I am something of a Janie-come-lately to the science fiction world. Growing up, I had a healthy exposure to Star Trek (original and The Next Generation) and, aside from my crush on Data, it did not really seep into my life. It was not until middle-school when I found Earth Abides on my mother's bookshelf that I began to read any science fiction. I slowly gained momentum, not considering science-fiction any more than any other kind of fiction, until this summer.
I have been a little fed up with the assumed and accepted reality. I like to remember that I am an animal, part of the enormous ecosystem we call Earth. I tend to wonder how a given situation would translate into an uncivilized human mind. No, I am not making archaic and blatantly racist romantic stories about the "savage". I like to strip away our fake environments, our learned social responses, and remember that I am only a human. I am a naked, utterly defenseless animal in an "untamed" and "undeveloped" natural world. It allows me to let go of the stress that builds up when worrying about things like a good credit score, a collapsing economy, how much I pay for health insurance, how much I pay for my graduate studies, etc. I suppose, in many ways, it rids me of the burden of money.
So while I am on school break, I plan to take a break for the pettiness of graduate school studies and engage in some healthy fantasy and escape this reality for a little while. I cannot afford a vacation or even a soma holiday so escapism is here as a cheap substitute.
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