Tuesday 19 September 2000

Pic of the day: I thought all my headphones were broken, but then I found this one on my bedroom, where it has been lying for at least five years, probably more, a relic from some long forgotten fad. Because I am a ...

Drooling fadboy!

My mode of operations is fads. There are very few really constant things in my life. Oh, there are a few. But usually, there is at least 1 fad going on at any given time. It is probably not hard for you people to guess, either. So right about now, I'm sooo hooked on online comics. Just today I wrote the most pathetic drooling fanboy post on the Class Menagerie message board. You don't get much further down than "I want to bear your T-shirt!"

Not to mention running around with earphones on in order to emulate an anthropomorphized kangaroo. (But a very cute and fluffy kangaroo.)

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Anyway, my tendency to faddishness is a rather important consideration in other aspects too. It means that whenever I consider making some investment, I know that I could also just wait two weeks. For instance, a few times each year I find out that it would be just a great idea to buy an exercise bike. You know the ones that don't take you anywhere, you just sit and bike and there's some kind of friction wheels making resistance. I've been in the shops and looked at them, and they get more and more advanced. You can now get them with variable resistance, simulating various terrain. Heh.

I really consider buying one when the winter approaches. Instead of turning up the heat, I could just hop on my bike and produce my own heat. Since I eat anyway, it would not really cost anything (once the bike was paid, that is) and it would presumably be good for my health. The only real problem is that it would just last a few days. Then the fad would be gone, and the bike would just stand there as a monument to my faddishness. (Though I suppose I would start again 3-4 times a year.)

Incidentally, I could probably get the same health benefits by playing the steps on one of my chairs. Stepping up, stepping down, stepping up, stepping down. It is free, and it fairly quickly gets the heat back in a chilly body. The only problem might be the dust, but I did buy an air filter last year (not fad, pneumonia). The problem with jumping up and down on chairs is that it is not at all faddish. So I usually don't.

Usually my fads are completely out of sync with the rest of the world. I guess there are those who would claim that it's not really a fad at all unless it's part of the greater culture. Well, I did jump on the mobile phone fad when that was building up, and the Internet fad - except I've continued to use Internet - but I haven't joined the WAP fad. There is definitely a WAP fad here in Norway. (I don't think the USA has come that far yet.) And I missed the palm computer fad - though I had hand-held computers long before it became faddish.

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I don't have the faintest idea what my next fad will be, if any. If any? Well, if I survive and remain conscious for two more weeks, it is practically certain that I will turn to something new. I just hope it won't be something expensive or horribly humiliating.

I have the equipment for several recurring fads at home - remember, I do not throw away things - so there is a fair chance I may get away with little or no expenses. An MP3-fad, for instance, would only eat up time and somewhat moderate online connection costs. Unless I cave in and buy a portable MP3 player. Some of them are just cute ... or KYOOT, as it is spelled now. And you can also get mobile phones with MP3 player built in, and headphones and a mike too. Of course, I don't have anyone to phone, but they are KYOOT...

At least I should have a good chance of resisting a clothes fad now. I'm starting to fit some clothes I haven't used in years, I think. Today as I took a walk, I had the most unusual problem that my trousers were nearly falling off me despite my belt being tightened to the last mark. (I guess I could take some sharp object and make a new hole, but I'm sure I have other belts from earlier belt fads.) Actually I think my weight has stabilized now, unless something dramatic happens. Another sickness, a wild strike among shop workers, or a dieting fad... (Now that would be something entirely new!)

At least I'm not infected by this Olympic fad. I find it everywhere, not just among Australians. If I had a TV, I just might have been infected. But on the Net, it is simply too easy to just click elsewhere. Kangaroo or no kangaroo.