Friday, December 12, 2008

It's cool, innit?

Im new to this.So I'm completely open to any kind of criticism. (Breathing in slowly).Here goes...

I was in a bus the other day, when I noticed this guy standing right next to my seat.He was wearing ripped jeans and this vest sort of thing that hardly qualifies as apparel to be worn in public.And by his body language,I could make out that he WANTED that people notice what he's wearing, how he's standing, and other highly insignificant details. He had ridiculously expensive noise-cancellation earphones plugged into his ears, and he was listening to drum-shattering metal(you know, Slayer and stuff.I know, becuase I could hear it!). And if you think that was enough, he apparently would disagree with you, because there he was, head-banging in a public bus, hoping to god that after all this effort, people would think he was COOL.

What does that word mean anyway?I mean, we're always saying things like-"Let's go bowling tomorrow.It'll be cool" , or "Why the hell do you still have those in your wardrobe?It's not cool anymore."When that guy was, for the love of God, literally pulling his eardrums apart, just in an attempt to look cool, it got me thinking on how most of the things we do almost everyday are judged according to whether it's cool or not,not whether its right or not.Well, is it cool to hang out with friends late at night, until your parents are sick with worry and fear? Or is it cooler to drive on the divider of the road opposite to your college and have everybody who's watching clap for how brave (or exceedingly stupid) you are? It's cool to talk as if you're from the US of A.Oh, and it's also cool if your friends and you get out of college after every lecture for a smoke 'coz the teacher is getting on your nicotine-filled nerves.

Well, there's no real answer to all this. Of course, there is the one line that works everywhere- It's all relative.And also, I know I'm no one to justify or condemn any of this.But still feels good to say it.I hope the guy's ears are okay now.

16 comments:

  1. Yayy!! you started blogging!
    abt the post, its true...so many people nowadays get so caught up in potraying 'a particular image' to others, that,they don't have a mind of their own.But, you know...we have one life (as far as we know for sure, at least)...if the poor guy wants to blast his eardrums in his time on this earth, so be it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. He does have only one life,so he needs to figure out who he really is as fast as he possibly can.He's not getting any closer to himself by trying(and miserably failing) to be a collage of all the (supposedly) cool people around him.

    ReplyDelete
  3. yes, thats what you think one is supposed to do with their life. In other words thats what you think is 'cool'....only you just don't call it that. So instead of living his life by your ideals he is living his life by someone else's. I think whats important is to lead life the way you feel it should be led. So long as your actions don't affect others', you can do as you please.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Even his mom mustn't have discussed so much about him. :P But this isn't about 'him' at all....is it?

    ReplyDelete
  5. @nidhi: I'm sure he doesnt know why he's doing what he's doing.Apart from the fact that some girl in the bus would turn her head and appreciatively and flick her hair back(in a flirty kinda way,but its actually really hot and sticky in the bus),it's all hazy to him.He'll finally see the truth when he's 50 years old, and wondering where he threw his youth away.No, what he's doing doesnt bother others, but there has GOT to be a reason for everything we do.And it's better if we know the reason.

    ReplyDelete
  6. hey... i liked it. keep updating it... i'll read it.... n 1 more little thingy TEACH ME BLOGGING 2!adieu.

    ReplyDelete
  7. well, the guy sure has not got INDIVIDUALITY!!!
    god knows when he's going to realise that he is ...well... A NOBODY!! Just one other DUDE WITH RIPPED JEANS!
    we get to see a lot of those sad souls around here quite often!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Live and let live people...
    You don't need to be bothered with this guy or anyone else....so long as he/she is not meddling with you
    So, COOL down Anaghaa and relax..
    btw, nice write.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Aamil, I think we've discussed this guy a couple of times. It's not just him, there is a whole generation out there that doesn't know why it is doing what it is doing.Sure, he isn't meddling with me or my life, but more than worried, i feel pity when I come across such people.I think the film "yuva" helped me see this point clearer.I advise everyone to see it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Who are WE to decide that they don't know what they are doing.

    Perhaps he too is an intelligent human being like us...isn't he?

    Then why is it that he is blissfully unaware about something that we are so concerned about?
    Please understand that he CLEARLY knows what he is doing and also about its consequences and he has CHOSEN to ignore that fact.

    Maybe that is because, he is enjoying doing things that he is doing and what we consider unworthy of doing. But, if you look closely, he is being exactly what you want to be - KICKASS. If in being so, he is destroying his life [according to YOU], then that is his choice and his LIFE.

    Or maybe he is not aware that there could possibly be better things[again, according to YOU] that he could do.

    If the latter is the case and you think that you can help him, then you should do it. And if he realises it, he will surely come to you.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Remind me, Aamil...what does KICKASS mean again? haha.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I guess it's his right to do what he wants, and how he wants to do it.And equally yours to put in your views.But I'm just wondering, if that guy is trying to show off,what a choice of place..I mean, metal and the best bus crowd...what a disconnect.(Also half the crowd that claims to listen to metal, can't distinguish the genre from the others.That is a fact.Whether or not this statement is relevant to the subject of your blog entry I don't know, but I just chose to say it.

    ReplyDelete
  13. @one of Anaghaa's responses on what the guy is thinking to I think Nidhi's comments ...WILD imagination!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. @ all: I think what is important here is his conscious/ unconscious negation of personality. And what Anaghaa is trying to say is probably, that lacks the ability to remain an individual. And I haven't seen many "stereotypical" people being individuals- I mean I have a few friends who are amazing dressers, who keep in touch with fashion and all that- but that reflects their personality, something that is uniquely themselves. And as long as that doesn't happen- I think it's sad.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Apeetha, read my other blog posts too. I want comments on them. Gives me incentive to write more:)

      Delete
  15. Sorry Apeetha, I didnt see this until now. :(
    I think taking up any habit, doing anything or saying anything that you dont believe in from your very core is stupid and useless. Every one of us has the ability to be shining, wonderful individuals with amazing potential if only we'd acknowledge that we're different from everyone else, and that's what's great about us!

    ReplyDelete