So Tell Me What You Want to Hear

- OneRepublic

Here's a little secret about myself: I don't actually think I suck. I mean, I have my days where I do something stupid, or I find out I'm really not good at something. But on the whole, I think I'm a pretty awesome person.

Why, then, do people get so offended when I say something like "My sisters are prettier than me"?* People get some wacked out idea that I think I'm ugly. Trust me - I am not ugly. I've been told my whole life how pretty I am. So saying that my sisters are prettier than me is not an insult to myself, but rather a really big compliment to them. Do I say it with jealousy in my voice? Do I on some sub-conscious level have some Lucy-like ambition to be just like my sisters? Do I think I'm ugly?

If you answered no to all of the above, congratulations. You won. Now stop telling me how much I hate myself.

Seriously. If I said something like, "I'm not as smart as Bill Gates," people would be like "Well, no, of course not." But if I say, "I'm not smart like my fiance is," people start getting all sympathetic. I don't think I'm stupid, and I can't remember ever having said that in recent times. So relax.

There are things I'm good at, and there are countless other people who are much better at those things than I am. I think it's a pretty healthy attitude to be able to admit when other people are better-looking, smarter, or more talented than me. It doesn't mean I hate myself. It just means I know my place. My place is here. Theirs is up there. And other people's are way down there. So what? I can handle that without others trying to "make me feel better."

I promise I'm not looking for sympathy or fishing for compliments. I'm perfectly comfortable with who I am, and with improving on the things that I think I need to improve on. People do not need to get all up in my grill when I admit that other people are better than me. Would you like me to list the number of people who can't punctuate sentences to save their lives, or make syntax flow like I can? Because I can do that if it would make you feel better. I'm just saying...

I can also use comparatives and superlatives. Watch: Natasja is pretty. Her sisters are prettier. Her next-oldest sister is the prettiest.

Yeah. I'm awesome.

It's super late and this is all I can think about.

I'm gonna give all my secrets away.






*The only person who's allowed to tell me otherwise is my fiance.