So in a way, it's kinda been an ingrained pavlovian response to try things by this point...what if I miss something wonderful because I was simply prejudiced against a pairing? It's like the idea that I might never meet a soulmate simply because he is the wrong race...or the wrong gender.
Hmmm. I can see what you're saying -- you fear, in some sense, missing some possibly wonderful experience because you choose to limit yourself. For me I think this may boil down to personal goals? If your goal is to keep yourself open to every possible experience for fear of missing something wonderful (at the risk of personal harm, in a reading sort of way), then reading everything possible is one way to do that, and it's up to the individual to balance the possible gain against the possible loss. However, I think it's possible to remain open to new possibilities without feeling the need to try everything that comes down the pike. I guess it's not an either/or sort of thing, for me. I quite happily limit in some areas, not in others -- as I suspect you do, too. And ultimately, I think holding oneself open, and vulnerable, to possibility, is a very different thing than indiscriminately holding oneself open to everything on the off chance that the next thing might be the Next Great Thing -- if that makes sense. ie, having an open mind isn't having no mind at all (which I'm not suggesting is what you're saying). So, I guess I understand that fear, but the undertones I'm getting (which may very well be reflections of my own buttons) are more like "I should be trying everything, for fear I might miss something." It's one thing to meet all the different possible soulmates, talk with them, look them over and see if anything intrigues you to get to know them further; it's another to jump in the sack with each one that comes along on the off chance that this one might be The One.
There's also what laizeohbeets' pointed out in that sometimes it seems almost unfair or elistist if you heavily 'ship. For me, 'shipping always brings to mind fangirls who scream "OTP" and shut down all other pairings. And then again you have the prejudice thing going...and I'm prejudiced against prejudice. ;)\
What I saw her say is that she's never thought someone was unfair or elitist for not liking a particular ship. She said basically what I was trying to say: I read what I like, because that's what I like, and something someone else likes may be wonderful, but if it's not what I like, or what I want, it's not going to be what I want to read, and I don't see how that's wrong, or unfair, or whatever, because I can't wrap my head around this implied obligation to keep myself so open that having preferences or tastes and using them discerningly to provide for my own entertainment and edification is somehow wrong.
I don't think it's elitist to have preferences, or to express them. It's perhaps in poor taste to then continue with "and if you disagree with me, or have a different opinion, you're below me." That's elitist, and it happens. But simply having the preferences and acting on them? That's just self-knowledge, to me.
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Hmmm. I can see what you're saying -- you fear, in some sense, missing some possibly wonderful experience because you choose to limit yourself. For me I think this may boil down to personal goals? If your goal is to keep yourself open to every possible experience for fear of missing something wonderful (at the risk of personal harm, in a reading sort of way), then reading everything possible is one way to do that, and it's up to the individual to balance the possible gain against the possible loss. However, I think it's possible to remain open to new possibilities without feeling the need to try everything that comes down the pike. I guess it's not an either/or sort of thing, for me. I quite happily limit in some areas, not in others -- as I suspect you do, too. And ultimately, I think holding oneself open, and vulnerable, to possibility, is a very different thing than indiscriminately holding oneself open to everything on the off chance that the next thing might be the Next Great Thing -- if that makes sense. ie, having an open mind isn't having no mind at all (which I'm not suggesting is what you're saying). So, I guess I understand that fear, but the undertones I'm getting (which may very well be reflections of my own buttons) are more like "I should be trying everything, for fear I might miss something." It's one thing to meet all the different possible soulmates, talk with them, look them over and see if anything intrigues you to get to know them further; it's another to jump in the sack with each one that comes along on the off chance that this one might be The One.
There's also what laizeohbeets' pointed out in that sometimes it seems almost unfair or elistist if you heavily 'ship. For me, 'shipping always brings to mind fangirls who scream "OTP" and shut down all other pairings. And then again you have the prejudice thing going...and I'm prejudiced against prejudice. ;)\
What I saw her say is that she's never thought someone was unfair or elitist for not liking a particular ship. She said basically what I was trying to say: I read what I like, because that's what I like, and something someone else likes may be wonderful, but if it's not what I like, or what I want, it's not going to be what I want to read, and I don't see how that's wrong, or unfair, or whatever, because I can't wrap my head around this implied obligation to keep myself so open that having preferences or tastes and using them discerningly to provide for my own entertainment and edification is somehow wrong.
I don't think it's elitist to have preferences, or to express them. It's perhaps in poor taste to then continue with "and if you disagree with me, or have a different opinion, you're below me." That's elitist, and it happens. But simply having the preferences and acting on them? That's just self-knowledge, to me.