A ‘Moment of Insanity’
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Note from the proprietor: perhaps you’ve seen me use the term before, but I thought it might be a good idea to take a moment and explain what I mean by it.
I had an uncle who, whenever he did something silly or out-of-character (and usually it was some action that would come back and bite him in the butt), he always used to just sigh and say, “Well, I guess that was my ‘moment of insanity’ for the day!”
For example, one time a relatively new employee (my uncle ran a machine shop) asked him to co-sign a large personal check, which he did without batting an eye. Naturally, the next day the man was nowhere to be found, and my uncle got stuck for the money!
I was astounded when he told me about it, and asked why an otherwise smart businessman like himself would ever do such a goofy thing, to which he sadly replied, “It was just a ‘moment of insanity’”.
Have you ever experienced a “moment of insanity”? (And let’s hope this isn’t another one of those dreaded “rhetorical questions”!) I’m talking about those times when, for no apparent reason, you do something which, during normal periods of lucidity, you would never do. (And if you followed all that, congratulations, you just had yours for the day!)
It’s like the time, guys, you put that uncovered pen in your pocket and ended up with a big honkin’ ink spot on your favorite shirt (yep, happed to me once – red ink on a blue shirt). Or ladies, the ONE TIME you forgot to check your pantyhose and ended up displaying your nether regions to the entire office. Or something similar.
The fact is everybody has them. It was my uncle’s theory they just happened once a day. Sadly, I believe there are those of us who may be, uh, blessed more than others.
So don’t worry about it too much; it happens. Especially in the Middle Zone (in fact, it’s one of the signs that you’re in the Zone!) Fortunately, some folks happen to be asleep when their moment happens. Unfortunately, that is not always the case for the rest of us.
Dare I ask? Has it ever happened to you?
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15 responses so far
Middle Zone Musings is a comfortable place to stop, have a cup of coffee and exchange ideas, big or small, with applications in the real world. I don't ask for much, just a bit of your brain every now and then. Have a seat, take a load off, and relax...
Where to start? - there’s so many! Like the time I reached across the restaurant table at a seminar to shake the lady’s hand, only to knock my full glass of coke into her oysters…
… or the time I drove 45 minutes to a university class, rushed in, sat down, looked at my feet and noticed I’d put on sneakers from different pairs…
… shall I go on? This is doing wonders for my self-esteem and reputation.
Don’t stop now, Pete! I’m takin’ notes for future posts…
Looks like I’m the only one brave enough (or dumb enough) to confess. Perhaps the confession itself was today’s moment of insanity for me!
There was that time I bought a bottle of Pepsi to drink on the train on the way home. I drank some, but didn’t seal the bottle properly, and before I knew it I was sitting in my own Pepsi.
I ended up sitting in my own Pepsi all the way home!
Gee, Markk, that almost sounds like a song title:
Sittin’… in my own Pepsi…
All… the way home… la-da-da-le-da… (guitar riff)
Million seller, at least!
Pete, you’re a brave soul! I lost track of all the moments I’ve had. Too depressing, anyway.
Okay - I’ll ‘fess up too. The one I remember most clearly (out of hundreds) happened many, many years ago but my brother has never let me forget it. I was trying to impress him and the rest of the family with my barbecue cooking talents - something ALL Australian males need to do as a rite of passage or whatever.
The firewood wasn’t burning to my satisfaction so I thought I’d give it a helping hand. I should have used the kerosene but somehow picked up the lawn mower fuel can instead. The resulting dramatic “Whump” left my eyebrows a little less bushy than before.
And my brother has never let me forget it.
Trevor, welcome to the Middle Zone!
Yep, been there too. Except it was black powder I had taken out of some fireworks, and I was poking it with a lit match - not a smart combination for a 10-year-old!
And now here we are, older (luckily) and wiser (presumably), right? Uh, right?
I once went to a coin store to sell them a collectable dime (that I originally got for $10) and buy other collectable dimes (Mercury dimes). Well, I bought the Mercury dimes, then there was this conversation:
Me: “What will you give me for this dime?”
Store: “Well, how about I just take that dime.”
Me: “Okay.” *hand over dime, leave store*
Then I realized what I just did and stared into space for a while.
Sam, once again, with feeling: Welcome to the Middle Zone, my friend!
The sad thing is, those are usually the moments you most wish you could take back…
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