How many synonyms for 'disgust' can you think of? For that matter 'disappointed'. Ok. Try 'foolish'. Or maybe 'repulsed'. Now put all the words in a large tumbler. Mix well. Top it off with a little sludge. Done? Now drink it slowly. Do you feel the cold, greenish smile slither down your throat meticulously burning tissue as it does so? Good. Now you know what I feel.
A rather roundabout way to explain my condition. And what happened at work yesterday. I am forever appalled by people who lie in your face. In complete knowledge that they know that you know they are lying. Its shocking if you have experienced it. It is enough to make convert you into a non-believer. Better still turn you into a two-faced animal yourself. And there are enough people who have made their peace with this alarming psychological condition and practice it rather comfortably everyday. The promiscuous wife, the politician, the secretary who smiles at you as you walk into your cabin, your internet guy, the garage owner, the man selling shoelaces at the corner.
People will argue. Everyone lies. True. So do I. And for society to function, you need liars. Even disgust and heartbreak can motivate you. Inspire you even. To fight a war. Or write a 327 word anthem that doesn't rhyme. It is not advisable to be completely honest, I agree. Self- preservation is important and we are forever afraid of our own vulnerability. Hence we withdraw. And the loneliness that we complain about heightens. And we make a habit out of eating out of a can, alone in the kitchen. Insecure, we take to the streets wearing our invisible helmets, shoulder pads and shin guards. Trying very hard not to allow ourselves to affected else's air. Walking with our heads to the ground, ignoring the good the bad. Like a giant anti-biotic that doesn't care before it starts the annihilation of cells. Both cancerous and healthy.
That's the price we pay. And much as my blog would give you the impression of me being a depressive, monotonous brown thing, I am on the contrary, a sunny sort of fellow who is generally amiable and good company. And I still remain optimistic. About global warming, ozone layers, the alarming growth of tech junk, depleting population of tigers, HIV, Hugh Hefner's sex drive etc.
But I moved closer towards becoming a true skeptic yesterday. And it's not funny anymore.
That's Andy Capp. One of the longest running British comic strip characters created by Reginald Smythe, seen in the The Daily Mirror and The Sunday Mirror newspapers since August 5, 1957. I have all the books. Well, almost.
24 comments:
By any chance are you bong?
coz ur blog title means a bong dish...
sorry if m wrong..
Amiable you are Phish without a doubt! :)
You know, the newspaper man or the car mechanic lying doesn't affect me as much as when my colleagues or my friends do :-/ Disgusting it is!
acira_sin - i plead guilty. and i also make a mean murighonto as well. therefore, we can safely assume, you are not wrong.
miss iyer - that's what happened to me as well. i mean we all lie or have. i for one was famous in school for the tallest stories ever built. but i try not to now. even if it means dire consequences. or unless i am tired of work and just wanna stay at home. i kill a few non-existent relatives then. god bless their never born souls.
well, the conseuquence is what matters - if it doesn't affect anybody adversely, well, hell then. thats from a pragmatic standpoint. then there is the idealist too...so i don't know.
i am gonna atch up wid u sometime, just to really make sure you aren't the depressive ;)
I find that when the people around me are liars, then that's a good reason to find new people to hang around with! Alas, I realize that this is not always as easy to do as one would like.
I never thought you were the depressive kind, anyway...
Usually people don't lie to me (not that I know of) but when they do...ARGHHHHH!!!
I hate when people lie to me...mostly because I'm not a skeptic. However I pay attention to detail and this trips people up. Sometimes I let it go, only because I get details wrong in stories and feel embarrassed by it, later. Ugh.
I am surprised by what people lie about. My friend's ex-husband lied to her about the most ridiculous things, things that didn't even make sense. And he was horrible at it.
sometimes i did think u were the depressing kinds!but i guess thats when u write best :)
neways...i guess we have all somewhr experienced and accepted that there is a very thin line between truth n lies...i only wish n hope that the handful of people i trust and think they actually are what they are to me, remain truthful. the rest - to hell with them!
you are beginning to sound like Travis Bickle...is there a 'rescue act' coming up?
