I find that I get angry a lot. Some of my favorite places to get angry are waiting in line (any line) and driving in traffic. The traffic one I call “Asphalt Atheism.”

Also, I find that I get angry reading blogs and Twitter feeds.

As much as I want to blame the bloggers, I have to take responsibility for my anger. After all, I cannot imagine that some guy or gal thought of me when they wrote their blog. Geeze, how narcissistic am I to think that they spent all that time just trying to tick me off?

Opinions are opinions, not facts. They can be well reasoned, thought provoking, and insightful, but that doesn’t make them true or at least they don’t have to be true about me. Still, I get a bit ticked off because I take this stuff personally.

I know, I know I just said that they don’t think of me (heck, I’m pretty sure they have no clue I am alive), but I am a narcissist, and these things always involve me. In order to deal with my bloganger, I have two choices: 1) I can get mad at them. 2) I can look at myself.

Most of the time I pick option two. Okay, I don’t really pick option two. I pick option 1 and drift to option 2. I don’t know that I ever start with option two. Regardless of where I start, I end up in the right place. That’s good enough for me.

Anyway, when I get upset, I have a couple of friends I trust to give it to me straight. When some post gets under my skin, they are available to help me process the emotions and thoughts that come up from these writers. It is far more helpful than the natural inclination to be angry at them and dismiss them out of hand.

These are bright people. They have great thoughts. I need to read them and grow from them. I do not need to agree with them or even like most of the stuff they write.

How boring would that be if all I did was read people with whom I agree? Yikes! Iron sharpens iron because of friction. No friction, no sharpness…lower blood pressure and less calling fire down from heaven, but no sharpness.

Dear bloggers, I’m on to you. Plot as you may to get under my skin, I am only going to grow from your constant prodding.

Also, I apologize for the things I have said about you, or will say, when I read your posts. Those pesky option 1 days can be rather colorful. Please be patient with me.  I’m getting better, honest.

Oh, and keep writing.