Be The Fun You'd Like to See in The World

Several weeks ago, during a brief quiet moment in the office, my co-worker Austin turned to me and asked, "What do you think of the name Lance?" I think the initial thought that ran through my mind as the words of that question landed in my ears was, "What now?" with an equal degree of puzzlement and intrigue. This initial reaction led to an amusement with regard to the question and a grin formed on my face as I recall — "What did I think of the name 'Lance'?" — I began the process of actually considering the question.

"I can think of one 'Lance' that I've known. He was my youth group pastor in high school", I started out. Then I went into some detail about a shared experience I had with my youth pastor, Lance. At one point we went on a youth trip to Florida or somewhere east of Texas. We ended up going to an amusement park one day on this youth trip. We were riding roller coasters and having a grand old time as I recall.

Anyway... at one point Lance said to me, "Wouldn't it be cool if there was a device of some sort that would store some of the fun we're having today for another day, when we're not having such a good time."

"That does sound like a good idea," I said.

Lance and I started discussing in detail the particulars of this concept for a device that would store our fun. We dubbed it the Fun-O-Matic. That was the name, and it would have some sort of dial on the side of it so that you could adjust how much fun you were spending and how much fun you were saving for later... at least that's the concept I remember. Mind you this was all silly, nonsense; but we both treated the matter as legitimate, high concept science. We eventually settled on a prototype: a rubber band stapled to a McDonald's French fry container. The idea was to strap the container, face out on your forehead so that the fun could freely flow into your brain and be stored. Sadly, Lance and I never made it past the prototype phase.

I feel like I droned on to my coworkers for a bit about the story of my friend, Lance and the high concept contraption called the Fun-O-Matic that he and I imagined one sunny day on a youth trip, at an amusement park several years ago. Having concluded my story to a no doubt enthralled group of colleagues, I posed the question, "Should we make some Fun-O-Matics for the office?" Some coworkers were all onboard for the adventure. Some thought it was utter nonsense, and still others remained confused as to how the system worked (For this later group, I again tried to explain: "Say you're riding a roller coaster and you're having a blast. During that time of heightened excitement, you'd dial back the fun... so you're not having quite as much fun as you ordinarily would be because you're SAVING some "fun" for later when you're performing a dull task... like doing taxes."). With this later group still confused, I had to leave them to their confusion... because the ship had already set sail with the former group who was ALL IN and STOKED to get started. Sadly, getting started meant having to make a trip to McDonald's. Our Fun-O-Matics would have to be constructed another day.

Another Day: Having procured the materials needed for construction, a few of my colleagues and I set about building our prototypes... which I have to say, turned out swimmingly. The first time I put mine on, it must have been dialed to MAX because I got a BIG burst of joy once it was secured to my forehead (I was no doubt thrust back to my youth, recalling the time I must have first strapped on a prototype of a Fun-O-Matic with Lance all those years ago!). I quickly dialed the "fun" back a few notches to "save" the fun I was experiencing for later in the day.

Here's a good shot of my colleague, Estin having a blast at work! Of course you wouldn't know it to look at him, because he's got the Fun-O-Matic dialed back significantly.

Here's me once I properly adjusted my fun controls...

Since these were prototypes, and because we weren't scientists, we weren't quite sure if we were on to something, or if the Fun-O-Matics were a "swing and a miss". One thing was certain though: we had taken an ordinary day and had made it something extraordinary.

This is the type of thing we do on a fairly consistent basis. Another thing we've been in the habit of doing off and on is coordinating our outfits on specific days. Not too long ago, Estin and I wore bolo ties to work... just because. Another day we had "Fish Shirt Friday", where a handful of us wore a shirt with a fish on it. Fish Shirt Friday ended up inspiring a commemorative t-shirt that can be purchased on ETSY.

A few of us have taken to keeping journals of the everyday comings and goings we encounter at the office. Flipping the pages back often produces an uninhibited grin if not a full-on belly laugh.

The job I occupy is more of a pit stop than a final destination for many of my coworkers. Several of them have lofty plans to go do bigger and bolder things. Many of my former coworkers have moved on since I first started and seeing them progress in their existential journey produces within me a mingled sense of joy and sorrow. Joy at seeing them realize the dreams they once only imagined, and sorrow at seeing the empty chair where they once sat in the office where I still work.

There's a lot to this job that feels dull and repetitive. I'm grateful to work alongside colleagues that riff well together. We find ways to inject some joy here and there where possible and make what some might see as a mundane job, lively and memorable.

Don't count the days, make the days count. ~ Muhammad Ali