PAINTBALL!!

I have to admit something. I may have found something more interesting than just computers and cars. It's semi-violent and most certainly testostrone fueled. It is paintball.

I don't have a long history with paintball. The first time I played was with new friends in first year university (1997!). The second time was for a friends bachelor party last year and the third was for mine this year. There's a few more after that now.

So why do I feel a little guilty about this? I'm not sure. Is it because it's kind of nerdy? Maybe. Is it because it's hyper-male? Maybe. Is it because you have the opportunity to shoot small children with semi-solid balls travelling at around 280 feet per second and then laugh about it? Possibly.

The thing is though; I don't care. I enjoy playing. I enjoy shuffling my fat ass through weeds and brush and mud. It's fun! The adrenaline flows, the heart pounds, the lungs teeter on exploding. Yeah... fun.
I've got my own equipment now so that I can aim better, shoot farther, shoot more often, and do it all easier. It wasn't free but it wasn't terribly expensive either. It's not as expensive as a new SSD for the home NAS, or a new turbo for the WRX. It also means I'm out there enjoying the sun and working off some of the fat I collect during the week via my otherwise sedentary lifestyle. Sure I get a few bruises. But perhaps -just perhaps- those bruises are a little bit like what Fight Club would be like.
Out there on the field and in the post-firefight pit talks we're all equal. The CEO and the grocery bagger. Both were armed, both were ready to fight and neither had any huge advantage. So the CEO spent $2k on his setup... the grocery bagger took him out with a headshot from 60ft with his older brothers hand-me-down pump gun. They slap high-fives and talk about how fun that last round was while both drip sweat. The ego is kept in check by raw adrenaline and the sense of comradery that follows the fight. Ego-boosted boundaries fade and new friends are made.

I'm sure my views at this point are overly idealistic, but it's what I've seen. Developer and DBA work together to take out the support rep but the titles are replaced with names... who cares what happened last week at work? We're taking fire! Sure, tempers can flare when rules are broken or bent but there's no time -and less patience- for a prima donna act. Transgressions are ultimately forgiven.
Perhaps the world might be a better place if we all spent a little time shooting paint balls at each other?

Ok. I've waxed poetic long enough. I'm not even sure where this rambling noise came from or was headed but I think it's time to stop.
At the end of the day I'm not afraid to say that I enjoy playing paintball with my friends and I look forward to the new friendships I'll build while inflicting minor bodily harm on others.

CARPE DIEM!! ...and shoot to splatter ;)