Wednesday 29 March 2017

Character Test

Many people think that being good means helping the poor, the sick, the infirm. These are all worthy things to do but, in my experience, the true test of goodness is how long you can tolerate a person who bores you. Maybe I am alone in this but, when trapped in the company of someone who exercises no editorial control on the tide of inconsequential reminiscence they let loose each time they speak, I find it hard to behave nicely. My thoughts turn to escape plans and, while I try to ensure that I do not bruise my wordy companion's feelings, my abrupt departure and my fairly unlikely excuses probably do not fill them with confidence or joy.

And then there are meetings. And speeches. Lord, speeches, how I hate them.

If I am not alone in my inability to endure boredom, there may be an opportunity for a technical minded person - if someone could invent an absolutely minute device that could be hidden inside the ear and could broadcast interesting podcasts and comedy programmes to the wearer, I think there might be a large market waiting. Imagine the joy of sitting through a team meeting or a distant relative's monologue, nodding and smiling, calm, unstressed, all the time secretly entertained by a tiny voice that nobody else can hear.

While on the subject of improvements to modern life, why don't we bury sll those ugly industrial areas that surround most cities - those long stretches of warehouses and panelbeaters and even shopping malls and so forth? Most of them appear to be more or less windowless, so why not build them underground?

5 comments:

  1. No Z, you are not alone in your discomposure when faced with the blight that is a modern bore. I have a theory that most of them (they nearly always seem to be men) know full well what they are doing, and the effect it has on their 'victim'. Probably harks back to a disjointed upbringing or, even further back, being perhaps taken off the breast too early. To the best of my knowledge there is no cure.

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    1. I do apologise as I meant to publish your comment with the flourish of telling you the aeons delayed post that I think I promised you on Oercy Grainger was now up on the blog. Unfortunately an emergency intervened - but it WILL happen (have I got muddled and it wasn't you that was interested in Grainger?)

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    2. Yes Z, 'twas me - and I can wait...good to know you are still interested in Percy, a real one-off if ever there was one....

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    3. I'm still trying to persuade my husband that Grainger was right to embrace towelling A's suit material

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