The ramblings of the excited

Let’s talk about the human condition.

It’s a sad one. Ever to doubt, wonder, regret, wish, search, wander, fall. I mean we’re pretty much set up to suck.

As students, we spend four to however many years trying to figure it out, trying to understand the point of it all. And trust me, it is not the goal of this column to tackle that question. I merely seek to ponder over it a bit.

Specifically, I wanted to discuss for a moment (however one-sided the discussion may be) the nature of icons. From “Mona Lisa,” to Banksy’s rats, to the koi fish tattooed on your uncle’s arm, it seems an easy thing to attach one’s self to a symbol.

An image can indeed say a thousand words, and you might agree with several dozen of them without understanding the rest. Yet your lack of transparency with the rest of the meaning doesn’t necessarily put you off the image. If anything, it bolsters that attraction you have for it.

As much as Catholics get pumped about the Holy Trinity, even though it doesn’t make sense in human terms (it cannot be understood by our feeble minds), humanity is ever destined to think things are cool just because they’re “deep” or something. Hence
the icon.

As easy as it is to attach one’s self to an icon, it is even easier to hate on someone else for attaching themselves to an equally idiotic icon.

Again, to reference Catholicism, it was their mandate to not worship false idols, mostly just because one of the first false idols after this God fellow was introduced to the Hebrews was a stupid golden cow.

“Come on, guys, that cow is lame. Come back over here to our lowercase ‘t.’ It may be lowercase, but it’s capital ballin’.”

And so began the first religious war.

So, without trying to get too caught up in a religious discussion (it’s interesting that a discussion of icons and lack of understanding would lead me to religion), I just wanted to point out one thing: Icons and belief and passion for something are great, yet we as too-cool-for-school hipsters and greeksters frown upon those who get “overexcited” about something.

“Oh, you have a dancing bear bumper sticker? Lame.”

“Oh, you’re pumped about some old language letters? Lame.”

I say that’s enough! Let’s get pumped about things!

Let’s get psyched and stoked and riled up about things that don’t matter. Because you know what, folks? Life is pretty short.

And most of us won’t ever get to figure it all out, so we might as well get stoked about whatever.

It’s more fun that way. And as an added bonus, it usually means you get to drink more.

So, in conclusion to this discussion on “life, the universe and everything” (and icons) let’s just show some love for folks who believe in the silly or “ridonculous.” It’s probably awesome in some way or another.

To be perfectly honest, though, this article is mostly just me trying to come to grips with my “Game of Thrones” problem. “Winter
is coming.”

­— mileonar@indiana.edu