And we were never being boring
We were never being bored
Every day at work, we gather in the staff dining room to eat our lunch, and my colleagues evaluate each other's victuals.
"What have you got today?"
"That smells nice."
"Ooh, that looks a nice sandwich - what's in it?"
No one ever directs a comment or question my way since I always have exactly the same thing in my Spider-Man lunchbag: turkey and beetroot, with mayo, on two Warburtons sandwich thins. A bag of pop chips, sour cream and onion. An apple. A satsuma. A small Hulk lunchbox containing brazil nuts, walnuts and a small handful of apricots. The same lunch five days a week, with only the occasional variation: a bag of Skips instead of Pop Chips.
Am I boring?
I ask myself this question from time to time. Have done throughout my life. By other people's perspectives, the answer would be a definite yes.
Whenever Louise and I get together with other couples (rarely, to be honest), conversation inevitably turns to travel. Louise has been all around the world and has the stories to go with it: New York, Paris, Rome, Hawaii, etc etc... she even spent a couple of months working in an Aussie outback bar. I've been to France. Kefalonia. And on the school Sixth Form ski trip, we drove in a coach through Germany to get to the Swiss Alps. I rarely have anything to contribute to world travel conversations.
I don't drink... haven't touched a drop since the turn of the Millennium, largely for medical reasons.
Don't drink, don't smoke, what do you do?
And I don't like sport, particularly football, though I make an exception when Sam is playing.
The only real hobby or interest I have is music, but even there I fail to be interesting. It seems I like too much, and not enough of the right stuff, to ever be considered cool. That's been the case as long as I've expressed any interest in pop songs. I remember telling kids in junior school I'd rather listen to Frank Sinatra than Madness. They'd sing "Roll out the barrel..." to represent my taste in music. I'm presuming one of my wag mates had heard the Vera Lynn version and thought it a good fit. Then in high school, while my cooler pals were heading off to investigate the Smiths and other John Peel delights, I was buying Huey Lewis records and getting into Springsteen. Other contemporaries started out liking pop music and then turned their back on it when they discovered more esoteric offerings. I kept a foot in all camps. As much time as I spend now delving into dusty 70s and 80s relics that even Peel might have only played once, I still won't hear a bad word said against Meat Loaf or Queen or even Jon By Jovi. My refusal to shun the music the cognoscenti has cast out will forever mark me down as someone with no taste.
Do I care?
Not really.
I make the same sandwiches every day because I like them, and they're easy to do. The last thing I want to do when I get home from work is spend ages thinking about or creating something new. It's lunch, it's not performance art.
There are places in the world I'd like to visit, but I don't feel particularly aggrieved by not having a fully stamped passport. New York, one day... beyond that, I'm happy enough trudging round the British Isles. In another lifetime, with other opportunities, maybe... but I don't lay awake at night bemoaning my provincialism.
And as to the music... I know this is a bugbear I return to a lot on this blog because of the chip certain individuals in the real world and the blogosphere have cemented to my shoulder, so there's not much more to add.
I will say this though... I may be boring, but I'm never bored. I honestly do not remember the last time I ever felt even remotely bored. There's always something to do or think about or listen to or read. Why would you ever get bored? I'll save that till I'm dead...
I liked your lines about having the same lunch, it reminds me that my partner made me the same lunch for years when I was teaching: Vecon and cucumber on cream crackers. I was so grateful that someone made my lunch I only told her a couple of years ago that I did not actually like it very much.
ReplyDeleteI had to google Vecon. From the jar, it looks like Vicks Vapour Rub.
DeleteI think of it as a more palatable version of marmite
DeleteAt Easter I cooked a Ham for the family dinner.Ham sandwiches for lunch until June.
ReplyDeletedid you cook an enitire pig, that's a lot of pieces to last until June
Delete"I may be boring but I'm never bored" - I really identify with this comment too. Our friends have travelled the world and had all sorts of adventures but I don't mind that we don't. I love my hobbies (music blogging, reading, crafting) and have no real desire to hang around airports in the sweltering heat. Each to his own.
ReplyDeleteAs it turns out I was at the cinema last night watching the Pet Shop Boys live Greatest Hits concert - A brilliant light show and all those great songs. For an encore, they sang West End Girls and then, the very last song of the night, Being Boring so it's been an earworm all day today!
I'm not sure what I think about this new business of having pop concerts on at the cinema. It could be just what I need... or it could be a nightmare if people start singing or clapping or thinking they're at a gig and chatting to their mates while constantly trying to stand in front of me and block my view...
DeleteIt worked really well and as it was screened in the small cinema attached to our local theatre no one behaved badly. It was tough watching all the concert-goers having such a great time whilst sitting sedately as you did want to clap along but still really enjoyable.
DeleteI loved this post for so many reasons, Rol, not least the mention of your Spider-Man lunch bag and Hulk lunch box. And consistent though the contents may be, they’re also colourful: flashes of purple, orange and brown. I vary my lunch every day but Mrs K would also be happy with same lunch (cheese & Marmite sarnies at work, cheese & mushroom Toastie when working at home, if you’re interested).
ReplyDeleteAs for travel…well, think of all the air miles that you’ve saved. And the British Isles is a beautiful place, full of wonder and variety.
And music? Whilst I’m maybe not yet ready for Huey Lewis, I am grateful to you (& CC & Mooz) for your pointers with The Boss. As suggested, I finally dipped my toe in the sea of Springsteen with Nebraska. I loved it! I then listened to Darkness… from start to finish and loved it! Third up was Born In The U.S.A. which I’m still not entirely won over by, but… thank you.
And lastly, your blog has never been and never could be boring, far from it!
My go-to after your first two choices would have been Born To Run rather than BITUSA. That's a difficult album to appreciate unless you were there, as it was a very calculated attempt to make a crossover pop record (and it succeeded). A lot of serious musos (and series Bruce fans) look down their nose at it as a result... but for those of us for whom it provided an introduction into the world of The Boss at a young age, we won't hear a word said against it.
DeleteBeing Boring is not something that could ever be said about you or this blog!!
ReplyDeleteThere's no such thing as bad or awful music....it really is down to particular tastes, and I'll never criticise anyone for having preferences that are much different from mine. I'm proud that TVV attracts so many guest contributions featuring singers/bands/musicians that I wouldn't normally pay any attention to - I've never turned down any guest contribution and don't envisage me ever doing so, unless the subject matter is highly offensive.
More power to your fingertips, young man.