On Friday April 6, 2012 I bought a case of Miller High Life. While the buying of beer and liquor is fairly common in my life, I decided to do something a little different with it this time around. I decided that with every beer I drank, I had to share something that I've learned in life that I wanted the World to know about in 140 characters or less on my Twitter account using the #HighLifeLesson. Some of these are things that I try to do every day in accordance with my life mottos but most of them were off of the top of my head as I cracked open the next beer. If you came here expecting some stupid drunk nonsense like "Don't Cross the Streams" (although that's good advice) and other movie quotes then you don't understand me. Don't worry about it pal. No one understands me. When you break me down to the core I'm a very thoughtful and intelligent person who is very truthful and reasonable. Unfortunately there are a lot of layers to break away before you can get to that part of me. If you ever took the time to read this blog you would probably understand but no one really has time for that shit. I spend a lot of time alone because people are busy. I get it. But that's not what this article is about. This is about trying to relay some lessons I've learned throughout life that I would like to share. If these lessons help you to live the High Life then I've finally done some good in this World.
I bought an 18 pack of High Life. I'm going to see how many I can drink. And with each one I'm going to share a #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 7:36 pm)
1st beer - Beer tastes so much better when you have a drinking buddy. If you don't have a buddy, drink with a pet. #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 8:06 pm)
2nd beer - You're going to get let down a lot in life. But I bet your letdown is just a #FirstWorldProblem. #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 8:40 pm)
3rd beer - I'll probably never find a girlfriend unless I start looking. But even then she'll probably keep hiding. #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 9:19 pm)
4th beer - sitting around by yourself on a Friday night singing "Moon River" is in no way depressing. #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 10:02 pm)
5th beer - singing opera-style is a lot of fun, and you don't need a great voice to do it. Sing as loud as you want. #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 10:35 pm)
6th beer - Life is in 3D; you just need to take off your glasses to be able to see it. #HighLifeLesson (4/6/2012 11:20 pm)
I only got through 6 of the 18 beers (which is still a decent 1/3rd of a case) that night but in my opinion there wasn't too much to take away from those 6 lessons. They are more what I was doing or how I felt. There isn't much that you could use to try and live the High Life. I might have realized it on that night because I stopped this little adventure. Who knows. That was over 2 years ago. But I do know that the next 7 High Life Lessons that I came up with on the next day are ones that I'm really proud of and I will admit that I try and incorporate them into my life.
7th beer - Fake it till ya make it. Better to screw up trying than to never try at all. #HighLifeLesson (4/7/2012 7:40 am)
8th beer - take time to be wowed by simple yet complex things like fire and clouds. Makes you feel like a kid again. #HighLifeLesson (4/7/2012 10:54 am)
9th beer - put in a hard day of work so you feel no regret following it up with a hard night of drinking. #HighLifeLesson (4/7/2012 7:16 pm)
10th beer - please do not squander a moment of your youth. Once you get older, the mind is willing but the body isn't able. #HighLifeLesson (4/7/2012 7:39 pm)
11th beer - The key to life is finding a balance. Don't take on too much. Set achievable goals. And have some fun. #HighLifeLesson (4/7/2012 8:19 pm)
12th beer - don't let anyone tell you what you can or can't do. Live your dreams. Chase some whimsies. #HighLifeLesson (4/7/2012 11:21 pm)
13th beer - Don't sit around and wait for luck. Instead practice Karma. Do good and good will happen to you. #HighLifeLesson (4/8/2012 12:52 am)
The 7th High Life Lesson is from my brother Timmy. He was a firm believer in "fake it till you make it" and always encouraged me to at least try. Not many people achieve perfection and the ones that do usually won't admit it because they keep striving to be better. Once you realize that no one is perfect, nothing should stop you from trying and failing until you do succeed.
The 11th High Life lesson is one of the 3 core beliefs that I live my life by. The other 2 are #16 and #18. With this tripod holding me up, I make all of my decisions, assess right from wrong and try to lead a good life. I'm sure there are other factors that go into it but when it comes down to it, I trust in those 3 things to guide me.
