A Bit of Old, A Bit of New

Yesterday I added an FN Herstal FNP-357 to my collection of zombie-stopping devices (pictured below).  This should be an absolutely exciting event, but I noticed something...I was barely excited at all.  I don't know if this is because I've done this whole process before and thus the newness and excitement surrounding it is gone, or if it is something else entirely.  The point is that I'm finding out that hobbies are increasingly difficult to stay interested in.

What do people normally do in a situation like this?  Hello, bit of old.  The problem makes me draw upon my earlier experiences through grade school and high school to try and gain some insight.  Instead of shedding light, I'm left with the feeling that this is a post-school phenomenon.  Just like how I can't seem to get into MMOs or RPGs of any type now that I can finally afford them, I can't seem to stay interested in hobbies.

I have to wonder if part of the problem is that I'm just too rich to be having fun.  I know that sounds weird considering that I don't make a lot of money, but stop and think about it for a second.  The actual process of getting something one wanted is a lot more satisfying when the desire phase was very long.  As a child I experienced this a lot since I didn't have an income.  Every time I got something I'd wanted, it was just incredible.  These days I can just buy reasonably-priced toys at regular intervals.  Fun factor:  Meh to Meh+.

This applies to my long-time hobby of computers as well.  Back in the day I couldn't afford to upgrade it very often.  These days there isn't much left on it to upgrade in the first place.  So how much fun is it now that I'm on top-class hardware?  Not a whole lot...there's little left to yearn for.  It doesn't help when there hasn't been a push for more powerful hardware in years.  Crysis, a (late) 2007 game, is still the most graphically challenging game on the market.  It has been a year and four months since that game came out.  Where are all of the new titles that push the limit?  They are nowhere.  Most games either aren't pushing the envelope or are just console ports.  That's business, I suppose.  What it isn't is entertaining.

If life is this boring with an income of $32K, I can't imagine how bored millionaires must be.  That isn't to say being poorer is better.  It isn't practical once a person has to support him or herself.  It's just one more reason why being younger seems like more fun.