Interests

Do you know what frustrates me? My friends frustrate me. It isn't that they are annoying or that they try to spite me, but that they just don't seem to care about me. When one of them tells me something is good, I generally show some strong interest. Ben likes Borderlands and I actively tried to level my character so that I could play with him. It was me spending my own efforts to play nicely with others. Then I got Bioshock 2 and GTA4. I played them some, but went back to TF2 and League of Legends rather quickly. You know why? Because I wanted t play with my friends. Ben got Prototype and then played that for a good chunk of time. He only went back to TF2 when the engineer update went live, and I don't know how long that's going to last. I can't play single player games anymore because I feel bad when my friends are playing multiplayer games and I'm not. I don't know why I should but I do.

Now, this is great. I play what my friends suggest (not always, but a good chunk of the time) and I enjoy playing with them. However, when I find something cool or fun, it is not often that they enjoy playing that with me. In fact, often they won't even try it. I've been noticing this more and more with my college friends, but it actually started with my brother. I was always disappointing that my brother was so presumptuous. Now, I couldn't help that he was my brother, so I would just go play on my own or with my friends. Now that I'm having the same issue with my friends, I don't know what to do. If my friends really just assume that they don't like what I suggest to them, then I don't think I want to hang out with them quite so much. And on top of that I like hanging out with people who share my interests.

It extends to more than just games too. In food, they will not try things I say I like. I don't mean that they've tried it before and I'm trying to make them give it a second shot. I mean that they've never tried it before, and they really aren't going to change their minds no matter what I say. This means I end up always going where they want to go, eating what they want to eat, and doing what they want to do. I wonder if I'll ever be able to enjoy myself when hanging out with them. I mean, even when we all decide we want to play TF2, we play on the maps they want to play on. Chelsea won't even try new maps now that she's found the ones she likes and Ben finds excuse in the fact that he's playing a map that's on my favorites list. I think they don't understand that I like variety. Just because some map is on my favorites list doesn't mean that's the map I want to play right now.

There's yet another thing that bothers me. They don't like variety. Once they've found something they like, they stick to it. I'm not saying that determinism is a bad thing, but try new things. That's how you might find something better than what you had before. So what if it's bad? Then you know not to try that next time. I certainly hope they aren't opposed to change. Wait, that's silly. They are opposed to change if they won't try anything new. This means that Joss Whedon will always be the best TV script writer ever. This is just not the case. He is very good and may be one of the best for a very long time, but nothing guarantees his position for all of time. Trying new things is incredibly important. That is how society advances. Would you all still be thrilled if televisions were still in black and white? Would the world be dandy if no one ever thought to make a video screen because we already have the radio? Be happy with what you have, but aspire to greater things. This aspiration is what improves. It makes things better.

Then the worst part is that my friends either push these few things they love onto me, or they don't even mention them. I want them mentioned, but I don't want to feel forced. What would happen if I don't share your love? Would you be upset? I know I would. However if you introduce them to me then I might share your love. I can't if you don't let me try. Unfortunately, I don't see my friend's thinking or feeling that way.

So there they are, set in their solid paths, which is by no means a bad thing. And I, though not of the most friendly nature, am the outgoing one. I'm the one that is pushed to try new things and to force my friends to share them if I even want them to try something new. Or if I myself want to try something new, since I'm always persuaded to their will.