Yes. Yup. Yep.

 

I was in a conversation with my friend and he asked me:

“How do you feel about people who say “yep?”

After about a second I said, “I hate it, it’s so indecisive.”

Which then turned into a conversation about the many different variations of saying “yes.” I feel that “yes” is the OG (Original Gangster for everyone else that’s not my 5 friends who actually use “OG”) of affirming something. Since the meaning of “yes” we’ve gotten grunts, yuups, head nods, fist pounds, looks, and about thirty other things to show that we mean, “yes.”

When dealing with someone over email or text message I think that the most commonly used terms of “yes” are “yep” and “yup.” The thing about not saying “yes” is that it can mean so much. The words “yup” and “yep” can seem so incredibly passive that it means there is probably some weight behind using them. Here is a quick little break down that I may have spent way too much time thinking about-

Using “Yes” -

Is there really a better word? As I mentioned above it’s the OG of affirming a situation. It gives comfort. I feel that if someone uses “yes” it’s basically a binding contract or at least should be viewed as one. When you get a “yes” you know what the person means.

Using “Yup” -

“Yup” is tricky. Imagine sending this email:

Hey man, I’m thinking about getting engaged, do you like my girlfriend?

Then receiving:

Yup.

That doesn’t exactly seem to reassuring. I actually have no idea why you’d email that to someone but you get the point, right? But on the flip side “yup” is such a bro term.

Hey man I’m going to get some beers for the game, you want any?

Yup!

I can just hear the person responding with “yup” being a doofus who is already drunk. “Yup” is very dependent on context to be honest, but it’s no “yes” and “yes” doesn’t rely on context, its definitive.

Using “Yep” -

The most passive of the bunch. I hate using and also receiving a “yep” because I feel like I always envision the person who is writing it. The only time I ever consciously have used “yep” it’s when I’m basically agreeing with something but I’m not happy about it, so I’m being passive and I want that person to know I’m not happy.

Using “yep” is basically saying, “I’m so annoyed with you.” Also, the word “yep” drastically changes depending on context and the relationship you have with someone.

Imagine if you’re dating someone and you send this:

Want to get dinner tonight?

And you receive:

Yep.

That response is basically saying that the other person has nothing better to do so they’ll get dinner with you.

OR:

Did you finish the presentation?

Yep.

That’s a “fuck you stop asking me about my work and focus on yourself” response.

Yes. Yup. Yep. And I’m currently not really taking into consideration the voice to voice interaction when you can hear people say these different words, once you enter that world it’s a whole new monster. To avoid any and all confusion we just need to stick with the OG. When asked a question, don’t confuse people… just go yes.

Side not to all of this: If you’re the person who just response to people with a “Y” then that’s a whole new ball of wax. That means you’re either a) lazy b) have a old phone and don’t want to type out the word c) not a fan of technology and could give a shit d) receive so many messages in a day that you can’t stand two other letters or e) think you’re so incredibly important.

Some of those reasons stated in the side note are understandable, but just try to stick with yes for the sake of humanity.

Inevitable Awkward Plane Transition

Boarding airplane…

Sit down…

The person sitting next to you takes a seat…

What happens here is a big moment. Do you engage in small talk, which somehow usually leads into longer talk? For the sake of argument, let say yes, you do. You’re chatting about the small irrelevant things like weather, time spent in whichever place you are, why you’re in the current place you’re in, etc…

You’re starting to get worried because you’re realizing that what you thought was small talk has turned into medium talk and you’ve just started to discuss your job. Shit, is this a full-fledged conversation? Yes, it is. It’s inevitable that you need to work yourself out of this conversation but you don’t know how, what’s a good segway?

This is an interesting moment because you know you could open up the conversation and make a larger investment but that’s not what flights are for; flights are for catching up on shit you were supposed to do on the ground.

ENTER: The inevitable awkward transition.

I hate this moment because I know for a fact that I (or anybody) cannot engage in a 3.5 hour airplane conversation and you need to end it. Deep down inside I hope that the other person is feeling the same thing so this conversation can be cut easily be cut short and not in awkward fashion. In my flying experience this is how you know you’ve entered that odd awkward zone:

- You’re talking and asking questions – everything seems fine.

