One Man's Meat

A bone of contention.

Perhaps I'm abusing the soapbox this time, but I shall attempt to restrain myself. To further go along a theme I have already brought up, we are all not the same person, and do not like the same things. Rather than being perturbed at having been labeled a sick puppy, as I have been called worse, I thought I might try and be a little creative about it. Anyone can blow literary raspberries at an antagonist of little wit, but I would prefer being better then that. Or try to be.

So, we shall dissect a sick puppy, in a sense. Firstly, what brought about the comment, which is giving the person the benefit of the doubt, as it did look like an insult to me. An objection to events that took place in a fictional erotic account of some puppy slave training. Not everyone's cup of tea, granted, and not written from the experience of having undergone or given this training. As I am neither dog, nor dog-slave, in any fashion I am aware of, then puppy is inaccurate. As for sick, well, I doubt this reader knows me well enough to be a judge of that. I am not so vanilla in a few of my hobbies, and a bit past odd in a few fantasies, nevermind my preferred reading topics, so that call is up in the air. Particularly if you ask any of my exes, but I think a few of us are in that boat.

Is it then a good call to label anyone a sick animal for a bit of writing, that may or may not reflect reality, just because you didn't like it? I might be guilty of less than charitable thoughts, but I tend not to share them, and certainly not in a public forum without any attempt to do any good in the slightest. I try to avoid snap judgments, though I am as guilty as anyone else.

From the mundane to the exotic, we all have our likes and preferences and those things we simply cannot stand. I don't like peas, for example, but I'm not going to insult every person I know that eats them. I don't understand the draw of golden showers, but that does not qualify me to say they are bad. I also don't understand golf, but, there again, I can't say there is anything wrong with playing or watching the game.

If we were all the same person, all meted out from the same cookie cutter, what a boring life it would be. My favorite brand of candy bar would always be sold out, because it was everyone else's favorite too. Any movie I wanted to watch would have been rented by someone else, any restaurant full to capacity with lines around the block, any comment I might make already made by someone that looked and sounded just like me. Boring.

We don't live in a gray world. Your meat may be my poison, or a hunk of candy I can't wait to taste, but give me that right, as I give you, to like it or not. If you don't like it, hey, fine, glad you have an opinion. If you do, great, love it, glad to have given you a nice ride. If you really don't care, just as good, though I'm sorry I didn't move you one way or the other. And if you just have to share, well, that is what a lot of things are all about. Give and take, each of us having something to offer than may enrich the lives of those around us.

I won't learn anything about anyone, or sometimes myself, without new input. If you love it, tell someone. If you hate it, knock yourself out, but don't just be a jerk about it. Rather than insulting someone or thing, try constructive criticism, or at least a little detail. 'I think you are a sick puppy because ...' That at least gives me something to work with, whether I like it or not.

You have an opinion, wonderful, now use your brain and back it up. Make a stand. Don't just fire an insult and sulk away. Give me a piece of that mind, as I do assume you have one, and grant me more to take away from the situation than the opinion that you are just a jerk belittling someone else to make yourself feel better. See, snap judgment, bad me, but I do have my reasons. I'll even share them, which is half of my point.

If you happen to read this oh anonymous one, though I doubt you will, you will know exactly who you are. I challenge you, as I challenge everyone who has ever just slung an insult, to think. To examine. To explore. Or at the very least, have a more creative insult. I do enjoy creativity in its many forms, and want to be tarred with a better brush, or at least a large considerate one.

We all encounter things that make us want to shake our heads, wince, or actually get nauseous. It happens, we go on about our business any way. My meat is not for everyone, my opinions bound to suck to some people, as theirs may to me. We are all of us different and that makes the world go around, as well as be an interesting place. Those of us who travel go to see new sights and places, to step into different worlds. Anyone fascinated with ancient cultures will appreciate the similarities and differences while trying to imagine just what it was like to live back then.

Life is not static, not still or unchanging. Seasons come and go, fashions and what is hot, we all get older and hopefully wiser. Life is like that. People are like that. Do I agree that anyone has the right to insult anyone else? Oh yes, or I would have been locked away for many an unkind word. Do I agree that people have the right to insult someone just for being different? I guess, though I'd really hope there was a better reason.

I'm not going to mouth off to a blonde just because I'm brunette. If that blonde happens to be rude or acting like a jerk, hey, I'll point that out, or at least think it. Am I oversimplifying the matter? Maybe. Do people actually stoop that low to not like someone over something as simple? Oh yeah. Every day.

I don't expect the world to change immediately, though it is a nice goal for all of us, or at least our little corners of it. Do I invite that someone to insult me again? Fire away. Give me a better shot. Do I invite that person to back up their position? Very much so. Let's have a dialogue, that way we both learn something, and take more away from an exchange.

I don't have to like your stance anymore than you do mine, but it won't hurt either of us to learn more about where the other comes from. Maybe we do have some things in common, that neither one of us would ever learn about if we didn't get past that first difference. I'm not saying anything most of us don't already know, but maybe it bears repeating.

If I was so picky as to dislike pea-eaters, then I couldn't talk to my own mother. Will I ever like peas? Probably not. Did she stop trying to make me eat them? Yes. We each deal with the others preference and move on. There are far more important things out there worth too much to let one small difference ruin a relationship. Will this anonymous person ever be a fan or a good pal? Doubtful. Would I refuse to ever speak to this person just because of one insult? Probably not. I try to go along with my own rantings, if not so much practice what I preach, at least do what I say. I am the one who said, and others in their ways before me, and likely after. We can't all be wrong, not completely.

People, in our infinite diversity, are social creatures. We seek a number of things, in a number of places. I don't think many of us are looking for our perfect twin. I know I wouldn't. I live with me, so I like a little change of pace. Maybe a fantastic version of myself, the fairy godmother all fixed up kind of me. That would be cool, unless she thought I was boring. It could happen.

To wrap up, lest not we imperfect rain on others for not being perfect. No one is, no one magically will be, so grow up. You don't have to like me or anyone, but at least have a little courtesy about it, and a better than silly reason. Do on to others, my friend, as you would done on to you. I think the world in general would be a nicer place if we all lived by this. We don't have to be same, we don't have to all get along, but a little respect never hurt anyone.

That sick puppy down the street may end up being your best friend, but you will never know if you don't bother looking past the steak of choice. Not your meat you say, but the veggie beside it might be your favorite, or the wine in the glass one you would like to try. So swallow the insult, ask a question, and get that toe wet. Again, you may like what you find. And if not, at least you had an interesting day.