I decided recently that I would like to be eccentric. I’m not sure what about this appeals to me–whether its the ability to wear any object I feel like as clothes, or an excuse to own more cats than is socially responsible–but I like it.
I googled “how to be eccentric” and got seven pretty helpful tips that I will now share in case you, too, have unfilled eccentrical aspirations.
- Have a weird “ism” when writing. Truman Capote had to be lying down with cigarettes and coffee nearby. Poet, Friedrich Schiller, needed the smell of rotten apples. Victor Hugo would give his clothes to a servant, saying not to give them back until he had completed a day’s work.
- Have an unusual policy when eating food. Like you only eat your favorite food that day. Or never use forks. Or go to a restaurant for a three-course meal and have each course be dessert. (While this seems fun in spirit, it does not seem conducive to living a long life or fitting into my pants.)
- Adopt a strange belief or superstition. Like stepping on carpet brings bad luck. Or a window in whatever room you are in must always be open or your soul will suffocate. Or cats are actually aliens from another planet, sent to spy on us. Never explain the how or why behind this belief when asked.
- Be technologically-averse. Don’t watch TV, own a computer or cell phone, or have a Facebook page. Don’t even know what Facebook is. (I don’t see this one happening any time soon.)
- Talk to animals. (Done and done!)
- Be fanatically obsessed with something very specific. A historical figure, a time period, an issue, etc. Know everything there is to know about it and insist on talking to other people about it, or try to bring it up in normal conversation. Get excited when you talk about it.
- Embrace your inner child. Do things like eat ice cream for dinner, go outside to play in the mud, hug strangers.
Quick writing update… Draft #LostCount is nearing completion. This may be the LAST. REAL. DRAFT. You know, before all the editing commences. Also, I surpassed by 90k word goal which Tim tells me to stop worrying about but I am like an obsessed madwoman. I’m at 93k.
In other news, something else I have wanted to write about for a while but have not because it’s a more personal (read, embarassing) topic for me is weight. I have recently read two books, “Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls” and “Health at Every Size” and I could not recommend them more if I tried. I have come to embrace novel concepts (she says sarcastically) like:
- You don’t HAVE to hate yourself or be miserable all the time.
- You don’t have to look a certain way in order to be worthwhile or loveable or beautiful.
- Dieting can actually make you gain weight in the long-term.
- Our bodies know what they need and we should listen to them instead of fighting them.
These books are changing my life. They are increasing my happiness and my feelings of self-worth. I have purchased several copies of Health at Every Size, and if you would like one, let me know. I would be happy to send you one. If you have ever felt like you failed your diet, you lack willpower, you are unattractive because of how much you weight, or feel that your weight is keeping you from doing things you’ve always wanted to do then this book is important for you to read. I cannot stress it enough.
Soap box over. Back to learning to be eccentric. Also, every time I type out the word eccentric, I first type it as exxentric. Perhaps I should just start spelling it out that way. It seems like an exxentric thing to do. Shut up, Chrome spellcheck, I know it’s not a word.
So it’s like a giveaway? How exxentric.
Oops. I just added that to my dictionary.
Sure, like a giveaway. Comment to enter the drawing. 🙂
I am glad that someone, other than myself, has added exxentric to their dictionary.