My shoulder

My shoulder
Originally uploaded by FuzzyGamer.

See the little red devil?

Well, do you?

It's not there, but there's a reason for that. Sure, I'm an atheist, but does that really mean that I don't believe that there is some "invisible" part of us telling us to stir up trouble?

See, according to the great and wonderful TV show "House, MD" (commonly known as "House", but that's the little devil on the other side telling me to be anal about little things), we can't control our emotions but we sure as hell can control our actions as a response to those emotions (Season 2, Episode 6 - "Spin").

So, some days there's a little red guy on my shoulder. Not right now, but sometimes. Like when blood is pounding inside my head, the lights are burning my retinas out and I can hear every single tick of the clock, whirl of the fan and my dog's breathing. Then, point me at yet another source of annoyance, and that little red guy on my shoulder is urging me to go postal: scream, kick, punch, break vases and jump off the nearest overpass. Now here's the good part. I punch that little guy in the mouth and he shuts up for a few minutes. My emotions are not mine to control. Not conciously. But my actions sure are. And that feeling of control is pretty nifty. Sorta like a shot of adrenaline. There's also the knowledge that I'm not venting my anger on someone who doesn't deserve it and just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

I suppose lots of people out there, teachers and the PR workers most of all, have honed this skill to perfection. I'm very far from perfect. So it's taking me a while.
On the other hand, if you're the kind of person who snaps at other people, who unleashes that "dark" side (hey, no reason this serious post can't be geeky and goofy), maybe you should think twice next time. If you can. Some people are just slaves to their temperament. I imagine most of the prison population would fit this profile.