It Makes Me Nervous

optional prompt: it makes me nervous

 

This prompt made me laugh a little in my head.  Because just about everything on the planet out there,  it makes me nervous.   It's just the way I am.  My entire existence sometimes seems to be a huge bundle of anxiety.

 

Waking up in the morning?   Makes me nervous.   What kind of day will it be?  Who will I see that I'd rather not see? Who won't I see that I would like to see?  

 

Getting dressed? Makes me nervous.  Does this color go with plaid?  Why doesn't this fit me today?  Are those heels too tall and am I going to fall on my face while walking? 

Dropping my child off at school?  Makes me nervous.  Do these teachers think I am horrible because I send my child to school with stuff that I know he will eat instead of stuff that is good for him?  How much am I screwing up his psyche today? 

At work?  Makes me nervous.  What major, important, legally binding commitment did I forget?  Which part of the system will break down today?  Who expects me to make decisions for them?

 

It goes on, day in and day out, this running commentary about all the things that I could be found lacking, my shortcomings, what might happen, and quite often, things that I have absolutely no control over.  It is actually rather ridiculous.  So I've learned to ignore most of the things that make me nervous.  I have forced that little voice into a dark corner in the back of my head, and even if it does make me nervous, I do it anyway.  

Except for cockroaches.  I make my husband take care of those. 

 

 

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Why Being Aware of Pop Culture is a Good Thing

I remember watching The Caine Mutiny with Humphrey Bogart. Part of the film has Bogart walking around rolling steel bearings in his hand while accusing people of taking his strawberries. Five years later Robin Williams did a spoof of Bogart and his strawberries, and I think I was the only one of my friends who 'got it'. I felt a little superior for the next thirty minutes or so. And that's a wonderful feeling, indeed!

Truly, the best thing about knowing your pop culture is the in-jokes that you hear all the time that only people who've seen that movie/heard that song/read that book will get. It's like a secret club; for a second those in the "know" are bonded together as a group so we can lord it over the people who are clueless.

Pop culture changes very quickly these days, so you have to pay attention. One minute Billy Ray and his Achy-Breaky Heart are on top, the next it's his daughter who is drawing the crowds. It's important to pay attention to what is popular and what is not. Why? Because the flavor of the day, whatever it may be, is the perfect icebreaker for conversations.

Think about it a minute, once you stop giggling. If you are like me and are nervous around strangers, then you know perfectly the horror of a mind gone blank. One second you're about to drop the wittiest bon mot ever uttered, the next you're mentally sitting on a sand dune in the Sahara. Nothing but static...unless you know current pop events. If you've heard Katy Perry's newest song, or have watched the Vampire Diaries, or have read the Hunger Games, then you are set. You can talk about those safe topics until you think of something meaningful and profound...which is generally never. But that's okay, because you've got the conversation rolling. As long as you don't bring up religion or politics, everyone will have a great time!