I have no idea why we care about some things deeply, and other things we have no interest in at all.
Take the eclipse.
I’m super gung-ho about the eclipse, but hell, I get wildly pumped up for a full moon every month, and find a clear starry night to hold romance, mystery, and, possibly, the key to the meaning of life. So, it stands to reason that a once in lifetime event of a total solar eclipse with prime viewing an hour or so away from my house is like celestially orgasmic for me. But, I also get some people don’t care at all.
Last week a friend admitted to me she didn’t really care about the eclipse, and confessed that she felt pressure to care and tried to be interested enough to join the weirdos like me that actually think these two minutes of daytime darkness matter. She came up with nothing but the truth that she just didn’t care.
Let me just say, there is nothing, nothing, like the joy of not caring about something. Never forget that.
There are so many things to care about, that you are authentically passionate about, things that are out of your control, things you couldn’t stop caring about even if you tried, or let’s say, hypothetically, spent a year in weekly therapy addressing 😉 So, when something comes along that you register a big fat zero of caring, seriously, just take the gift. Take it, cherish it, and don’t apologize for it.
Perhaps not surprising, I care about so many damn things it’s ludicrous. I’m a passionate person. I feel things deeply and personally. I speak mostly in dramatic language of things I LOVE and things I HATE. I speak about how compassion is the most important thing in the world, except when it comes to the guy who thinks he runs the four-way stop and does a condescending sideways two-finger “move it along, I’m letting you go” gesture to me when I am fully aware it is my turn already and he’s not the fucking boss of me or the ruler of the damn intersection.
Deep breath.
See? Extremes. Passion. Possible insanity. The jury is still out on that one.
But, friends, when a topic or current event comes along and I register zero emotion about it and can’t, for the life of me, get riled up about it positively or negatively, I embrace that shit. The joy of not caring about stuff is real.
I remember when it out that Lance Armstrong was doping and after reading about it and giving it some thought, I felt nothing. Nothing. I didn’t care. I don’t care about cycling. I pretty much assume most people are cheating. And either way, right or wrong, I just couldn’t get myself to care about it.
Now, I got some backlash from people who cared. They were so passionate about this issue they needed me to be passionate about it too. They came at me with facts and some really good reasons why it was a big deal and an outrage and why I should be outraged too. And I believed them. But, still, I didn’t care. My god, I didn’t fucking care one little bit and I loved it so much.
It was then that I discovered this fabulous, little piece of wisdom. Enjoy not caring. It’s rarer than you think, unless you are a sociopath. There’s nothing wrong with you if you can’t get emotional about a doping cyclist or if you don’t give a rat’s ass about the movement of our planets and sun, or whatever is causing this total eclipse. I mean, I know it’s the moon passing in front of the sun, but beyond that, I really have no idea the mechanics behind it…and I don’t care!
Yes! I don’t care what is causing the eclipse. I just want to see it, experience it, and be reminded of the mystery that is the crazy fact that –– regardless of Lance Armstrong doping, or that fuckhead at the four-way stop I hate passionately –– we are just animals with opposable thumbs who suffered an incredibly advantageous genetic brain mutation who are living on a rock, hurling through space, circling around a very large star and somehow we still get to care, or not care, about completely unimportant irrelevant things.
Life is great, right?
So, care or don’t care about the eclipse. But I need you all to agree with me that collectively we should hate the jerk at the four-way stop.