The 13th High Life Lesson is very appropriately numbered. I don't believe in luck. I believe in Karma, keeping yourself open to new ideas and adventures and having a positive attitude. When you do that you make your own luck. Ever realize that when one thing goes right you end up falling into several more "lucky" situations? It's the opposite of the "when it rains, it pours" scenario. Some of my best adventures in life have happened because I put myself in a position for good things to happen. Call it what you want (be it Karma or something else) but things rarely go wrong when you do the right thing. It might not always be the easy choice to make, but if you have a good heart and a sound mind you should have no trouble choosing the right path to take.
14th beer - Nap before you rally. Trust me, you'll thank me later. You will rally 10x harder after a little nap. #HighLifeLesson (4/14/2012 4:37 pm)
15th beer - Break down barriers. Run through walls. Keep on pushing until you get there. The finish line is spectacular. #HighLifeLesson (4/14/2012 5:31 pm)
I took a week off before I drank beers #14 and #15 most likely because of #14 - at my age I need to nap before I rally. I'm not getting any younger and it is getting increasingly more difficult to rage as hard as I want to. Also it seems like I'm starting to forget things as well. I could have easily picked this thing up a few days later and continued dishing out lessons. But for some reason I didn't. Something that is more alarming is that it took me almost a year to finish up these 18 High Life Lessons (although I promise you that it didn't take me that long to finish the actual beers).
16th beer - The secret to surviving in life is this - don't be a fucking idiot. Apply this to everything and you'll be alright. #HighLifeLesson (3/14/2013 9:39 pm)
17th beer - It's ok to rage for other people, but make sure to also take time to rage for yourself. Celebrate your life. #HighLifeLesson (3/14/2013 10:29 pm)
18th beer - Slow down and enjoy today. Don't strain yourself worrying about tomorrow. You can't get there until today is over. #HighLifeLesson (3/14/2013 11:31 pm)
It's a little weird that I didn't finish this little adventure until almost a year after I started it. What happened in those 11 months that I couldn't add 3 more High Life Lessons? Life probably happened. It usually does. But I also saved 3 of the most important ones for last. #16 is so incredibly true. There are way too many idiots out there or maybe they are just regular people doing idiotic things. Whatever the case may be, you can apply this thought to just about anything and you'll be OK. It's snowing and visibility is poor? Don't be a fucking idiot - drive carefully and give yourself plenty of space between yourself and the other cars. In a committed relationship? Don't be a fucking idiot and cheat on your partner. Why purposefully hurt another person? That's no way to treat someone that was or is a big part of your life. Those are only 2 examples, but I'm sure you could think of a million more. When a situation presents itself, don't be a fucking idiot. Make the right choice.
#17 - I spend too much time Raging for Timmy and not enough time raging for myself. Because of that I've put my life on hold while I've been trying not to forget his. While it is important to continue his legacy, I need to create one of my own as well so people will remember me when I am gone.
The last one (#18) is the final piece that makes up the support system that keeps me standing - slow down. Life moves by real fast and if you don't stop and enjoy it, someday you'll regret it. I've already got tons of regrets and I'm only 33 years old. How many times do I sit by the lake and stare out across open water? How many times do I lay on my back in the park and watch the clouds roll by? How often do I sit with my Mom or my Dad and ask them questions about their childhood? Someday they won't be here anymore. It's sad to think about it but one day I won't be here too. So while I am here, I might as well slow down and enjoy this thing called life. We only get one of them. Might as well enjoy what little of it we have left.
If you've enjoyed these High Life Lessons I hope you apply them to your own life or come up with some of your own to follow and share with the World. If you're in to this sort of thing then I implore you to follow me on Twitter for this and all sorts of other random thoughts and nonsense. You can find me at @pookondotcom. And if not, I'm sure that our paths will cross someday in the future if we keep ourselves open to the idea. So until then - cheers pal. Hope you are living the High Life.
