Today, I remembered an interaction I had with an old friend.

She was feeling a bit down on herself at the time, maybe, and she was talking about what aspirations she had, the things she wanted to do with her life, and what I was going to do with my life. This was near the end of high-school. Then, I was saying that I wanted to be a scientist and she was a little lost, but she wanted to be an artist---a fashion designer, specifically. She didn't know it, as I didn't really talk about it---I still don't, actually---but I was feeling rather down myself; I think it's normal, at that time in a young person's life. I was feeling like everything was meaningless, that I wasn't gonna make anything of myself, and that I didn't really love what I was doing. This is all still true, by the way, but I've more or less come up with some plans to find myself, or rather, build myself a great life, so I'm feeling better. Anyway, she said something about how what I was doing was great, and her aspirations were worthless. As in, being an artist wasn't something worth aspiring to and that what I wanted to do was a much greater and worthier ambition.

That really got me going. I'm a very effusive and quite person, so I didn't really scream at her or anything, but I was offended and a little upset. I think artists are amazing! There's that great saying, paraphrasing: we need science to live, but we live for art. It's something like that. It's not that I don't value science, I do, a lot, but I think art is so much more amazing. At the time, I told her something along the lines of "How many scientists can you name? Sure, there are the few great ones that history remembers, but how many artists can you name? Artists touch people, they get remembered, scientists don't." That was really terrible... I cringed, even at the time, and then she said something terrible like "You're actually pretty cool, aren't you?" and I think our relationship actually improved significantly after that point. I think she thought I was a little arrogant and stuck-up, or something. The point is, however, that I don't regret saying it. My opinion has shifted a little---I'm not as much of a doomer, for one---but the spirit of the message remains. I'm really happy I said that.

She has a café now, I think. She did try to be a designer, but failed. That's OK, though, I think she's doing well for herself.

Another thing, I'm not sure if I heard this today or yesterday, though to be fair I've heard it many times before anyway, but it's that the cringiest thing ever is to call something cringe. I don't think that's true at all, but I get the meaning. I think there's something to that.

I met with an old friend today, I think that's why I'm feeling so weird. It's a good kind of weird, though.

And with that, I'm out.