Risky

Now that the reign of terror is over (our connection to the internet had a worm, so everytime you entered a URL you were redirected to a "register this domain" site, eliciting quiet and steady weeping from Kristen and I) I started reading one of the articles that pops up on the Yahoo! main page about patterns that are evident in fatal automobile accidents involving teenagers. Most of it was fairly, "well, duh" but one part that stood out to me:

The part of the brain that weighs risks and controls impulsive behavior isn't fully developed until about age 25, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Really? The article goes on to say that some nutjobs recommend that the driving age be raised because of this research, but I say that the nagging voice of reason (which sounds a lot like the voice of my mother) that says "put your seatbelt on and don't drive like a maniac, because if the impact of the accident doesn't kill you I certainly will make you wish you were dead when you come back from the hospital" should overrule the biology. But let's assume that this research is correct. This means I have a little less than a year and a half until that part of my brain is fully developed. It's somewhat disturbing to think that the little risk-taking behaviors and impulse control that make me so quirky could end, and that the nagging voice of reason in my mind will begin to sound like me, and not my mother. In a "Flowers for Algernon" kind of way, I'm going to write down a list of impulsive things I do, and things I should do until my brain develops enough to give me second thoughts:

• Good thing: Perhaps the impulse to buy (on credit) coats, shoes, low-cut shirts, meals at the bar where the cute waiter works and pizza on Top Model night will end.
• Sad thing: No kissing strange boys at parties, since I will undoubtedly imagine huge, gaping oral herpes sores erupting on my face when my brain develops.
• "Go sledding? Down this steep hill that empties out onto a state route? Give me the sled."
• "The Red Sox just won the World Series. I know people rioted in Kenmore Square last week, but let's go!"
• "Oh sure, one more beer won't hurt, Butchie."
• Jump out of a plane. With a parachute.
• "Airfare to Florida is only $130? And you're leaving next week? Sure, I'll go!"
• LL Bean at 1:30am, just because.
• "I want to move to Boston to go to school. Sure, it'll cost $19,000 a year, but... I want to move to Boston..."
• "I know it's January, but the ocean is still there and begging to be waded into."

That's all I've got for now. Please feel free to add suggestions.