From the Editor’s Desk: Can’t Complain (Premium)

I was on the elliptical machine at the gym watching a how-to video on YouTube on my phone recently when a guy I often speak with there, George, walked through the door, smiled at me, and waved. I returned the salute. I don’t really need any more friends at this point in my life. But I could be friends with George.

George and I see each other 2-3 times per week at the gym and we chat briefly each time. He’s always very friendly and, alien to me and thus fascinating, is always in a good mood. I don’t get jealous very often. But I am jealous of that.

It was perhaps inevitable that I would eventually blurt out something to that effect.

“How’s it going?” I asked, taking out my right earbud and thus pausing the video as he walked up to the elliptical after checking in at the front desk.

“I can’t complain,” he responded.

“That sentiment has never even crossed my mind, let alone my lips,” I replied, laughing but not laughing. God, I admire this guy: he’s centered, healthy, and recently retired. We chatted for a bit, and then we moved on with our days.

Which in my case involved recording Windows Weekly later in the day. Richard Campbell joined the show in recent weeks, and it’s an interesting way to spend more time with a long-time friend I don’t otherwise get to see enough. Anyway, before the show, Richard and I jumped on a Zoom call to chat.

“How’s it going?” I asked.

“I’ve got nothing to complain about,” he responded.

Oh, come on.

Richard, like George, is one of those really centered people who are always in a good mood and has a positive outlook. But I also know Richard better than George and I’ve long felt that he’s onto something. He’s figured it out. It being life, I guess. And yeah, not a jealous guy per se, but I am jealous of that too.

More to the point, I want to be like that. Not jealous. Just centered. It doesn’t seem like too much to ask.

And yet it is. I get upset about dumb things, small things. I don’t always understand, let alone agree with, the decisions others make. I don’t know why this is problematic for me, but it is. And I get stressed easily. We have a lot going on right now, and there is an air of uncertainty surrounding the future. I’ve been sleeping poorly, all the usual problems.

This past weekend, my wife and I visited the Boston area for a long-planned event involving 6 other couples. Pre-pandemic, I had been driving back about once a quarter for get-togethers with my friends, but this one included everyone’s wives as well, and so it needed to be scheduled well in advance. With everything going on, I wasn’t sure I even wanted to go now, but … we did. And, as is so often the case, it wasn’t just fine, it was great. I really enjoyed catching up with everyone.

And I found myself, once again, in a st...