Sayings I hate, Part 2

"Isn't that a little obsessive?"

To be more accurate, I hate that phrase when it is the response to my statement that I don't consume grains. 

To be fair, for a while I wondered if these people were onto something.  Maybe life would be simpler if I didn't hold such high standards for doing what I was convinced was best.  I tried it for a couple of weeks and they turned out to be the most expensive weeks of my life:

First, I got tired of filling the tank for my exotic saltwater fish* with fresh water that had been dechlorinated and purified.  In fact, it was much easier to just fill the tank with leftover bottles of Diet Coke** that I had quit drinking.  I figured it was a good way to use them up and not let them go to waste.  Imagine my horror when all my tropical fish died in a bath of carbonated water and Aspartame!  Dangit!

So I decided I'd jump in my big yellow truck to go get some fish to replace the dead ones, but the truck was almost out of gas.  I was in a hurry so I just filled it up with water from the hose by the driveway.  I only made it to the end of the alley before the truck quit running and wouldn't start!

All those years of being obsessive about putting only gasoline in my truck might have been the best plan after all, but I didn't want to stop my experiment too early.  I pushed the truck back to the house planning to have it towed to the dealer to have the tank drained and lines flushed to get it back in working order.  By the time I got home though, I was incredibly sore from pushing (it's a big truck) so I decided to take a few Advil*** for my sore muscles.

I opened our medicine cabinet but couldn't find the Advil anywhere!  Assuming my wife must have taken them, I looked at what else might be available.  I certainly wasn't going to be obsessive about finding a particular drug!  Finally, I just took a few swigs of children's cough syrup, a couple of old antibiotics that someone hadn't finished, and a few of Aerial's (my Portugese Water Dog) hormone pills.

When I woke back up 3 days later I reconsidered how the little details count. 

Fact is, exotic saltwater fish don't live long on diet coke.  My truck won't run on water...or diesel...or propane.  It runs well on 89 or higher octane unleaded gasoline. 

Interestingly enough, my body runs MUCH better without grains.  The effects aren't as acute or immediate as they are when I try to use water in place of gasoline, but they exist.  And I have a basis for thinking that this is the case that is not only based on science, but also confirmed by experience.

Yet the same people who would tell me I'm obsessive for not eating grains would tell me I'm an idiot for putting water in my gas tank.  So, just like I did on my last "Sayings I hate" I'm going to translate this idiotic saying:  "I don't want to investigate the details to see if your choice has validity, especially since I would be faced with what I consider a difficult choice if I come to the same realization as you.  Instead I will avoid awareness of my own ignorance by insulting your knowledge-based choice."

There you have it.

*I don't really own exotic fish.
**I don't drink diet coke...well, maybe 2 or 3 a year when the mood strikes me.
***I don't take Advil if I'm sore.  I either rest, stretch, or workout more.