "The Road". No joke.