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12.08.2011

first world pains.


I woke up this morning at my usual 5:45am, rolled over, and felt annoyed at the thought of dragging myself out of my toasty king sized bed. I should just skip my run, I thought to myself knowing full well what the weather was supposed to be like. No, I can't do that; I have to just stick to my training plan. So I rolled my eyes, lifted the blankets, and sighed heavily at the current situation. As I do every Thursday morning, I walked over to the window. I held my breath as I drew back a tiny corner of the curtain and peered outside. Much to my dismay, it was exactly as I predicted it would be; 29 degrees, dark, and a ground covered in snow and ice. I wanted so badly to gear up and do my usual Thursday morning run outside, headlamp on, and adrenaline pumping. Sidewalks weren't plowed, and with it being so dark in the mornings lately, I was worried I'd slip on some ice and injure myself. So all in a tizzy, I grabbed my sneakers and trekked on over to the gym, sporting my winter boots and jacket cursing the whole way. I had a case of the "First World Pains."

Recently, I stumbled upon a Twitter feed (@firstworldpains) that has now made me reconsider how I treated my first 15 minutes of being awake this morning. This feed is centered around mocking how ridiculous the people of the "First World" sound when they complain about their daily trials and tribulations. In reality, the "issues" that those of us residing in the First World face are bleak in comparison to what most of the population has to fight for every day. The ongoing quest for basic needs; a place to sleep, access to heat and air conditioning, food on the table, employment, a place to live, an income, access to healthcare and clean drinking water, the ability to communicate regularly with loved ones via phone and internet, access to transportation, and just feeling safe and secure. These are all things we, in the First World, too often take for granted. And when we take a minute to slow down and consider just how blessed we truly are, our daily problems seem miniscule...And laughable, according to the folks behind this Twitter feed:

I have to clean the kitchen instead of watching Netflix all day. #firstworldpains
There's too much syrup in my Starbucks latte. #firstworldpains
There are no good shows on television. #firstworldpains
After a nice facial yesterday, I woke up with a huge zit. #firstworldpains
My online order is going to take 7-10 days to ship. #firstworldpains
I'm really hungry, but nothing sounds good. #firstworldpains
I have "nothing" to wear. #firstworldpains
For my birthday, my parents got me a Droid instead of an Iphone. #firstworldpains
I have to go to work in the morning. #firstworldpains
My mom just bought groceries and there still isn't anything good to eat. #firstworldpains
My steak at the restaurant was totally overcooked. #firstworldpains
My sister is calling during my favorite TV show. #firstworldpains
I forgot where I parked my car in this mall's parking lot. #firstworldpains
My mom packed me a vanilla pudding, when I wanted chocolate. #firstworldpains
My backpack is too heavy from all my textbooks. #firstworldpains
Champagne gives me a headache. #firstworldpains
Having the heater on makes my throat so dry. #firstworldpains
I can't print my paper because my printer is out of ink. #firstworldpains
My satellite radio subscription expired while I was driving. #firstworldpains
I ordered Coke, but they brought me Pepsi. #firstworldpains
I had to go out in the cold to vote. #firstworldpains
I just memorized my debit card number and the bank sent me a new one. #firstworldpains
I forgot to put on deodorant today. #firstworldpains 
We're out of milk for my cereal. #firstworldpains
My web browser won't offer to remember my password. #firstworldpains
My dishwasher doesn't clean things perfectly. #firstworldpains
A foot-long Subway sub is too big for me, but the 6" leaves me hungry. #firstworldpains
The vending machine gave me Starburst when I asked for Skittles. #firstworldpains
My favorite show is a rerun tonight. #firstworldpains
My CC sticks to my my Iphone when I have them in the same pocket. #firstworldpains
All the food in my fridge spoiled because I bought way too much. #firstworldpains
My landscapers woke me up again this morning. #firstworldpains
My gum flavor runs out too fast. #firstworldpains
I always finish my shampoo before my conditioner. #firstworldpains
My radar detector only works on certain cop cars. #firstworldpains
I'm starving, but the kitchen is all the way downstairs. #firstworldpains
My arm is sore from playing Wii baseball. #firstworldpains
My parents are threatening to take my car away because of bad grades. #firstworldpains
I have to go to the Dentist. #firstworldpains
I can't think of anything I want for Christmas. #firstworldpains 
I had to wait 5 minutes for my car window to defrost. #firstworldpains
I have more shirts than hangers. #firstworldpains 
I dropped 17 cents, but refuse to pick it up. #firstworldpains
There is a dead bee in the swimming pool. #firstworldpains
Both bathrooms in my house are occupied and I have to go. #firstworldpains
All the groceries won't fit in the fridge. #firstworldpains
I don't have enough cheese for my crackers. #firstworldpains
The escalator at the mall is broken. #firstworldpains
I got a speeding ticket. #firstworldpains
I only have 10 minutes to shower. #firstworldpains
One of my headphone speakers doesn't work. #firstworldpains
I had to sit next to a stranger in the movie theater. #firstworldpains
This glass of water is unfiltered. #firstworldpains
Our new apartment is so big that we don't have enough furniture to fill it. #firstworldpains
The automatic toilet flushed before I was done. #firstworldpains
My car broke down, so I have to ride the bus to work. #firstworldpains 
The last sip of my cup of coffee had coffee grounds in it. #firstworldpains
A good song just came on the radio, but I have reached my destination. #firstworldpains
My school uniform doesn't look good with my new hair color. #firstworldpains
My parents made me hand write thank-you notes after my party. #firstworldpains
I finally have a day off of work and the cable is out. #firstworldpains
They didn't have my brand of peanut butter at the supermarket. #firstworldpains
I have to do laundry, but we ran out of dryer sheets. #firstworldpains 

Are you guilty? As much as we may get a good laugh about how pathetic we sound, the guys behind this idea were not so far off from some pretty serious food-for-thought. Don't lose sight of what's really important in life. We spend so much of our time complaining about the silliest and smallest things, when instead we should be remembering how lucky we are to have access to the things we have. When put this way, my morning seems like nothing. A king sized bed? Warm blankets? A gym membership? Running shoes? Winter boots? A jacket? My health? My ability to run? A lucky girl I truly am.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

This gave me a serious laugh, even though in a way it's not funny, and yes I am completely guilty of #firstworldpains at times. It's amazing that when you focus on what you do have rather than what you don't have, how much better your day can be :)

Glad I stumbled across you blog :) I would love if you stopped by mine and left me feedback or tips!

Luvv, Leigh B

Justin / @NotPinnock VCM Rookie said...

Liked your post - it serves as a good reminder to us all.

It did though remind me of the link below which is a humorous retort to the First World Guilt we sometimes feel.

Link: http://kissingsuzykolber.uproxx.com/2011/10/i-dont-need-to-be-reminded-that-my-problems-are-occurring-in-the-first-world.html

Megan said...

Firstly, I share the lackluster to train when the weather isn't playing nice, but I admire you for still getting up and going to gym.

Now, I have to find that within me, it's summer here in South Africa, and I am so not bikini ready (probably another first world pain, right?)

These things makes us realise how blessed we really are and how we should say thanks every single day!