Very interesting read. You're living your own life, one in which you have a limited amount of time on earth, so it is important to realize that you have no obligation to spend this valuable time at the beck and call of others - especially for nothing in return. People will absolutely take advantage of those who do not understand this. Glad I came across this, made me take a step back and consider how much of an "Everybody's Friend" I am in my own life.

I liked this read. I realized this fact of life with a different time constraint as a college senior. I realized after I turned 21 that there was an entirely new avenue of socializing with people, say at bars, house parties, or what not. However it all became too much for me and incredibly boring really quickly. On top of that I was already dubbed that "nice lutheran boy" several times before college, and I would go out of my way to help almost anyone

One example... I said I would help someone move out of their apartment and into a house, without really thinking about who it was. It was an acquaintance through a best friend, and I totally forgot that his side of the apartment was always messy and totally unorganized. So this ordeal took up about 12 hours in the day because when I arrived to help out he was still sleeping and he had not even begun packing. I'm not really sure why I didn't even realize this then.

I also got into unhealthy relationships, gained weight, got into some money troubles, and my grades fell. I went places because people wanted/expected me to be there. I did things for them like bring beer, cook, or clean for them so that these parties could be possible. People would always tell me "you're too uptight..." or "loosen up..." or "what's wrong?..." when I thought I was fine, but I later discovered I was just incredibly bored at these social gatherings. Doing these things, I usually became drunk and utterly useless the next day to complete chores, errands, cook something healthy, or do homework/study.

It all changed one day when I used a friend's scale and discovered my weight, 220 pounds, and I was a 6'3'' guy who was normally 185 pounds at the maximum. I thought at first "what's the easiest fix for this?", and there really is no easy fix for something like weight. The right questions and answers came after I asked myself, "How did I let myself get like this." I realized I was doing what was expected of me on the social end. I ended up displeasing my parents' expectations and my expectations for the kind of grades in college I thought were acceptable. I took measures to refuse more people's invites and tolerate a lot less bullshit, like "could you do this or that..." questions for events I didn't want to partake in. I eventually ended up quitting an entire social circle because I realized I didn't actually like any of them.

The author raises a good point though about this task. It takes awhile to adjust to it, and I don't believe anyone could be completely 100% free of this. In the time of my "retirement" I hit some bumps, but none were totally serious. Now I'm in the best shape that I've always been into, cleaner, happier, more successful in school... Though, I still don't have a girlfriend since my life change, it's better than the stupidly random hookups/relationships I had before.

the custodian of a certain number of days — a number far too small for the great task he had laid out for himself — and he would not be diverted even for an instant.