Last week, I published a column that was, admittedly, quite pointless and somewhat stupid.
I was trying to do a very limited number of things with the column in question. In light of the fact that this column as a whole is intended to always be a positive expression of the good, rather than a degradation of the controversial, I could easily fall into crafting monotonous individual columns.
From its inception at the beginning of this year, the opinion editor and I wanted to keep the column versatile and leave it open for humor. Indeed, the title “What’s Up?” was a suggestion from some old friends of mine who pointed out the versatility that such a title would not only provide, but almost demand.
I have looked for ways to stay within my self-imposed bounds of praising the good while still taking jabs at some things that aren’t so good. Also, I feel like I have a decent sense of humor, but I have found that writing humor is much more difficult than tossing one-liners into a random conversation.
I would love for someone to laugh after reading a column of mine, but, if it’s hard to write a humor column, it can be even harder to write a serious column that makes effective use of humor to exact insightful reflection.
All of this is to say that I found it very interesting that I received two e-mails in response to my last column. Usually I receive none. Last semester, I received a few e-mails, usually from other columnists who basically thought I was stupid for thinking what I did. I can probably count on one hand the number of unsolicited comments I have ever received on my work.
Interestingly enough, the best comments have come from professors. I might add that I am extremely impressed when professors take the time to read student newspapers and am personally humbled when they read my column.
Anyway, the first comment I received about my last installment of “What’s Up?” had to do with what brand of urinals have graced the SMU campus as of late. The person actually asked if I could send him a picture. He worked for a waterless urinal company– no joke.
The second comment was from a native of Midlothian who was offended that I assumed she didn’t know that “syllabi” is the plural of “syllabus”. She said she actually “kind of got a kick out of” the comment and sent the e-mail more in jest than anything else.
The point is this: why the heck did I get responses about the brand of urinals installed on the SMU campus and the Texas accents of people from Midlothian when my past columns (some of which I think were much better than this one) have elicited no response?
Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate any comments on my work, if for no other reason than it assures me that people actually read what I write. So, to the two of you who took the time to e-mail me, thank you.
For those of you who have read my work and haven’t e-mailed me, that’s fine, too. I don’t e-mail the author of every column I read, either. I just thought I might share my curiosity about what makes us take time out of our day to comment on what others have to say and what doesn’t.
In conclusion, I want to add an item to my list of good things from last week: trash cans. It amazes me how often I see trash cans neglected. Poor things.
Matt Brumit is a junior humanities major. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].
