Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood

Well, I am back. Now I may not be back in a big way, as nothing extraordinarily important has happened since I wrote last (unless of course you count Super Mario Galaxy), but I just feel like I needed to write again. Now I know, "Mike, why would you WANT to write again?" Sometimes, I feel like I have to. I mean, I'm a science major, and don't get me wrong, I'm happy with it, but it doesn't allow for a lot of creative writing. But here I am, and here are you. And today I think I'm going to discuss things I just don't seem to understand.

1. Understanding

I know, it's what I'm writing about, isn't it? But seriously, this is one thing I just cannot seem to wrap my head around. Understanding. People just do not seem to have any understanding. That's the only word I think I can use to describe it. First, I'd have to discuss "favorites." We all have them, from sports, to movies, to games, to TV shows. And yet, we can't seem to "understand" why people don't like what we love. It always turns into, "Oh man, this thing is awesome," with someone else to respond, "Well, I don't really like it," only to garner the re-response, "I just don't understand how you can't like it." In my opinion, that sentence is one of the most annoying sentences ever constructed, along with "There's no way you can't like it" and "What's the deal with airline food?" My question to you is, why am I not allowed to dislike it? There are certain things that, for us, we just innately do not like. Some we can explain; others, we just don't like it. But hold the phone, Grandma! You don't like it, but I do! You MUST be wrong. And clearly, this can't be the case. For there are some things we like, and some things we do not like, and some things we hate (Hitler, Bin Laden, Cold Toughs). You need to UNDERSTAND that this is the case. Just because it is your favorite whatever, does not mean it is someone else's favorite whatever.

2. Dreams

Let's be honest, Freud was a sexist buffoon. Oh yes, Freud, clearly me dreaming that I was in a room meant I was dreaming about that memory I have of being in my mother's uterus (my Mom's uterus did NOT look like that; I would remember; I was in it). Anyway, recently I have been having quite disturbing dreams, involving someone dying violently, especially a family member. They are incredibly vivid, incredibly realistic, and incredibly horrifying. But I digress, because I have close friends who have fantastic dreams about things that happen during the day, things that involve other friends, and things so incredibly weird, they're funny. How? I want that! Doesn't everyone want to disappear into dreams that seem like dreams, not dreams that are just miserable visions of what could be? Well I do. And therefore, dreams, I don't understand you.

3. Women

Well, that's obvious.

4. Incredibly Difficult Useless Classes

In case you weren't aware, I recently completed Organic Chemistry 1. In case you weren't aware, Organic Chemistry is a difficult and one of the most persistently useless subjects that one could possibly take, along with upper level Calculus, detailed European History (please, no one wants to hear why King Henry XVIIIVIIIXIIIVIII killed Queen Mary VIIIXXIIIVVIIIX...clearly he wanted to take over wherever she was ruling), and of course, Shakespeare (he might not have even existed!). Of course, these all prove useful if you teach that exact class, but how many people honestly do that? Anyway, my point is, why are classes so difficult that the passing grade is sometimes around 50%? That's failing, for those of you who didn't realize. What good is that doing? Either A.) The tests are WAY too hard or B.) The class is not taught well enough. But of course, there are the "But Mike, maybe you or me or whoever is taking these classes is too stupid to understand it! SOME people do well, you know." False. The people who do well either A.) Memorize the material and don't understand it or B.) Actually understand the material without understanding the use of the material therefore not really understanding the material. For the record, I am the latter. I got an A- (or an A, we will see), in Organic Chemistry 1, and I still cannot find a use for what I learned, ever. Many pharmacists would concur with my observation. Here's some options: Teach better or make the tests easier; WHEW, that was difficult.

5. The War on Christmas

Now I'm not condemning religious equality. Celebrate and advertise whatever you want. But don't try to be rid of this whole holiday time of year. Because you know what Christmas REALLY means? Well, technically it does mean the birth of Jesus, but that's the religious side. Let's be honest (again). It means this time of year. Sure, some people get depressed now, but this is the one time to actually be happy throughout the year. With all the complaining and negativity that circles the world today, the Christmas season is not about singling out religions, or downplaying others. It is about families coming together, giving gifts to others just to see their faces light up, and yes, receiving gifts for once during the year without feeling guilty about it (sometimes I feel guilty about expensive Birthday gifts). So please, try not to be miserable. Believe it or not, you're probably better off than most (hell, if you're reading this, you definitely are). So just don't be so miserable. It's not worth it.

6. Me (and You)

Let's be honest (again). No one completely understands themselves. We all do things that we can't explain, we all dream about things that we wished we didn't (whether they are good or bad), and we all think things we know are insane. But I have come to realize that this is good. If we completely understood everything we did, where would the surprise be? Where would the fun be? So, you may never know who I am completely. I may hide things, I may bite my tongue at times, but I do it for a purpose. I may not even know that purpose, but it definitely is there. Sometimes you cannot question; sometimes things are the way they are. You can't explain everything; and you can't explain everyone.


No, have YOURSELF a merry little Christmas...