Sign up for a free recipe e-book →

Clarissa's Blog

On Impulse

Published by

Clarissa

on

One thing about me is that I have no impulse control. None. Delayed gratification is not a concept I can comprehend. When a whim possesses me, I get up and run wherever it takes me.

Today, for instance, I was sitting at the meeting with the Dean’s Office, and experienced an overwhelming desire – which is the only kind I get – to read true crime novels.

OK, this didn’t sound the way it should. I have no bad feelings towards the Dean’s Office. We have a new Dean, and he’s great. Really great.

But the desire struck, so I dropped everything, ran to the public library, and dragged out two doorstoppers by Ann Rule. Then I read one of them. Yes, the whole 400-page thing. It was very enjoyable.

It’s all like that. The other day I left the office to pop down to the library on campus. Halfway there a desire possessed me to cook lentils. So I turned around, went to the car – never even bothered to go get my things from the office or lock up – and drove home to cook lentils.

Why lentils? Why true crime? Who knows?

8 responses to “On Impulse”

  1. Maria Avatar
    Maria

    Boy, how do you read 400 pages in less than a day? Acting on impulse isn’t bad, especially that yours are so wholesome. My impulses usually have to do with my suppressed addiction to cigarets and I try to ignore them.

    Like

    Reply
  2. Avi Avatar
    Avi

    How do you manage to read so widely, prepare lessons, write and grade test papers, do research that is significant enough to receive prizes and all sorts of accolades, translate your father’s book, keep a blog and, to top it all, rustle up delicious meals for N and Klara? I think we should be told how you do it.

    Like

    Reply
    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Hah. OK, I feel better now. I’ve been berating myself for being a lazy underachieving bastard all day.

      The secret is that not only do I have no impulse control, I have zero willpower. I only ever do things that I want to do because I can’t force myself into anything. And doing things you want is easy. I like reading, cooking, and writing, so that’s what I do all day.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. xykademiqz Avatar
        xykademiqz

        “I only ever do things that I want to do because I can’t force myself into anything. ”

        I second this wholeheartedly. I’m like that, too, and I get a ton done. The key is to do whatever the hell you want as often as you can (some obligations cannot be escaped, but many can or can be rescheduled). When you’re really into doing something, you do it fast and well, then, once you’re sated, your interest naturally moves onto something else.

        Not sure if this is universal or can be taught, though. I am pretty sure it’s a personality trait. I know people at the other end of the spectrum who feel lost and get nothing done without detailed, rigid constraints on their time.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply
        1. Clarissa Avatar
          Clarissa

          Exactly! I cook so much because I love it. But I never clean because I hate it and so it takes forever and the results are pitiful. So why torture myself?

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply
  3. maitreyi1978 Avatar
    maitreyi1978

    I love Ann Rule!
    Which ones did you check out? I’d love to read your reviews of them.

    Like

    Reply
    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      The ones they had was In the Still of the Night and Too Late to Say Goodbye.

      Which, in your opinion, is her best? I read A Stranger Beside Me many years ago. She’s the best of the genre, without question.

      I didn’t think anybody would be interested in a review but since you like Rule, I definitely will write about her.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. maitreyi1978 Avatar
        maitreyi1978

        I love her and the way she wraps up her books at the end with a psychological analysis of the perpetrator. The perpetrators are astonishing and horrifying people who seem mostly normal, and so it is fascinating when she describes their development.
        My favorite is Everything She Ever Wanted. The perp would be completely unbelievable in fiction. And Never Let Her Go is great too. She is a bit uncritical of the victim here. I would like your opinion. Small Sacrifices is about a female family annhilator.
        I love true crime!

        Like

        Reply

Leave a comment

A conservative literary critic and college professor

Recent posts