kill me now, I am quoting my mother.
A brief list of reasons why my mother was right. (If anyone ever tells her this, there will be hell to pay.)
Among the MILLION cheesy-ass things that she used to say were these time-honored favorites …
“There ARE no coincidences, Alicia.”
and
“Everything happens for a reason.”
For the record, when I was a teenager I nearly gagged every time she tried to bring up this hokey silver-lining-grey-cloud-shit. However, recently I have come to realize a few things that lead me to believe that maybe she rubbed off on me more than I might like to admit. There have been several “bad”s recently that have been outweighed by slightly greater ulterior “goods”. (And, being the math nerd that I am, here they are in full-force-dork-form. Those things are, in no particular order …
Stress < Certain methods of de-stressing
Crappy Night of Sleep < Super-Loving Cats who wouldn’t stop kneading
Obnoxious Conversation with Father about Finances < Being told that he’s proud
Hangover < Evening that brought it on
Cleaning < Pride at having someone see new apartment NOT covered in crap
Etc., etc., etc. There are a million others, but these are just at the top of my brain right now. What are the crappy things you have endured that ended up turning out for the best? I will try to never say this again, but prove my mom right. Tell me some stories … I have an hour to kill later this afternoon while I wait for my ride to rehearsal, and I want to be entertained.
Or significantly longer. In the long run, NOT marrying either of the two people I’ve been convinced I would marry has been REALLY, truly for the best. Plus, they’re both awesome people and I am ridiculously happy to have them in my life.
You intrigue me far more than 10 minutes, Mr. C. ;)
I’m a social sciences nerd myself, and I have to say your mom is wrong. The human brain is wired to see patterns, and will create them where they are not. It’s the brain’s way of keeping you alive and sane in order to perpetuate the species. No matter what horrible thing happens, humans will be convinced that it was all for the best, all for a reason. Very useful for survival on the savannah. Our crushing self-awareness makes it difficult, maybe impossible, to accept life’s essential chaos without going insane.
There is no reason.
Aw you! (Damnit! I’ve forgotten what the emoticon for “blush” looks like!)
Hot damn, Ms. Foo … what a depressing idea. Normally, the science-dork side of me would totally agree with you. However, the math-dork side of me says this:
a) (bad > good)
b) (bad acceptable living conditions
c) (bad = good) = Great fodder for artistic greatness, and will soon give way to either option a or option b.
This, of course, leads to …
math = optimism
My teachers would be so proud.
I guess THAT’s one way to realize that you can’t use greater than or lesser than symbols while posting. Pretend I posted it like this, so you can actually see it ..
a) (bad [is greater than] good) = ([less than] acceptable living conditions)
b) (bad [is less than] good) = ([greater than or equal to] acceptable living conditions)
c) (bad = good) = (Great fodder for artistic greatness, and will soon give way to either option a or option b.)
Good grief. Never thought I’d say this, but “Stupid html!”
I know. It is awfully depressing. I should’ve put a warning sign on it.
Your formula is a good example of what I was talking about. It’s a black/white based on gray concepts (bad, good) leading to acceptable living conditions. Or: Creating order out of chaos to make us feel better. Acceptance is precisely the key. We distort reality to accept it.
Basically we’re too smart for our own good.
Math is very optimistic. I actually did quite well in math; I loved how neat it made everything. But something in me always runs towards the chaos, so I ended up in social science. Ah, well.
Me too. I loved how clean and simple and easy it made everything. It was social sciences and philosophy that depressed and fascinated me, however, and both of those elements are present in every theatrical experience I’ve had since. I feel you, sister. ;)
Hey, you’re just lucky neither of your parents reads your blog (I know at least one of mine does — read my blog that is, although maybe he reads your’s — it’s linked on my page, so it’s possible).
—Having my fiance bail on me six months after I proposed (people who’ve run into since say I was very lucky indeed).
—Having my second proposal turned down flat (we’re still best friends!)
—Declaring bankruptsy at 25
—Living on a boat for 3 1/2 years
I’m sure there’s plenty more, but that should keep you intrigued for at least 10 or 12 minutes…