Gambler's Fallacy

So, as I often do, I was postulating from the throne. I'm average. Average height, average income, average intellect, average looks, average at my job, average average average.

I have a low opinion of the shambling masses that we call humanity, and probably not without reason. I was struggling to think of any qualities of mine that surpass the foaming crowds, and came up with only my ability to acquire new skills. I can, in a very short amount of time, put my mind to something completely foreign to me and quickly rise to the rank of average in that new skill. I think that this is why I thrive on change. Boasting aside, I started this I.T. career with no experience and with my usual tendencies immediately became average at it. I was well ahead of the curve. I feel like I'm still in the 'average zone' of being an I.T. guy after 3 years of doing it. I'm no longer ahead of the curve. I'm now where a normal guy would be expected to be skill-wise, and the flash of 'holy cow this guy just started and he's already like a salty dog!' is gone. Maybe its because the secret to I.T. is Google, which I found early and use regularly. But I digress.

The need to change and overcome challenge is growling and scratching and pulling at me right now. Go find a new profession, or do SOMETHING that gets you that 'I'm finally ahead of the crowd!' feeling again. I bought a motorcycle and after two weeks or so I felt like an 'average user' on it. Just running from thought to thought as I type, maybe its about being a showoff. I tend to not ascribe shallow traits like that to myself, but 'call em as you see em' I guess. I didn't get much of a relief from my burning need to defeat challenges or change from the whole motorcycle thing, however rewarding it is. (And man is it fun!) I think that it could be because it was only I who saw how easy it was to pick up something relatively difficult for normal people and pound it into submission. No one else was on the bike with me, so no one saw my skill increase. (On an aside, is that why I felt compelled to write this? Am I showing off?)

I guess I'm just an average showoff now too. However easy it was to become one.

Looking at all the pies I've got my hands in, I feel the need to further show off. Actually I sort of just want to list them all out as a way to delineate what I can do and what may be lacking. Feel free to view the following as me being a pompous and arrogant ass. Because it probably is. I can drift pretty well these days, or make a decent time around a circuit in a properly set up car. I can properly set up a car for drift or grip. (The 350z is set up great for circuit driving...and the 240sx is of course a purpose-built drift slut.) I can repair said cars when they break, and I can even teach people all of these skills pretty well. I'm pretty good at driving boats and skiing behind them. I am also proficient at snow skiing. I am a certified scuba diver. I can fish with a reel, a bully net, or even a cast net. I can run endurance races and make average times, even at ludicrous distances. I can tell you about the human body pretty extensively, or the universe around us, be it astronomy or particle physics. I can talk geology with geology majors and I can talk biology with bio majors. I have a decent understanding of archeology, and I know details on how a lot of different religions worship. I can lead a team of people toward a unified goal, be it just playing an online video game with friends, or in a real life technical emergency. I can cook well enough to get compliments every time I put my hand to it. My technical skills with electronics have been covered already, though I feel like I must mention that I have the same confidence to fix just about any electronic device as I do with mechanical systems on vehicles. Were I not self-bridled with abstinence I feel like I could date some really hot and worldly girls. I also feel like I can make and tell some very interesting stories.

Theres a lot I left out, but I'm beginning to tire of that whole 'i'm awesome' rant. In truth, having a lot of skills that you are average at is probably not all that cool, and I'm just trying to make myself feel better. Not a single of the above listed features sticks out as "I'm better than everyone I know at this one thing." There is always someone out there that is better. The sick thing is that of the skills I'm more proud of, I probably don't even rank in the top 25% of skill-level of specialists in each field.

Average average average. Lets see what I can do to change that.