Think #6

Salt and pepper shakers

• The other day, I was sitting at the dinner table eating mac and cheese (unfortunately, not the blond TikTok girl’s recipe) when I noticed the salt and pepper shakers. I’d always known that each shaker had a different amount of holes, but I wasn’t sure if everyone puts salt in the shaker with fewer holes.
• According to various sources on Google, what goes in each shaker can vary by country. In the US and UK, salt goes in the shaker with fewer holes, because apparently people in these countries are very concerned about moderating their salt intake. The prevalence of hypertension in the US suggests otherwise.
• In addition, salt is uniformly shaped with smaller, heavier granules, while pepper flakes are lighter and irregularly shaped, making it more difficult for them to flow freely. It makes sense to put pepper in the shaker with more holes to be released from.

Jon Bellion

• What a talented guy. He’s made two albums and four mixtapes, as well as written and produced songs for Justin Bieber, Eminem, Maroon 5, and a whole bunch of other well-known artists. Not only does he have a great voice, but he can also rap respectably. His metaphors and wordplay are intelligent and beautiful.
• I was introduced to Jon Bellion’s music by my friend Brurrito’s brother, who played “Woke the F*ck Up” in our college dorm. The sound effects in the chorus were so unexpected that I was immediately hooked. I added his entire 2014 mixtape, The Definition, to my lone Spotify playlist (back then), and listened to it over and over.
• At one point, he expressed interest in scoring for a Pixar movie, but it seems like he never found the opportunity. Which sucks, because I’m sure he would do an incredible job.

Pity

• This is an interesting emotion. Being on the giving end of it doesn’t seem like a huge deal- “I feel sorry for so-and-so.” Being on the receiving end, though, can stir up mixed feelings, at least in my experience. There are situations in which I don’t mind being pitied, like having a terrible day at work. There are other situations where being pitied makes me angry, like being talked over or losing to someone.
• What it boils down to is this: if, in a particular scenario, things that happened were out of my control, I’ll accept people’s pity. If I think I could have done better but didn’t, I don’t want pity. Don’t feel sorry for me because I didn’t do my best for whatever reason. Keep those phony “Bless your heart”s far away. Holden Caulfield would probably approve.