Here are just a few examples:
· Commercials Lie
I saw a commercial today for some vacuum cleaner that said high traffic areas like stairs should be vacuumed twice a week. Twice a week or 104 times per year! (As if I have enough time and energy to manage once a week on a regular basis.) Obviously this is a marketing ploy to either make me feel like my house is a cesspool of bacteria and disease (which it probably is, if I remember even a smidge of my high school biology and chemistry), or to cause me to overuse my vacuum and eventually force me to replace it more quickly than the normal lifespan.
· People Overexaggerate
I'm not talking about a little creative license but a full-fledged fib fest. Normally most embellishment seems to come in the format of magnifying the difficulties of a situation to an absurd degree, but face it, we all know we tend to do it ourselves sometimes, so it stands to reason that everyone does it sometimes. The more dramatic the personality, the more often this habit will occur in the regular course of the day.
And perhaps some individuals really do lead lives that would put a daytime soap opera to shame, but I highly doubt it. Honestly I think the majority of us need to learn to reign it in a bit more when we start to get all worked up. Believe it or not, the world will not come to an end just because our insert major appliance here is on the fritz again (although it may feel like it) and there is little scientific evidence to support the claim that anyone's head has actually imploded due to sinus pressure or seasonal allergies (no matter how miserable we may feel). Turning a headache into a migraine may give it that extra pizzazz, but I'm starting to wonder how I am supposed to tell when something is important when everything and everyone on the information super highway wants to be a flashing neon sign.
· Everyone has an agenda
With the new age of social networking, it seems like everyone has an agenda these days. If we aren't actually selling something, we are selling ourselves. The physical items can be services rendered or consumer goods, but somehow those at least feel more honest to me. The sales agendas that concern me the most are the constant barrage of people trying to sell themselves as the world's best parent (or cook or organizer or decorator or Christian or minimalist)... you name it, someone's out there claiming it for their own. It all feels very reminiscent of high school... and not in the good way.
Generally laying claim to our skills and talents doesn't sound so bad, but very few people seem to show the other side of the coin, the time lost or consequent cost of these superior abilities. And since this isn't high school, we only see the side presented to us rather than the cheerleader or jock falling on their face in the cafeteria or the valedictorian having a nervous breakdown the week of final exams. It seems like there are no equalizers in this social networking sphere. We are who we say we are, or more importantly we aren't what we choose to leave out of our profile. Suddenly what we say has more power than we realize when it can go across the world into places we've never dreamed of visiting. I don't know about you, but I think that kind of power is scary and should carry some kind of warning label with it.
· People are not that dumb
Call me crazy, but I refuse to believe the population of the world is as stupid as our media sources are determined to paint us. Yes, I'm certain there are some really dull sticks in the bunch, but overall I choose to believe the majority are too busy to spend every waking moment becoming camera ready or wasting time blindly pursuing perfection. Hopefully the lion's share are chasing their dreams and following their bliss, in whatever package it presents itself, rather than worrying if the outside wrapping is in pristine condition or not.
For me, I guess it just feels like everyone is trying to become the next Martha Stewart or Oprah or whoever the next one name mogul is going to be, as if everyone just happens to have a communications and graphic design degree to help them best highlight their everyday life endeavors. If I have a choice I'd rather pick the faithfully flawed individuals in my life over the glossy artificial examples constantly swirling around in this media-centered world.
So while I haven't completely given up on soap or dental hygiene or become a complete misanthrope, I haven't absolutely ruled out buying a mountain all of my own to live on or installing a moat around the house. I'm almost sure if I look hard enough, someone has already had that idea and put an easy to follow step-by-step guide on how to make your own moat in 10 easy-to-read steps with an picture diagram to boot.
