Who's actually the smartest person in the room?

Imagine spending your entire life feeling like everyone else in the room is just... fundamentally smarter than you.
It’s honestly such garbage.

I went for a swim at Central Park the other day, and I mean, I almost drowned. I still don't really know how to swim properly, but, well, I didn't die. I made it back to the edge.

I’m always that guy. The one who doesn't know what's going on. The one who isn't going to screw you over or mess with your life because, well, I'm just an idiot.
I'm stupid.
I had to buy my own driver's license, my own phone, my own car... nothing was handed to me. My uncle didn't give me a dime, and he still wonders about me today—he thinks I'm a lost cause, wondering how someone like me can actually manage anything.

Am I just dumb? Because nobody bought me a phone. Nobody guaranteed me love. No one ever really cared about my feelings, either.

Sometimes I feel this surge of hatred for all of you, but I really don't want to hate you.
I just want to be one of you, but it’s just not happening...

I carry this anger inside me, and it's all because of some jerk who wants to tell me where I belong.

There are moments when I just want to scream that this world is my place and I should be the one making the rules.
But I don't want to become that kind of person, because then I'd just be one of them. Though, maybe my truth is the only reality that matters.

Maybe everyone else should just submit to my truth, instead of me having to bend to theirs...

Man, there is just so much negativity packed into every single sentence here

Honestly, stop letting other people drain your energy
Why even stress about someone else being able to swim when you can't? Or why worry if they got a new iPhone while you had to save up and buy yours yourself? It’s all just noise... life is weird like that
Look, I don't know how to fly a plane, and I'm definitely not planning on being an astronaut...
Being a pilot was never my dream, and traveling to space wasn't exactly on my bucket list either—just some crazy thing I never cared for... some people think it's cool to buy a one-way ticket, but if you ask me, those folks aren't playing with a full deck. Like, why would I head to Mars just to die there?😁 What's the reason? Honestly, I have no clue. I'll give it some thought once I get back... oh wait, I'm never coming back
I don't envy them one bit!
When I wanted a new phone, I bought it myself. And if I ever decide to smash it against a wall, well, I did it—done and dusted. But that kid over there? He can't even throw his phone because his dad won't buy him a replacement...

Could you maybe clarify those "verses" of yours? I'm trying to figure out what the poet is actually getting at
To me, you just sound lonely, abandoned, or maybe just left to your own devices, and frankly, it sounds exhausting. Am I wrong?

I had this little moment of grace recently... there was this stray cat, just meowing at me, and I ended up taking him in and feeding him. It felt good, finally being able to actually help someone, I guess.
I think I was just satisfying my own need for control, you know? Helping out a cat like that.
It sort of fed that need for power I have.
Just by taking that cat in and giving him everything I possibly could.

I wonder if that's how I was raised—as the kind of person who gives everything away without even thinking about themselves..?

Aha
The brain is basically just a massive collection of tiny little modules that aren't smart on their own—you couldn't say any single one of them can actually "think." But once you get all those modules
wired together, some kind of intelligence starts to emerge from the network...

You're my hero

Andrew Castillo10 said:Man, there is just so much negativity packed into every single sentence here

Honestly, stop letting other people drain your energy
Why even stress about someone else being able to swim when you can't? Or why worry if they got a new iPhone while you had to save up and buy yours yourself? It’s all just noise... life is weird like that
Look, I don't know how to fly a plane, and I'm definitely not planning on being an astronaut...
Being a pilot was never my dream, and traveling to space wasn't exactly on my bucket list either—just some crazy thing I never cared for... some people think it's cool to buy a one-way ticket, but if you ask me, those folks aren't playing with a full deck. Like, why would I head to Mars just to die there?😁 What's the reason? Honestly, I have no clue. I'll give it some thought once I get back... oh wait, I'm never coming back
I don't envy them one bit!
When I wanted a new phone, I bought it myself. And if I ever decide to smash it against a wall, well, I did it—done and dusted. But that kid over there? He can't even throw his phone because his dad won't buy him a replacement...

Could you maybe clarify those "verses" of yours? I'm trying to figure out what the poet is actually getting at
To me, you just sound lonely, abandoned, or maybe just left to your own devices, and frankly, it sounds exhausting. Am I wrong?

Anyway, what I’m actually curious about is how he plans to improve those swimming—well, let's call them "skills"—you know? See what this whole crowd has done to me?

Andrew Castillo10 said:Man, there is just so much negativity packed into every single sentence here

Honestly, stop letting other people drain your energy
Why even stress about someone else being able to swim when you can't? Or why worry if they got a new iPhone while you had to save up and buy yours yourself? It’s all just noise... life is weird like that
Look, I don't know how to fly a plane, and I'm definitely not planning on being an astronaut...
Being a pilot was never my dream, and traveling to space wasn't exactly on my bucket list either—just some crazy thing I never cared for... some people think it's cool to buy a one-way ticket, but if you ask me, those folks aren't playing with a full deck. Like, why would I head to Mars just to die there?😁 What's the reason? Honestly, I have no clue. I'll give it some thought once I get back... oh wait, I'm never coming back
I don't envy them one bit!
When I wanted a new phone, I bought it myself. And if I ever decide to smash it against a wall, well, I did it—done and dusted. But that kid over there? He can't even throw his phone because his dad won't buy him a replacement...

