WAG - You can drive a person crazy
[I've been working on this post off and on for a couple of days. I hope you learn something from the extra effort.]
Remember in Middle School where if wanted to know if someone liked you and all you had to do was send a note reading:
I’ve gotten into numerous conversations about this with people (some which I started, some which popped up without me saying anything) and I’ve found there is a bit of nostalgia for the practice. Being able to go back a time when things were more straight forward, and there were a lot less games.
Granted, if someone wrote in MAYBE, it might keep you guessing, but a MAYBE keeps one’s hopes up better than a flat out NO (with several exclamation points drawn in for good measure!!!!!!!).
I mainly remember this surfacing in Middle School. Somewhere between Elementary School, where boys were “dirty and icky” and girls had “cooties,” and High School when most people were too focused on appearances to resort to such honesty, note passing flourished, and for a time things were simple.
Now, we have sometimes found myself wishing things hadn’t gotten so much more complicated. To truly gauge a person’s feelings, people go through multiple sources besides the person you’re interested in. Friends and family are sometimes referenced before proceeding. One may also try plugging into the current gossip line, though it is better at reporting proposed theories rather than documented facts.
One can try cutting through the tape by asking the direct question. Of course, when you tip your hand there is no guarantee they will respond in turn – and there’s few things as “thrilling” as knowing they have complete knowledge about where you stand AND you know nothing about their stance.
It’s a game of poker where the stakes can be high: winning the pot can be a dream and losing can be a nightmare. Of course, the card game metaphor can only go so far because people are always entering and leaving the game, there is no set rotating order of whose turn it is, and when you go to lay down a card what you think might be an ace may end up being a deuce.
It’s nutty, crazy, and a lot of fun…at least right now.
Ask me again in another couple of hands and we’ll see.
We may never be able to return to the simplicity of the “love ballot” approach, but I tae some comfort in the knowledge that the straightforward approach can work.
It just takes two honest people to work…
Now that isn’t complicated at all.
'You_can_drive_a_person_mad'
