A note in response to this article I chanced upon shared on facebook by a friend (And a darn good one btw. Quite recommended.) - http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/15/i-know-what-you-think-of-me/ which ends with this para:
"Years ago a friend of mine had a dream about a strange invention; a staircase you could descend deep underground, in which you heard recordings of all the things anyone had ever said about you, both good and bad. The catch was, you had to pass through all the worst things people had said before you could get to the highest compliments at the very bottom. There is no way I would ever make it more than two and a half steps down such a staircase, but I understand its terrible logic: if we want the rewards of being loved we have to submit to the mortifying ordeal of being known."
FYI I would love to go down those stairs and know what you think of me. And unlike the author here, it would be the last few steps which would be harder for me. I mean c'mon I know I've been mean and rude to almost everyone I know and even if I haven't, I don't particularly care if the general populace I converse with holds any affection towards me. What would be horrifying, though, would be to find out that that normal acquaintance of mine who I've only shared casual "Hi. Wassup?" chats with practically worships the very ground I walk on. Would you like a side of "creepy" to go with that "stalker" you ordered?
But other than that, it perplexes me as to why would anyone not want to know what others think of them! As even the author states, its usual and quite normal for everyone to be talking about everybody behind their backs. And as long as you're doing it, its only natural to assume that others are too (including about you). Aren't you curious about stuff? Don't you wanna know? What exactly are you so scared of hearing? What could they be saying that's so unexpected? Either they are lying about something you did/said, in which case hey they're lying and if it means so much to you, prove it as lies. Or they are telling the truth - in which case, hey you made that bed so you jolly well lie on it. And in most cases they are simply stating what they feel about you, no holds barred - which is kind of their business and not something you control so why bother being affected by it. Actually, you should probably be alarmed when no one is talking about you coz that most likely means nobody cares about you, which generally translates into major boo hoo hoo time for the usual person.
As I see it - being forewarned is forearmed. And its fun! I get a kick out of hearing gossip about myself. The more ludicrous the better. So someone hates my guts. Again. Yiee! I find it even more funny when I know what they really think of me while they go about trying to behave as usual and polite and whatnot and all I can think of is - "Wow that's a lotttt of effort you're using to pull that off. You must realllllly care about what I think of you to wanna be this fake nice."
I am all for being brutally honest with people to their faces, propriety be damned. But if you gotta be bitchy behind someone's back, have the guts to not cringe when its done to you too, if not actually enjoy it.