"Like a giant anti-biotic that doesn't care before its starts the annihilation of cells. Both cancerous and healthy."
Good stuff!
oh dear oh dear, sounds like you need rita more than she needs you. yes you need to get to goa but the weather there is lovely now and we are quite close to the beaches. will call you at your office tomorrow, am back from travels, happy valentine's day, hope rita turns out to be yours:-)
dharmabum - catching up sounds good. though i have no clue how we are going to manage that given our co-ordinates.
kim - after a while i refuse to let new people into my core. friend circles are not elastic. nor do they grow as easily as they did when we were 17.
devil mood - tell me about it. this was a serious lie though. with long term consequences. anyways, i did what i had to. and i am glad you dont find me depressive. some people who came here of late think me to be so :)
chrispito - i know exactly what you mean! seen enough of such people and its scary being with them. maybe its an innate insecurity that turns them into compulsive liars.
nisha - well put. and i am not depressive, really. i try to be funny and sometimes thats sad. otherwise...
meraj - welcome and thank you. Travis Bickle? Hmmmm.
smiling dolphin - goa sounds difficult. my only problem is that i live alone and i dont think its fair to get rita and subject her to utter loneliness. do call though. i really like her.
yes well through rather odd
circumstances i have known
quite an amazing one such as this ~
and after a series of
stages (somewhat like getting used
to the idea you are dying perhaps)
I came out the other side
mildly amused and feeling utterly
sorry and even (gasp!)
compassionate towards this odd
woman:)
you have to look at the ROOT
of it ~ it can be so sorrowful
if you do ~ and then
you feel so grateful and
blessed to live on the light/bright
side of the world:)
like YOU!
*pats phish on the back*
mmm, no you're not ready yet. another time maybe. all the best.
Detestation, repugnance, execration, abomination, and my personal all-purpose favorite: loathing. Loooathing. Think “low thing” and lower your voice to a raspy whisper and make the “o” very long. Draaaw it out, make it last two to three satisfying seconds, all the while allowing a menacing growlish sound to be produced in your throat where the cold, smiling, green thing slithers and burns. Gargle its karma, and whether you spit it out or swallow it, it’ll make its nasty way back to The Liar. And you, out of your peaceful slumber can then bolt toward brown- or sunny- or no thing-ness and describe it all with deep colors and neon words, but as much as I’d like you to join me here, for your own good, I must advise you to steer clear of Skepticism! It stiffens creativity to a creaking, slow-moving thing and you are too poetical to be hobbled by dogmatism. <3
'the alarming psychological condition'... seems a bit like doublethink and doublespeak to me... happens. friends say the sooner u get used to it the better. i ve my doubts. and btw, always thought this blogger is a very depressed soul. the disclaimer only confirmed my doubts. :D
ahw\.. don't be a skeptic. for every liar there are somany honest people. or is it the other way round? damn.
"Or write a 327 word anthem that doesn't rhyme."
am very curious. which anthem are you talking about?
it all made sense. till i encountered 'global warming'. i lost interest after that. that's not true. global warming, i.e. they were proved wrong. temperatures for the last x years have been dropping. the correct word now is a better catch-all - climate change.
what is a lie, really? my truth with your vague words? or your truth with my vague words?
trust, you at least, believe in your skepticism.
turn a 180 degrees - you will see how funny it *really* is! :)
i read this post from that angle.
I commented, I thought. Did you get it? Am I clumsy or are you keeping some things for yourself?
I'm learning the hard way that self-preservation and honesty don't particularly enjoy each other's company. :-)
Your post made me smile :-)
Specially the Bit about Hef's sex-drive. I'm incidentally in the midst of the God-awful book, "Bunny Tails", which I'm thoroughly enjoying!
oh good lord Phish, did the slithering greenish smile eat you???
I quit a job because I was expected to lie for the sake of self-preservation in that organisation. So you know I would know what you're talking about! And obviously agree with you...
PS: You have posted anything on your photo blog in a long time... I've been waiting.
why.......
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