Mood:
chillin'I guess we're never really comfortable with others unless we make it a point to conform to their dress, appearance, cultural idiosyncracies, speech and other affectations.
Not meaning to stick out from the crowd is one of the strongest urges facing people today, wherever their crowd happens to be. I remember when I was a teenager and I refused to wear my hair in a Mohawk or freely use cusswords or drink alcohol or engage in the rowdy push-and-pull of what passes today for bonding but is really violence against each other. My friends would think I was odd and was constantly being reminded that I wasn't really trying or, worse, that I was "TRYING TOO HARD", whatever the hell that meant.
In my work life, there was too much against standing out from the crowd for me to assert my so-called rights and rituals to be feasible. There were always the "culture police", mostly of the feminine persuasion, as I recall, who were constantly criticizing what I did or said, either out loud or covertly, meaning they mostly gave one "dirty looks".
One might think, what does all this have to do with my living my life the way I wish to live it? Well, what it has to do with is living with others in such a way that one tends not to "bother" others, if that's the word I need, or actually criticizing others for their behavior or speech or dress.
Never mind that everyone else is constantly scrutinizing you in order to make some point or other about how much better they are than you. Because, when it comes to that, the real reason people are constantly trying to criticize you and make you feel unworthy is just so that their ego gets built up, boosted by their pushing you down! They are not really trying to improve the country's appearance or security or culture -- they merely wish to hike their own egos.
Makes one wonder whether they might be insecure in other ways too. Because a person who feels secure in oneself does not need to look around for someone to criticize as, in the long run, someone who is inferior. Pull yourself back a bit and really look around. Is there anyone who is really inferior to you? Conversely, is there someone superior to you who is worthy of imitation and emulation? Granted, there are many Nobel prize winners, Academy Award Oscar actors, etc., who are superior to you in some fashion or other but can one really emulate them?
Think about it. Perhaps you might not feel as badly by not conforming.
