Coming to a conclusion, gathering all of those thoughts together can be such a difficult process to go through, something which affects your life and those around you. Some people get comatose by the perceived enormity whilst others make it without a second thought. Going on gut instinct, coordinating all those different elements into one coherent whole within seconds. They know that is the right decision. Others struggle to leave the house. Deciding what the take with them, to wear, which bag, shoes, hat or not, a couple of coats. Really they are well prepared, ready for any situation except perhaps nuclear war. Others just leave like that, a thin raincoat slung over their shoulder and off they go. Every moment of every day is about decisions. Our lives are defined by them. Planning who to go and see, what events, how to balance your weeks Go to the gym or a run down the beach. Entering into the duty free area of an airport and faced with that unique scent of a million different perfumes, sparkling dayglo bottles ready for a little body taste. Rub some on your neck and no idea if it suits you or smells nice, matching with your pheromones or smelling like petrol. It is a good decision not to rub hands around the neck region after putting petrol in your car. Venturing further in the concourse a selection of familiar shops await. Maybe some new sunglasses for the trip. Gucci, Ray-Ban or Polaroid. Millions of lenses gleaming back at you, frames with subtle differences. How do you choose? Go for the cheapest option perhaps that looks remotely suitable. Can you decide what looks good on your face or do you need an accomplice to help. Choosing a certain pair will alter your overall look, almost personality. Big and brash or cool and sophisticated. Bookish or biker. You are at the airport with decisions already made. A holiday planned. Weeks of pouring through travel guides and Facebook posts to come to the ultimate Greek Island. How do you choose? Undiscovered Greece, near islands you can hop to, beautiful but unspoilt. Searching for your own bespoke piece of paradise. It’s your honeymoon so this needs to be right. Not a half-built apartment with builders staring through your window, providing the chainsaw morning chorus like a Greek Einsterzunde Neubauten. You could just rock up at the air take off place and see what’s available. Go for the moment. Close eyes and point at a map of the world. How exciting. Too exciting or unpredictable perhaps. Part of the joy of holidays is planning, building up a perceived idea of what it’s like. Inter railing. City to city. Walks in the mountains. Going to visit friends. An academic conference with a holiday tacked on. That seems to be quite an effective way of deciding where to go, following the call for papers which can be connected to your own research but which land in interesting places. Canada, Jamaica, Finland, Porto, Korea, Paris. Random American cities which might be worth an extended look. But all this travel. Is it really worthwhile and hey, have you heard about climate change. Altering the world in front of us. Surely we should just stop flying. Stay local. Cycle. Walk. Do nothing, be inert. Agh, such a difficult choice. A lack of real knowledge or collective behaviour. Why should I sacrifice these extra elements of my life when I see friends and foe jetting off around the world. If they stop, I do. Leave the decision to someone else. If the price was too high then I would find alternative things to do. If I knew by not flying the world would be saved, then absolutely, I’ll never set foot in a WH Smith’s again, trying to decide what novel or non-fiction book to get, something that will impact my holiday so directly. A book connected to the place I’m going or something which completely transports me to a different world. Should I stay or should I go?
