Exactly

The following excerpt is taken from Chuck Klosterman's book, Eating the Dinosaur:

"...When I am in the active, physical process of writing, I am writing literally. It is always a literal, present-tense depiction of what it cognitively happening in my mind. Now, once a given sentence exists, that might change. Sometimes it changes just four seconds after I type it."

This pretty much sums up how people can be telling the truth and be seen as liars in the same instance. Perhaps while you are writing something, it feels true and you know it to be true. But, like he says, four seconds later your feelings and ideas could change. Mostly, this sort of quick change is inconsequential. But what about when it's relationship oriented? In the heat of the moment, you probably DO mean everything you are saying and thinking, but maybe five minutes later you don't. Why does this happen? How can we have such minute to minute, unique perspectives on things? Is this because we are fickle? Or is it because most of us aren't literal-minded people?
Previously in this particular essay, Klosterman discusses Ralph Nader and his inability to deviate from the literal. Everything he says and does is exactly as he means it to be. Is the ability to be literal all the time something one should admire? Or does it mean that you are missing out on certain aspects of life - like all the metaphors and similes and alternate endings available. Maybe if you are a literal type of person, you only see things in black and white, so to speak. I certainly feel that things are mostly in shades of gray, but that doesn't mean that there aren't certainties. They just change every four seconds.

Inadvertent Actions

Thinking about things can make you do them whether you want to or not. Like tripping while carrying a large platter of flaming cheesecake. Not that this has happened to me, but every time I see someone trip while carrying something you most definitely do not want to drop, I figure that they must have been thinking really hard about not dropping it. Why is it that when you obsess about something, the opposite of what you want to happen occurs?
Take, for instance, the classic "I will NOT text him, I will NOT text him, I will NOT text him." And then what happens? You text him. Sure, it's an innocuous (ooooo, SAT word, bonus!) "hey". But what are you REALLY doing when you send that? You are opening yourself up to a potential world of disappointment and confusion.
But how do you NOT obsess about terrible things coming to fruition? It's damn near impossible. You can try distractions, but it's like no matter what you try, it's always there in the back of your head, just waaaaaiting to jump out at you right when you pick up that flaming cheesecake. So I guess there is no stopping it. Maybe we SHOULD just let it happen and stop, drop and roll when it comes to. Maybe facing the terrible somehow prepares you for something you can't imagine. Then, when it hits you, you've got the extinguisher ready.

Parenting Tip # 476

Stop telling your child they want something that is not completely necessary just because YOU want it for them, e.g. pink frilly dresses for the tomboys out there, designer clothing for ANY small child and kiddie partials that they need to be fitted for since YOU couldn't be bothered to properly brush their teeth and they had to have extractions and now YOU dislike the way it looks.

Fourth

Watched fireworks last night - still as awesome as ever. Wish I could see them on the Mall, though, I bet those ones are spectacular. Still don't understand why people clap when they like the fireworks. Or when they like movies, for that matter. Can the people detonating the fireworks actually hear you? Probably not.

Rewind

Went tubing on Sat. and DIDN'T get burned. Major accomplishment. Of course, I was wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and a hat the entire time. Even though the river was low and you had to dodge rocks, it provided small sections of rapids which were incredibly fun to go over in the tube. Saw a few groups of people in kayaks and boats who were steadily passing by us. Now I'd really like to own a kayak, so I can go out on the river in that, or just take it to a lake. At one point, there was a small island where groups of tubers congregated and apparently were having a little beach party. Some girl was singing opera music and there was a lot of clapping and cheering. Strange.
The trip only took a couple of hours - apparently when the water is lower, it means your travel time is shorter. Would definitely like to go again, but don't want to pay to do it through a company.