Monday, September 26, 2011

It's Not All About Me

I'm still chuckling as I type this.


Recently, I noticed a new blog post appear in my reader and clicked over to enjoy a progress report from the gorgeous Farmer's Wifey. The post featured pictures of the new doors in place in her nearly completed home.
I left a cheeky comment about loving her doors and them being 'well hung'.


A minute later, that post disappeared and was replaced with a brand new identical version on her blog - minus the cheeky comment.


I gasped aloud and was frozen with shame - assuming that she'd pulled the post after reading my trashy comment and reposted it fresh without the taint of that Mum on the Run's vulgarity. I immediately emailed Farmer's Wifey gushing,

"Oh my goodness.
Did you delete your original Sunday post because of my inappropriate comment?? So, so, so sorry.
Shar (Mum on the Run)"

Then sat and sweat.
Four minutes later,(I told you, I was sweating it!) I got a reply.
Turns out Farmer's Wifey had had some html trouble after publishing and the post was playing with her blog format, so she had to delete and repost.

Ba ha ha. I laughed aloud - with relief and then more shame.
What on Earth makes me think the whole world is about me - and not html??
Where do I get off thinking that someone is going to go to the trouble of republishing a post just because of a sentence I released into the cyber world choc full of smut?!!

Why do I feel targeted and go into a panic when generic emails fly around at work - only to find out the whole thing had nothing to do with me at all?

Why do I instantly think someone is having a dig at me if their facebook whinge relates in any way to something I may (or may not) have done or said in the past thirty odd years?

Why do I overanalyse every non reply or sarcastic comment?

Why do I go to bed hoping that so-and-so understood what I meant when I said such-and-such and wasn't offended?

Why do I feel that certain people are judging my parenting and/or son at every turn (or tantrum)?

Why don't I realise that the people in my life (mostly) choose to be here?

I constantly have to remind myself that there are a million and then some reasons why people do and say what people do (like html) - and almost all of them have absolutely nothing to do with the things I do and say.

Why can't I get it through my thick skull to trust that if someone has a problem with me, they will be mature enough to let me know - overtly, not in the form of little clues and disguises so there's no need to 'offend hunt'.

I need to grow up.
Or refrain from being a dirty little tramp. ;-)
(I'm not really. A dirty little tramp, that is.
Don't be offended, please. I'll have to send you a pathetic email too.)

Do you ever mistakenly think it's all about you?
Or... is this just all about me... again?!

Shar :-)

12 comments:

Unknown said...

hahaha! I suffer from an over inflated sense of importance at times too :)
please continue being smutty, at least those who did see it would have enjoyed it i'm sure.
Visiting from Gratefuls List with Lioness Lady

All For Love said...

Oh yes Shar, I call it being paranoid... and I'm an expert at it. I'm renowned for worrying about what people will think or jumping to conclusions about things people do or say, simply because I think they don't like me or I've done something to offend them.
Often I pull myself up on this and have a good laugh at my own ridiculousness. I'm hoping with age, I'll be able to work myself out of such silliness and genuinely not make it about me so often. It's tiring!
Great post, very funny xo

My Mummy Daze said...

Shar, you think these things because you're a nice, thoughtful person!

You're caring and considerate of other people's feelings. Don't be so hard on yourself.

Of course the whole world isn't about you, but I don't think you think that either. That would be what a self-centered person would think, and you're far from that. You simply care how your actions affect other people - some healthy caution and 'paranoia' to help you wander through the complex interactions of the world.

Now, I'll just go away quietly and toss and turn about whether I've been too bossy and offended you ;-)

Sweaty said...

Oh, I've been guilty of thinking it's all about me ALL THE TIME!!! Shame, shame on me!

This is such an interesting point you brought up here. It's funny how often we think of ourselves as not being good enough, not important enough, not substantial enough, and yet when it comes to the things you mentioned, we tend to think that the world revolves around us. Ah, the mysterious workings of the mind!

Thanks for reminding me, at times when I start worrying about the same things you worried about, that hey, who am I to think that it's all about me ;)

Great post!

Evin said...

Oh this is SO ME! Is that vague FB status about me??? Was that snarky tweet about "ways to suck at Twitter" aimed at ME??? Why did he text "k" - why not "okay"??

Maybe I just suck at technology?

krismac said...

haha, your post is so all about me! How did you get in my head? So glad GDRPempress led me to you, I'm sticking around :)

Life Love and Hiccups said...

OMG I can so relate to this. I was laughing out loud at your words, as I too read people status updates and if I have been with them in the past 24 hours, I worry that the moan has something to do with me. I get nervous when people are not as friendly with me as they were last time I saw them, and if one of my kids don't get invited to a party from school I get worried that it was because I offended the mum. LOL just reading what I have written to me makes me worry that my neuroses has completely taken over my sense of reality. Were we sisters separated at birth?
P.s love your blog xx Sonia

Seana Smith said...

Hello there, I think this is such a common theme amongst women... and such a waste of our emotional nervy. As I have got older, it has definitely got better, thank goodness. Still don't like it at all when someone is genuinely angry with me, or disapproving or waterer, but can live with it.

But of course, most times people aren' even thinking about Me, they're just living their lives!!

MultipleMum said...

I have a dreadful case of foot in mouth syndrome and rarely even think about what I said and how it might have offended. Perhaps we can combine brains and end up somewhere in the middle ground here? Thanks for Rewinding. I hope you and Farmer's Wifey are BFFs again! x

Emily said...

Great post! I'm a chronic over-analyser, and will be hitting this page again when I need to get some perspective. Visiting via the Rewind.

Seana Smith said...

Aha, good to re-read this post and remember how true this is. And I see the typo in that previous comment! Not to worry.

Recently some people have been angry with me, and I've had to just grin and bear it... because I have to be me.

MultipleMum said...

x