Pessimism vs optimism
...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................I don't consider myself an overly optimistic person, I am a realist, sometimes idealistic, hoping for the best, not expecting the worst but realizing everything will be somewhere in between.
More and more, I run into people who whine and complain about everything, never have a good word to say and always try their damnedest to bring everyone down with them.
I do realize that some folks have it rough and cannot always whistle zippity doo dah out of their assholes 24 hours a day, but come on, sometimes enough is enough.
Expectations of impending doom and failure usually end up as a self fulfilling prophecy.
It's almost as if some people want to fail so they can have something to wallow in.
Personally, I would rather listen to someone talk about how they overcome adversity or at least plan to fight against it. Instead, all I hear is "woe is me" and how it's everyone else's fault.
I don't know why I remain optimistic, things haven't always been spectacular for me, but what is the point of letting petty things ruin my outlook?
Life is a joke. Grab it by the pubes and smack it around a little. Don't let it get you down.
What else do you have to look forward to?
A wise old man once told me, "keep smiling even if you don't feel like it. Things will get better and we don't have a right to ruin everyone elses day"
posted by Bill Rowland @ August 07, 2007
40 Comments
40 Comments:
Hammer, mate,
In keeping with your theme and your pictures .... At least we have a woof over our heads!
Cheers
David
I am with you in this... I am a cheery soul. People like to blame everything but themselves...
Amen.
Loved your doggy pictures and your comments.
Our Little Sister came home about 2 pm. She was glad to get home. I was glad to have her home.
I feel your pain Hammer...I've been wrong just about every time I've opened my mouth in the past ten or twelve years. Before then, I was too stoned to remember, but I was probably wrong then too. Even when I am positive I am right, someone has to tell me I'm wrong. People just love to tell me I'm wrong...wrong wrong wrong.
Yes, some people are quite gloomy or underwhelmed by life. This is why God invented the bitchslap.
You must know my hypochondriac co-worker!
Nothing like a jolly good moan to get it off your chest though! Maybe it's better to write it down rather than speak it aloud to other people though!
Cheers
Life is a joke. Grab it by the pubes and smack it around a little. Don't let it get you down.
so much for trivial Tuesday....laughing...
David Mc Mahon: Very witty!
Mutley: I noticed you project no ill will. That's why I like your blog so much.
AD: Thanks :)
Nickel: Glad to hear it, I worry myself sick when my dogs go to the vet.
JP: We can't be wrong all the time even though everyone insists it is so.
allie d: the old attitude adjustment works wonders sometimes :)
tshsmom: I'm sure I do or one of his or her analogs
mcewen: exactly, I wrote mine down and then burned em.
Katherine: Glad I could be an inspiration :D
grab it by the pubes... you are too funny
As someone who sometimes has to fight the pull towards the "woe is me" attitude... this is great advice. Sometimes people just need to hear it.
I actually like being a pessimist, because that way I have low expectations, and I'm rarely disappointed. Ha!
My best friend always tells me (mostly when I am bitching about my kids). "keep smiling...it makes them wonder what you are up to.." lmao.
Hammer,
I grew up around a very negative family. Moved away for 19 (wonderful) years and developed a positive outlook. Now I'm back mired in negativity and it's hard to keep a sunny disposition. But I try. If someone is really trying to piss me off, I just walk away. Not gonna play along.
It's better to be pessimistic because then things will usually be better than you expect but I mix in large piles of optimism with my dark cloud of pessimism that I drag a short distance behind me.
snowmanpoop: Well balls wouldn't have worked for everyone :)
terri: it's hard to take my own advice at times
dorky dad: I used to do that but then it started coming true too often ;)
canadian: that works really well!
jerry: sounds like we grew up in similar surroundings. It's hard to live where everything is sour grapes. that's why I'll try not to go back except to visit.
Sornie: that is complicated but it is nice to be pleasantly surprised once in a while.
Not sure what's more annoying: negative people who bitch about everything, or those blue sky types who are always shoving perky advice down everyone's throats no matter how bad things really may be.
I would call my self an optimistic pessimist. Wait, make that a pessimistic optimist.
Love love LOVE the pup pics... that was my smile o' the day!
I try to be possitive... I enjoy life too much to let it get me down for long...
Very true.
I'm having what could be called (and truly has been) one of the hardest weeks of my life. And that's saying A LOT.
I enjoyed the post. I don't want to turn into Miss Gloom and Doom.
