About Absurdity

Post 107:

            I’ve taken a bit of respite the last few days. Hope you lot will indulge the temporary dereliction of duty. Sometimes you need a breather, and hey, for a lazy bum, I work pretty hard.

            Today the idea of absurdity wedged its way into my head. That’s how it is most of the time—a little grain will plant itself inside my noggin and kind of just make its own space.

            Absurdity is all over the place. I’m on the internet probably more than most people, so I can attest, there is some serious absurdity coming at us at an incessant clip. I will not comment on who is absurd and who isn’t; pretty sure I’ve done yeoman’s work at not adding to the back and forth that is the political climate of this country. In fact, in 107 blog posts I challenge you to find a political viewpoint of any kind.

            I’m gonna do a tiny back pat for this. I have my opinions, God knows. But come on, there’s enough of the guy saying yay and the gal saying nay and vice-versa. Then there’s the voice of reason telling everyone to get along and come together. That’s not me either. I say be as annoying or humble or subtle as you desire. It’s a free freaking country, mostly.

            So the world can be absurd. This is one of the reasons for fiction. Fiction, no matter how grittily told or realistically shot, always has something of the absurd. Movies and TV brag about being realistic, but you know, absurdity is there. This might be the reason fiction is so intoxicating. We can accept the absurd from something that isn’t real; it’s only natural, and also, it makes a kind of sense that the world around us never can. There’s reason to the ridiculous, method to the madness.

            Not new ground. But there are more questions that issue forth. How absurd is too absurd? Obviously, a story can be as off the chain or down to earth as the creator wants, and there is no right answer. I tend to lean into the absurd, kind of a self-effacing type of mockery of the craft itself.

            In the end, I’m a guy writing things that never happened. That’s pretty absurd. But so is reality. I don’t know what to tell you except expect to accept the absurd things in life—they’re coming whether you do or not.

            As far as fiction, hey, you pick it. No reason for me or anyone else to tell you what’s good or real or too absurd. Life takes a whole heap of choices from us. Hold fast to the ones you still get to make. To absurdity and beyond. See you after.