Well, I suppose the title of this should actually be, “Word of the Year”, as it has been about a year since I last posted to my shiny new, four year old blog. Why has it been a year since my last post, you ask? A lot has happened in the last year, but do you really care? Ok, fine – I’ll tell you. I recently changed jobs, and I am now living (temporarily) in my brother-in-law’s basement. This does not set well with me, because it does not fit my routine. I am, in some ways, still living out of a suitcase. I don’t like living out of a suitcase. Uh oh. I just took a right turn, and strayed off topic. Well, not really, as the temporary rant actually fits directly into the topic. The topic? Word of the Day. uhh …errr…I mean… Year.
The word is neophobia. The dictionary has a very concise definition. It is the fear of new things. Wow. Where do I begin? Well, I suppose the logical answer is to Google it. But that only gets you results other people have written about the word. You get results about the dysfunctional eating habits of children, among the many other results. You know, the way kids will rant, “I hate onions.” Or “I like hamburgers, but only with ketchup, and only from McDonalds.” Surely the dysfunctional eating routine of a child is a fascinating subject, but it has no impact on my life, and thus, I don’t really give a shit.
So, I suppose a better way to begin, would be to think about some of the different ways the word could be used to describe me. Hmm, self-psycho-analysis - A lovely romp into your own mind. It keeps the brain sharp.
Ah, the noise of humanity.
How can I be described as a neophobic? I suppose it would be prudent to start with my comment in the first few sentences of this write up. I don’t like living out of a suitcase. I don’t suppose that is entirely true, as I love travelling, and experiencing the world around me. I love learning about new cultures, and how they differ with the culture I grew up in. For example, I am now living and working in Liberal, Kansas. Liberal has a significant Hispanic population. In fact, it may be possible that the Hispanics outnumber the white “majority”. Please don’t quote me on that, as I am not referring to the census here, but rather, I took a comment I heard from the daughter of a friend, who is a high school student, and interpreted it as a microcosm of the general population. The comment she made was, “They outnumber us.” Of course “They” are the Hispanic population in the high school. Wait. Before I go any further, I think it’s important to note that she was not making any derogatory or racial comments about Hispanics. But rather, just pointing out some of the cultural differences between them and us whiteys.
Where was I? Oh, right – trying to describe my love of learning new things, but my hatred of learning them from a suit-case. Or maybe it could be better described as a love of learning new things, but a hatred of learning them from someone else’s basement.
Believe me; it has nothing to do with not feeling welcome, or not having enough of a buffer zone between myself, and my in-laws. They have been nothing but gracious, welcoming, accommodating, etc. I would have been in a world of hurt if I would have had to find a place on my own, and in such a short period of time between jobs. I am eternally grateful for their willingness to give up their basement, so that I would have time to look for the right place, and not just the first place. In fact, their knowledge of the town, and the people in it, helped find me the perfect place. I have nothing but kudos to Marybettie (sister-in-law) for that. But regardless, I just want my own place. I want things to be set the way I set them. I want the bathroom towel to be where I set it. I want the toaster to be on the counter beside the fridge. I want the temperature to be where I set it. I want to have silence when I am writing, and I am not getting it right now as I type this. Grrrrr!!!!!!!!
It could be argued that this is not an example of neophobia, as it is not the fear of new things. But rather, the grizzled disdain of OPRs - Other people’s routines. Maybe that’s true, and true in the sense that their routines are actually not new. But they are new to me, and I don’t like it. So I guess you could go either way on that subject.
Ah, the noise of humanity.
Maybe this is all just an exercise in control. And I’m not in it. Maybe, it’s not really a fear of new things, but rather a fear of things I am not in control of. Ouch, that hurts. Is that a bad thing? Am I a closet control freak? Sheesh, I just opened a can of worms that I don’t want to dissect. Let’s put the lid back on that one. LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA .. I … AM … NOT …. LISTENING … TO … ME!!!!!!!!!!
I think I will just wrap this up by pointing out the obvious, although it’s not really obvious to most, until someone (and I’m usually that someone) points it out.
Neophobia is the opposite of Neophilia. Those two words are used to describe the two extremes of human interest. The first used to describe the fear of new things, or novelty, and the second with the absolute glee for novelty. Balance in all things - All things in balance. The Eastern wise man is eternally the centrist, but not because he’s riding the fence, but rather because he knows that we humans cannot fit our lives into a cookie cutter. Sometimes you’re in control, sometimes not. Sometimes you live in someone’s basement, and sometimes you have a guest in yours.
Ah, the noise of humanity.