Thanks :))
Cheesy: Yeah, life is too long to be miserable about it ;)
Diesel: thanks :)
Mad Z: whats the saying? The person who remains calm while everyone else is in a panic obviously doesn't know what's going on. As far as the subject of Israel, I don't know what there is to be positive about except imagining those appeasers being hung like laundry.
Epijunky: Hope the week gets better, thanks for visiting and keep smiling :)
I am with you on this one. I hate when people are constantly bitching. My mil is one of those negative types and I swear it is the reason she's had 2 heart attacks at such a young age (60.)
Good advice, I guess.
I smile a lot, but stuff rarely gets better.
I guess it's crappy advice, then.
Too much of anything is annoying. A good mix of sometimes happy, sometimes pissy makes for a more interesting person. I may be wrong, but I it to be true. I remember Happy happy Jo-Jo the happy bitch from work. Everything was always Grrrreat like Tony Tiger. Always wanted to grab her by the ankles and slam her head first into the cement floor. But that would have been wrong.
find
yknow hammer you are one of the most grounded guy I have ever come across. I bet it takes a lot to send you off. And I would hate to be the fucker to do it. Sound advice as always though..
I always enjoy a little trivia. I think tomatoes have a similar history to potatoes don't they? And one or both were thought to be poisonous for a long time (related to nightshade)and that is why it took so long to catch on.
As for the whiners (I know I can be one), we are living in a culture where we are constantly bombarded with messages that we are not good enough unless we have "X". Most of us can not afford all the X's. Nor do we need them but we are pressured. It makes us unhappy that we are failures because we don't have X. And since we never like to be responsible for our own failures, we blame our parents, siblings, spouses, kids, neighbors, coworkers and boss. Because if they weren't doing what they were doing, we could have X too.
We are too stupid to realize that we are being lied to. X is not essential to our well being. We can be happy without it.
That last sentence reminds me of something that I learned from my mom, an incident that's too long for a comment. But the upshot is that if you act like you're having a good time, you'll have a good time. So I guess if you plaster a smile on your face, eventually the smile will become real.
schmoopie: my grandmother is like that too, it's kind of endearing at times but horrible for her health.
LBB: Your mileage may vary ;)
JP: I agree with you there, I think centered is what some call it.
judith: thanks, it does take a lot but some manage to find that button nevertheless.
jeannie: I think you discovered the fallacy behind marketing. I've stopped consuming for the most part for the reasons you stated.
janet: she's right for the most part. I've changed my attitude and it makes a huge difference in whether I'm successful or not.
This is my first time at your blog! Wow! Are you really in Antarctica? Amazing! I'm sure there are some stories you could tell on stage about your life there! (I'm a standup comedienne so I'm always on the look out!) I'll have to do my homework and get updated via your blog!
Nice coming across your blog!
there have been certain people in my life i would NEVER ask, "so, how are you doing today." for fear they'd tell me.
*:]
I love the quote at the end! I feel like i need to put that on a sign and hold it up when i am around negative people!
"Life is a joke. Grab it by the pubes and smack it around a little"
...I like that alot, but what do you do if you don't have pubes to grab hold of?
I always look at it this way. When life throws you a big piece of shit. It's gonna be there, and it's already happened weather you are sad/angry/ or just laugh about it and move on. I was real upset about the freezer for about a day, then it's time to move on. I mean no ammount of being doom and gloom is gonna change the outcome, so why should I ruin my life and outlook if I can't change something??
Good advice Hammer. I've had to many woe is me, people in my life. I just wanna say, Jesus, does nothing good ever happen to you??
lucy: lol I don't know where antartica came from, blogger just changed it on me. Thanks for visiting. Life in Texas is interesting enough :)
nanc: Oh yeah, I've learned my lesson the hard way.
Marie: There needs to be a poster.
Jenny: Hmm well there is always the shocker ;D
Burfica: I hear ya. I laugh at shit. Sometimes I hold my nose too ;)
Well said!
Grab it by the pubes and smack it around a little.
That right there is an example of why I think we must be related. I say things like that, and people just look at me and say, "Nobody says stuff like that!" Hmmm... apparently so!
And it sounds like something out of The Masochism Tango.
Maybe life is a joke to you, but it's a serious thing to me.
Pessimism vs. optimism.
Glass half empty or glass half full?
I just want to know "is this half of a beer mine and is there any more?"
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