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I think the first time I was called a curmudgeon was by my friend Mike of The Last Best Place fame. I mean the very first time in my life had I been so referred to as such. Now that Jay has reiterated and Mark the (*) has confirmed, I guess I have some soul searching to do. So, let’s review:
cur·mudg·eon
n.An ill-tempered person full of resentment and stubborn notions.
It’s true that I can be ill-tempered but I’m hardly full of resentment. And hell, who doesn’t have some stubborn notions?
So maybe another definition fits:
curmudgeonn : a crusty irascible cantankerous old person full of stubborn ideas
OK, I admit it. I’m crusty – one of my more endearing qualities. I can be irascible and cantankerous. I admitted in my last post that I’m old, but I still have a problem with the notion that I’m stubborn, goddamnit, and no one is going to change my mind!
When I think of the word curmudgeon two people come to mind; Andy Rooney and Robert Novak – proof that curmudgeonality has no ideological anchors. So at least I have that going for me.
People who know me, however, have a different catalogue of names for me. I have often been accused of being strident and opinionated – I am – and I’m also referred to as being off-my-nut which, I suppose, comes from comments such as “My biggest fear is that my kids will grow up as repositories for my cerebral trash.” Which is, in fact, my biggest fear. Then there is the long – very long – list of pejoratives, commonly not spoken in polite conversation, that my friends cast-off towards me like pitching free copies of The Watchtower in the trash before the door is closed and the “witnesses” haven’t even stepped off the porch.. I rather enjoy them – especially when augmented with rare and colorful vulgar imagery. No one has ever accused me of being well bred. That’s just the reality.
It makes me wonder if curmudgeon-ness is a symptom, a disease, or simply in the eye of the beholder. If it’s a symptom we must look for the root cause. If a disease, we must look for a cure. But if it is only the whims of someone’s ephemeral mood swings we have an obligation to respond by saying “Go verily and fuck thyself!” It’s the least we curmudgeons can do.
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Well, given that I sometimes think of myself as a curmudgeon, and have a grossly inflated self-image, it can’t be entirely bad!
You might like this quote someone just posted on H&R:
“Political tags — such as royalist, communist, democrat, populist, fascist, liberal, conservative, and so forth — are never basic criteria. The human race divides politically into those who want people to be controlled and those who have no such desire. The former are idealists acting from highest motives for the greatest good of the greatest number. The latter are surly curmudgeons, suspicious and lacking in altruism. But they are more comfortable neighbors than the other sort.” – Lazarus Long
I’m honored to be disparaged in the same manner as Sirota – I’m not nearly as attractive as he, but perhaps you’re attracted to character as well as looks.
No Mark, you’ve got it wrong. I have more disdain for you than Sirota. Sirota is a putz, but you’re an asshole. And you’re welcome to go fuck yourself!
My oh my – you really got it in for me. I’m kind of liking it, but I have to wonder – is it for the off-the-cuff insults, or that I don’t give you the respect you think you so deserve. I do have a thing about pompous – it sets me off. And you are a pompous curmudgeon.