Related Posts
Christmas is my favorite holiday. No surprise. It’s a lot of people’s…
‘Twas the week before Christmas when all through the house, Stuff was…
Forget Tiger Moms and Helicopter Parenting and the latest parental wackiness I’m…
My thighs and I have a troubled relationship. There is a great…
I get it. You don’t want a minivan. The entire idea of…
Dear Friends, It is the first day of the year and of…
I was a tour guide in college. I worked in admissions. I’ve…
I happen to love teenagers. Both the ones I’ve worked with for…
So, you’re headed out on a family vacation this summer. Great news!…
I was just thinking about jugglers. Because, of course I’m thinking about…
If you’re anywhere near middle aged, you are assaulted on the daily…
Have you heard about Hamilton? The run-away smash hit musical currently dominating…
You’ve got to hand it to Gen Xers. We have been so…
You know how when you were growing up you said you’d never…
There are so many things about myself I “should” try to change…
You ever wonder if you are doing a good job raising your…
I don’t know about you but I’m overwhelmed by all of the numerical…
If you grew up in the 70s and 80s, you are well…
You know when you are feeling fat for you how you spend…
Nestled deep within the quiet suburban setting, we come upon the natural…
I have a vague recollection of my life before I was applying…
I don’t have insomnia. I feel like insomnia is like depression, we…
After being married for two decades, I’ve noticed a couple of things…
There is much debate about the worst stage of parenting. Is it…
Years ago, we were living in a teeny tiny, can’t stand up…
Dear Forties, Hello. Hello. It’s me. I know things have been over…
I recently got a crown. We all know there only a few…
So, I’m going to India. Such a simple sentence but I can…
Hey there, I’m new to pandemics, and let me just say, I’m…
I saw an ad for some kind of tutoring for kids, I’m…
It’s not your parents’ midlife crisis. Hey, how’s your midlife crisis going?…
Are you the default parent? If you have to think about it,…
There’s an age-old trick in the conversations of married couples dating back…
…or a Seinfeld Bond. Either Way. Today is the day that 20…
Not to be totally paranoid, but I’m pretty sure September is trying…
The Vidalia. Like The Onion, Only Sweeter. February 15, 2016 by M.Blazoned…
I’ve mostly made peace with all of the perceived perfection I see…
My inner voice is an asshole. For as long as I can…
Resumes are kind of my thing. My entire career has been evaluating applicants…
Almost daily, I read the news and I quickly lose faith in…
Locust? Famine? Floods? You wish. Nope. The Aging Apocalypse is not the…
If the title of this doesn’t instantly traumatize you, you probably weren’t…
Something happens to my husband when we go on vacation. He turns…
My husband watched this video of a woman removing a cyst from…
When I was growing up, July 4th was my favorite holiday. Forget…
We weren’t doing anything wrong. We weren’t drinking or doing drugs. We…
My philosophy of life is somewhere in between Buddhist compassion and metaphorical…
Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a prime candidate to hate…
So, my friend invited me to a Better Than Ezra concert. She said something…
Did I say September was the worst? I might have to retract…
Remember Happy Fun Ball from Saturday Night Live’s greatest commercials? “It’s Happy…
Someone started a comment to one of my blogs with, “Not to…
RULES FOR BEING MEREDITH Handed Down From Current Writing Software 1. You…
I have never liked horror movies. It was one and done for…
I love my family, and I love eating food, but put them…
Don’t get me wrong, I’ll happily take a massage and a shout…
Showing your kids the movies you grew up with. What could go…
“Enjoy every minute of it” is the most well-meaning piece of parenting…
Do you remember when I posted this photo on Facebook? When I…
For the first time since my daughter started her senior year of…
I love Christmas and I love buying gifts for people, but put…
For the first time in over five years we are sending out…
Hey Kids, Feel free to leave your stuff wherever you want this…
The last year of my life has been, let’s say, tumultuous. I…
Turns out 45 years old is just 45 years old. An age…
This is the somewhat true story of how my husband eating an…
Last week I was trying on a dress in a godforsaken dressing…
I guess I expected it would be easier this time. After all,…
You’re not going anywhere until you survive the week before, which is…
Every minute of every day you wait patiently, a quandary, Oh, there…
This is my 13th consecutive year with a child in elementary school…
Lol – it happens with age – after countless laundry,dishes, dirty floors – errands etc …. I like not caring – who the eff cares if my dining room is dusty – I sure as hell don’t – and to your point – dirty windows – PUH – (I’ll get to it someday – not likely to become anything regular) I like the eclipse – passionate -eh not so much – when my kids were young – oh yah everything was important – every second – (let me not ramble) but as they grow and you bask in your super self for keeping them alive …. haha now that’s a reason to watch the eclipse !!! Luv ya!!!!!
Thank you – spot on. I personally care about so little that is going on in the world. I work full time, have three children 6 years old and under, and I don’t have time to care what is happening outside of my little bubble. It’s enough to care about when school orientation is, what time is the bus coming, when are soccer registrations, when can I make time to take my daughter to the ophthalmologist? Sometimes I let myself feel guilty when people chat about current events and I have no idea what they are talking about. Maybe I can’t contribute to that conversation, but you know what? I don’t care! I saw the eclipse because everyone from my office was heading up to the roof of the building to view it, and sure it was neat, but I don’t think I would have lost sleep if I didn’t see it 🙂 LOVE YOUR BLOG
I feel like I may have finally, FINALLY, found my people.