Lewis Black has this really funny bit about how he knows what causes aneurysms (starting around 1:35). Now, for this to make sense (or be funny), you have to realize that modern medicine doesn't claim to know what causes an aneurysm. However, this guy swears he knows what causes them: those facepalm-worthy things you hear in passing. The words rattle around in your head, causing you all sorts of consternation, until suddenly, you have a sudden bursting of your blood vessels.
Remember that as you read the rest of this.
Now, I am a very curious person. If I'm waiting in line to board a plane, I'm going to look at the controls to the little extending deck. If there are construction workers standing around discussing something, I try to guess what they're working on, and what their plan of attack will be. If someone says they know how to do something I don't, I start asking questions. You get the idea.
Sure, this sort of thing can happen just about any time, any where. It's just my luck, though, that I know someone who likes to make all sorts of assertions that seem a little questionable. Many of the individual words make sense, but often times the context or the combination of words rule out sensible explanations. That, however, is the problem. Because there are enough words that do make sense, I question what this person is saying. If it was blatantly wrong, I'd just brush it off as ignorance or stupidity. But since it's being passed off as knowledge instead, my curiosity kicks in.
Worse yet, this person has a tendency to sound a little bit like Bing TV commercials. It's sort of like he only hears little bits of conversation, and then he tries to relate to those bits of conversation. So, a discussion about the best way to get something done turns in to a discussion about an unrelated repository of oddities. That brought us no closer to getting our task done, but I now had a completely random, facepalm-worthy comment bouncing around in my head.
So, as it is, I'm already at increased risk of an aneurysm. The longer I spend in this person's vicinity, the greater the possibility that my brain is going to spontaneously explode. I've actually made that very same joke when talking to a friend.
Recently, though, I woke up and one of those questionable assertions was the very first thought that crossed my mind. Seriously. I woke up, remembered the aneurysm-causing thought, and then immediately thought, "huh? That can't be right." If you hear about something in my brain going wrong, you know why. Pray for me.
Remember that as you read the rest of this.
Now, I am a very curious person. If I'm waiting in line to board a plane, I'm going to look at the controls to the little extending deck. If there are construction workers standing around discussing something, I try to guess what they're working on, and what their plan of attack will be. If someone says they know how to do something I don't, I start asking questions. You get the idea.
Sure, this sort of thing can happen just about any time, any where. It's just my luck, though, that I know someone who likes to make all sorts of assertions that seem a little questionable. Many of the individual words make sense, but often times the context or the combination of words rule out sensible explanations. That, however, is the problem. Because there are enough words that do make sense, I question what this person is saying. If it was blatantly wrong, I'd just brush it off as ignorance or stupidity. But since it's being passed off as knowledge instead, my curiosity kicks in.
Worse yet, this person has a tendency to sound a little bit like Bing TV commercials. It's sort of like he only hears little bits of conversation, and then he tries to relate to those bits of conversation. So, a discussion about the best way to get something done turns in to a discussion about an unrelated repository of oddities. That brought us no closer to getting our task done, but I now had a completely random, facepalm-worthy comment bouncing around in my head.
So, as it is, I'm already at increased risk of an aneurysm. The longer I spend in this person's vicinity, the greater the possibility that my brain is going to spontaneously explode. I've actually made that very same joke when talking to a friend.
Recently, though, I woke up and one of those questionable assertions was the very first thought that crossed my mind. Seriously. I woke up, remembered the aneurysm-causing thought, and then immediately thought, "huh? That can't be right." If you hear about something in my brain going wrong, you know why. Pray for me.
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