Howdy,
If you used to watch Parks and Recreation when it was airing (or still do, whenever you want, in binges — which isn’t exactly denying yo’ self), you may find yourself walking around and randomly speak out: “Treat Yo’ Self!”
Hopefully, you’re with friends when you randomly shout it out, so that it’s more like an insertion in a conversation.
Or, if you are just speaking it to yourself it might be less embarrassing if you are by yo’ self.
But I was thinking your weirdness would be in the context of being with friends. Making it totally normal. And understood. By your friends. Not your parents, maybe, but your friends. Maybe.
Anyway, I’m thinking the opposite for this post, and that’s Deny Yo’ Self.
There are many, bigger reasons why this is a good idea — from time to time, at the very least — but here’s a couple of examples why I’m thinking of it now. Just little pictures of its power.
First, it’s not working yet, but I’m trying to loss some weight (an obvious example of deny yourself right there) so we haven’t had half and half in the fridge for the coffee for awhile. Drinking it black, mostly. I’d brag that’s manly, but I got it from my wife … (not sure where to go with that, so please just pretend I never said it … How about, she’s tough?! And fantastic! A beautiful lady, who can take coffee black if that’s what it calls for on a morning.)
Okay, so, no cream of the coffee for awhile. That’s Deny Yo’ Self, I’d say.
Well, this weekend we had company. And we stocked the fridge with cream, you know, for the guests.
Saturday morning, my coffee was amazing!
So good.
Seriously. Wow. Worth the wait, to get that appreciation back. Delicious.
I mean, I’d been cheating with some milk from time to time and it was still a fantastic switch-up to have the half and half as creamer.
“Worth the wait” is a hard statement to sell, but I don’t know any other way to manufacture that pop of pure delight, heightened by staying away from making something routine.
Then, another example, for a couple of months I put my smartphone display on grayscale as an experiment or simply a way to make it less enticing to just be drawn to looking at for no good reason. Using my iPhone more as a tool than a toy.
Honestly, I got to where grayscale seemed normal and reverting back to color was a blazing glare. (Black and white was inconvenient at times with certain photos or videos, particular ones sent to me. My mom sent me a picture before Christmas asking me to double check a color for one of the boys’ potential gifts; when I took my phone out of grayscale the colors were crazy! (On my iPhone, not the gift. The gift was fantastic.)
I went back and forth a few times with my phone settings, because, actually, I preferred the grayscale. But needing the color I caved, for the time being, but I asked Sarah, “Are these colors right? Normal?” She said yeah and I said, “They seem so bright and … like a circus or something.”
I’m not kidding. You wouldn’t believe the look of the crazy colors on your phone if you lived in cellphone grayscale for a few weeks. (Click link instructions: Why is my phone in grayscale?)
If you want to find out you’ll have to Deny Yo’ Self!
“What?”
“What?”
“Thank you.”
—Billy
Reading. Writing. Living.
Word Count: 65,367 / On Pace: 66,000 / Year’s Goal: 200,000
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