Newsfeed
Printer-Friendly ModeLearning to be productive
April 18, 2011 —
I have started to write multiple columns this week. Unfortunately, once I hit about 400 words I realized I had made my point and the whole thing could actually be summed up in about 200 words.
I have a lot of thoughts lately. My mind has been jumping and when I try to force it to focus on a single thought (like a column topic) I end up sitting at my deck staring at the floor or lying on the floor singing real loud. I hope that by doing these things I will come up with a genius column idea, but I have been trying that all week and now I have a deadline to meet (which I have technically already missed).
Well, after writing those two paragraphs I laid on the floor and started singing, and again it didn’t help spark any ideas. I think some would consider my method weird, maybe unproductive, but I just decided while writing this sentence I am going to write a column now.
I am called weird a lot. I think more often than most other people. While growing up my family told me I was weird, in school my teachers told me I was weird, and now I am told I am weird almost daily. I have never been too concerned with the claim because I think I would consider myself weird too.
When I am called weird, I take it as a compliment. I assume that when people call me this they mean unconventional, interesting, and super-duper pretty. I like the sounds of all these things.
I have always thought that most people consider being called weird a compliment too, until recently when I found out that other people think being weird is a bad thing. What? I am insulted!
Through advertisements we encourage people to be different. Unfortunately, these advertisements are just trying to sell things, but it is interesting that these ads are trying to sell something by telling buyers that by purchasing that product they will be considered unique. Think outside the bun.
Our culture seems to value individuality or it wouldn’t be used as a marketing scheme. It is a contradicting message though. At the same time we want to buy things to be unique we buy things to be more like the other consumers. So now I am left here trying to decide if I want to be an individual or like everyone else. I think I have most definitely taken the weird route, and I am almost entirely certain I have chosen the right path.
I consider my weirdness a positive attribute because I hope that when I meet new people they feel I have something to offer that other people do not have. When I think about people, I want to spend time with they all have some unique quality that makes them an enjoyable person to be around. That unique quality that person has may make them a weirdo in another person’s book, but I think it makes them worthwhile.
Outside my window there is a creek. In that creek there are two ducks and a muskrat. I am not entirely sure if it is a muskrat, but I don’t know what a muskrat looks like, and I have never seen the animal that is in the creek before, therefore it must be a muskrat. Also I have taken philosophy; therefore it must be a muskrat. I like to watch them in the morning time.
Sometimes they all swim together with the muskrat in front and the two ducks behind it sideby- side. They seem to get along so nicely. I wonder how they are able to work through their differences. I like to think that the ducks used to only spend time together, but got sick of talking about the same things, so they made friends with the muskrat and now they are the three best friends that anyone could have.
That paragraph reminds me of tacos. I really like tacos, even the simple ones with just tortilla, meat, lettuce, and cheese. I like the way all of those things come together to form something nice. Also I like that you could pair any two of those things and you would still have something enjoyable and very different than the whole taco (maybe not meat and lettuce, but I would still be down to eat it). The tortilla, meat, cheese and lettuce don’t really have much in common, but they all have an individual quality that really helps the qualities of the other taco ingredients taste so nice.
What I am getting at here is we should truly embrace our unique qualities. If we are able to do that, then we can start making revolutionary friendships, like the muskrat and ducks, or create delicious recipes, like tacos. All of these are very productive. I am going to lie on the floor and sing now.