Could you maybe clarify those "verses" of yours? I'm trying to figure out what the poet is actually getting at
To me, you just sound lonely, abandoned, or maybe just left to your own devices, and frankly, it sounds exhausting. Am I wrong?

I could take the route of just ignoring everything, but I won't. Does that make me unhappy? Yeah, probably.
But I'm out here looking for happiness because I feel like I can actually achieve it, so it wouldn't be so bad, I guess.
If I asked you, like, "Hey, do you want the chance to run at 40 miles per hour?" would you take it? Probably not, right? Because you know there's a risk involved. And that's the thing—what do you want? Less risk? That's how I feel too, but how do you actually get there?
Less risk and being happy?

Andrew Castillo10 said:Man, there is just so much negativity packed into every single sentence here

Honestly, stop letting other people drain your energy
Why even stress about someone else being able to swim when you can't? Or why worry if they got a new iPhone while you had to save up and buy yours yourself? It’s all just noise... life is weird like that
Look, I don't know how to fly a plane, and I'm definitely not planning on being an astronaut...
Being a pilot was never my dream, and traveling to space wasn't exactly on my bucket list either—just some crazy thing I never cared for... some people think it's cool to buy a one-way ticket, but if you ask me, those folks aren't playing with a full deck. Like, why would I head to Mars just to die there?😁 What's the reason? Honestly, I have no clue. I'll give it some thought once I get back... oh wait, I'm never coming back
I don't envy them one bit!
When I wanted a new phone, I bought it myself. And if I ever decide to smash it against a wall, well, I did it—done and dusted. But that kid over there? He can't even throw his phone because his dad won't buy him a replacement...

Could you maybe clarify those "verses" of yours? I'm trying to figure out what the poet is actually getting at
To me, you just sound lonely, abandoned, or maybe just left to your own devices, and frankly, it sounds exhausting. Am I wrong?

It's not just that I do everything by myself. It's not even the loneliness or the feeling of being deserted. It's the fact that I have to go through everything entirely on my own. That's what loneliness and abandonment really mean to me.

And even if you offered to be my companion in theory, I'd probably turn you down one way or another. Because the only way I really understand is being alone.

Morgan Fox6 said:Anyway, what I’m actually curious about is how he plans to improve those swimming—well, let's call them "skills"—you know? See what this whole crowd has done to me?

I could take the route of just ignoring everything, but I won't. Does that make me unhappy? Yeah, probably.
But I'm out here looking for happiness because I feel like I can actually achieve it, so it wouldn't be so bad, I guess.
If I asked you, like, "Hey, do you want the chance to run at 40 miles per hour?" would you take it? Probably not, right? Because you know there's a risk involved. And that's the thing—what do you want? Less risk? That's how I feel too, but how do you actually get there?
Less risk and being happy?

It's not just that I do everything by myself. It's not even the loneliness or the feeling of being deserted. It's the fact that I have to go through everything entirely on my own. That's what loneliness and abandonment really mean to me.

And even if you offered to be my companion in theory, I'd probably turn you down one way or another. Because the only way I really understand is being alone.

Then just learn how to swim, man! Just go out there and practice! What’s holding you back? Or just learn how to stay afloat!!
So basically, "I have to face everything alone" just means you're totally on your own and lonely.
And if you aren't willing to let anyone in, doesn't that mean you're perfectly fine being solo???

Andrew Castillo10 said:Aha
The brain is basically just a massive collection of tiny little modules that aren't smart on their own—you couldn't say any single one of them can actually "think." But once you get all those modules
wired together, some kind of intelligence starts to emerge from the network...

You're my hero

Well, I guess if I'm supposed to be an idol, you should probably help me work on my swimming skills then.
I mean, there has to be some kind of point to all this idolizing stuff, right? Because if there isn't, what's even the point of doing it? It feels kind of useless, I guess.

I really hope that wasn't sarcasm, because honestly, I just don't have the energy for that kind of nonsense.
Isn't it just... weird, being like that?

Andrew Castillo10 said:Then just learn how to swim, man! Just go out there and practice! What’s holding you back? Or just learn how to stay afloat!!
So basically, "I have to face everything alone" just means you're totally on your own and lonely.
And if you aren't willing to let anyone in, doesn't that mean you're perfectly fine being solo???

I almost drowned, honestly, which is why I feel like I need someone by my side... but I've just been conditioned to handle everything solo.
And is that really my downfall? Just because I come with all these little quirks and hang-ups? Is that my death sentence?

So, getting back to what we were actually talking about... why does everyone look down their noses at used goods?
It’s this weird psychological thing, I guess, where people feel like they have to demand so much respect for stuff that isn't new.
But maybe it's because that gear was originally owned by the heavy hitters—you know, those top-tier brands—and that's why it feels different.
Using second-hand stuff just kind of brings you down, I don't know.