And Workin' Overtime

The phrase "taking care of business" has many different connotations. It can refer to methodically achieving individual objectives on the way to an overall goal. It can also refer to activities which may be less than appealing but must be done due to some constraint, be it real or only perceived. When we take care of business we throw aside all feelings and do things that may be uncomfortable to ourselves and to others simply because they must be done.

So what's the deal with that? Why do we have to take care of business? I blame it on the capitalists! Obviously we wouldn't have to take care of business if it weren't for folks who encourage business in the first place. If it weren't for capitalists then I would never have to annoy the other cars as I "take care of business" and merge onto the freeway because there wouldn't be any cars driving to begin with, nor would there be a freeway. How simple is that? Let's examine this a little bit further, shall we?

When I take care of business I am fulfilling certain obligations. Again, capitalism at its finest. Obligations are nothing more than the overbearing initiatives of folks who, for whatever reason, don't know how to chill out. They feel a constant need to progress and transform what they have into something better. No, not me, I just want things to stay the same. In fact a little regression couldn't hurt. Let's try taking a step backwards for a change. Instead of a more efficient shower head let's turn that sucker into Niagara Falls. I think we could really do with some hotter burning, dimmer light bulbs instead of those new bulbs that flicker for half an hour when you turn on the switch. Now that I only change my light bulbs once per millennium, I just don't get any exercise anymore. Speaking of exercise (which is much funner than actually doing it) since when do we need a mountain of bars, cables, pulleys and ghastly over sized iron weights just to get fit. Simply take away the tractor and hitch up the oxen. That'll do the job.

Taking care of business can sometimes mean hurting people that you care about. At any other time poking numerous needles into a small child would be considered heinous abuse, however, when we "take care of business" and get our small ones immunized it is considered lofty and wise. What a crock! Sometimes telling the truth can cause emotional pain in others. Don't tell me this can't be helped. The capitalists are at it again! They just have to inform you that your clothes are too 'last year' or your hair is too brown/blond/red/beige/gone. The truth drives you to change what seemed to work so perfectly before.

Now I suppose that some might point out what wonderful things have been accomplished by capitalists who were taking care of business. They like to show off the diseases that have been wiped out and the comforts that we now have like indoor plumbing and George Foreman grills etc. Blah blah blah... Did anyone ever stop to think that disease might have its place? Why if it weren't for immunizations I might have been eliminated by some terrible flesh eating disease as a child and you wouldn't have to be wasting your time reading this.

So to wrap this up, let me take care of a little business. I'm sure I've hurt people that I care deeply about just by doing what I'm supposed to do. Which may, or may not, have been a direct result of doing something that I wasn't supposed to do. Do you follow me? While I take full responsibility for my actions, still I wonder if things would have been different if it hadn't been for ... the capitalists!