Obsess or go home
 |
| Herald Sun June 14, 1964 |
Rather than by the
passing of my birthday each year, stages of my life are defined instead by
obsessions. I guess I have an obsessive personality. Actually I don’t guess, I
HAVE an obsessive personality. I either fiercely love or desperately hate.
Romanticists would call this being ‘passionate’ but in reality it’s all-consuming.
I like a pair of shoes? They invade my every thought. I picture my life as
being better if I owned them. How I would be able to walk with even more
confidence, which I really don’t need. They’re there in my mind when I’m taking
a shower, when I’m doing an exam. They’re there when I close my eyes at night – to the point where
I HAVE to buy them to maintain my own sanity. I can’t simply ‘like’ a band, a
TV show, a colour or a pair of shoes.
Random: ‘I kinda
like this song’
Me: YOU DO!! Oh my
god let me introduce you to the band. There is a whole fandom out there that
you don’t even know about. And you should listen to this song on their 3rd
album and pause at 1:52 cause that part is amazing, but you’ve got to listen
through headphones, ok. It’s not their greatest song, but you’ve got to listen
to this entire mixed tape I made you uninterrupted because that’s how I intended
it. Trust me, you’re going to love it.
My obsessions over my life include (but are not limited to);
Harry Potter, Simple Plan, The Twilight Saga, Gossip Girl, Pretty Little Liars,
Audrey Hepburn, Cara Delevingne, Astrology and Nail Art. When I was in third
grade I encountered my first ever obsession; Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen. I
pleaded with my parents every birthday for their endless array of movies,
books, TV shows, pens, posters and dolls. I bought right into the commercial
trap of instantly wanting anything at all with their name or face plastered on
the packaging. I probably would have asked for Mary-Kate and Ashley toilet
paper for Christmas if a) It shipped to Australia and b) it was ever invented.
One of my BFFs Bettina even had an Olsen twin cake for her 10th
birthday party! We argued over who got to eat Mary-Kate’s face, and I obviously
lost since I got stuck with the ‘H’ in ‘Happy Birthday Bettina’. I can still
remember their birthdays are June 13, 1986 and Ashley is 2 minutes older. For
my 10th birthday I got their movie ‘New York Minute’ on DVD, and
would watch it 8 times in a row for weeks before my mum considered referring me
to a child psychologist. Her pleas for me to ‘play outside’ were matched with ‘can we move the TV up against the window, so I can watch the movie from outside?’.
I try to be just as understanding with my little sister Amber
who is absolutely obsessed with British boy band; One Direction. It’s hard at
times though, since she blatantly refuses to throw away an old Nando’s napkin
because, quote ‘it’s Niall’s favourite place to eat out’. I was roped into
celebrating Harry’s 21st birthday recently, and had to surrender my
dignity by cutting a cake she baked from scratch, and spoon-feeding it to her
Harry Styles standee. This is my cry for help.
Never underestimate the importance of an obsession. They work
their way into your heart and into your life. Right now I’m obsessed with fashion, and
as Blair Waldorf says, ‘if Mary Kate and Ashley can build a successful fashion
empire bossing around pattern drafters, then so can I’. (Just kidding!) There
are people out there in the world, maybe even reading this, whose football team
they religiously follow keeps them alive. There’s an immeasurable excitement in
waiting for the next book, movie, episode, album or match that is almost unexplainable.
It gives people hope. It gives people something to be passionate about.
Something to feel a part of. Something to live for.
Xx
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