- Stewardess comes on and tells you how to buckle your seatbelt and your conversation is sort of slowing.

- If you make a joke about the stewardess then you know you’re running out of conversation.

- Post stewardess there will be another push into conversation.

- Take off is happening and you’re starting to look out the window like you’re mentally wishing the town you’re leaving a “goodye” but wait… The person next to you brings up one more talking point.

- After the talking point you find yourself just staring at the seat in front of you – You’re in the zone.

You now need to decide how the remainder of the flight is going to go, are you going to close your eyes? Start reading your book? Open your computer? Either way it’s inevitable that your actions are saying “I’m done with this conversation.” There is no easy transition because you kind of want to be nice but at the same time, the conversation is over.

You transition away from talking to the person next to you and start doing whatever it is you want to do, with a former conversation just lingering.

I hate the awkward transition but is this just me? It can’t be, I see it happen all the time, but maybe I just over complicate what should be a mutual understanding that it’s time to stop talking.

If you’ve mastered this art then all the power to you and you should consider yourself a jedi in plane etiquette. By the way, this whole scenario can be null and void if you just don’t spark conversation… but wheres the fun in that?

The Gym People

I’ve seen it with my own 2 eyes. I’ve talked about it with my friend. I’m sure there are about 10 personalities that take up the gym, and you can spot them from a mile away. In my expert gym opinion this is who occupies the terrain:

The guy who sings real loud on the treadmill. Sometimes these people don’t even have headphones in.

The air boxer guy. This is pretty self explanatory, as these people are always air boxing with or without weights. They do it in every crevice of the gym, they sometimes wear heavy clothes, and oh, they have never actually thrown a punch in their entire life.

The slow mover. This guy or girl sits at a station and uses it for multiple exercises. If they are on a machine, lets say the bench press machine; they use it for the bench press, sit ups, push ups, and for general sitting.

The ripped guy in jeans. There is always that person who is wearing jeans and 90 percent of the time they’re ripped. It’s as if they’re saying, “I don’t care that much, I’ll wear my jeans.”

The cell phone person. 10 percent gym time 90 percent cell phone time.

The lounger. The guy who plays basketball and puts on his sandals and walks around talking to people.

The Dancer. The Dancer sometimes can be mixed in with the guy who sings loud on the treadmill. But the dancer is stealth – out of nowhere someone will look like a jabbawockey and busts a standing 360 ballet move.

The sweater. Sweat everywhere, no regard for anyone.

The Mirror Gazers. We all look at ourselves in the gym. But there are the people who LOOK at themselves in the gym. This is can range from the pre workout to the post. Also, this person can clog up some serious room simply because they’re flexing. You may catch them checking out their abs.

The over-analyzer. No work out, too much time analyzing people in the gym… I may fall here.

Us = Robots = Food = Health

Why don’t we know what’s in our food? We know some but not all. Every so often when I read or see something explaining the current state of our manufacturing and produce I get worried that we only eat “filler” substance. Filler meaning it gives us a taste that we know and love…IE: Cheetos, Doritos, McDonalds Burgers… Whatever the case may be.

I watched Food Inc. the other day and a question which I’ve heard before has been asked… Why does a Happy Meal cost less than Broccoli or Asparagus. How is it possible that a vegetable or fruit which can be planted is more than Hamburger.

Conspiracy time!!!

We as a society have been cornered into a Market by big business and Corporations. The larger corporations keep pumping this garbage in our body because they need us to be their robots. They need us to get sick so we can start using antibiotics to buy from large pharmaceutical companies… They need us to love the taste of filler meat so we can keep pushing money into a already powerful company. They need us and they control us, in my mind it’s Gordon Gekko at the head of the Food Industry.

The majority doesn’t pay attention to what’s in their meat, what fertilizer was used, or where something comes from. We eat eat and eat. Why do we eat fast food? Because we can’t afford the “more expensive” food. Why don’t they put a higher tax on foods that are known to cause diabetes or obesity? And why is it you can generally tell if a person is wealthy or not depending on their weight.

$$$ = Healthy Living

The only solution is to unite and demand better knowledge and food…. I’m rambling.

Enjoy Dinner!