Things I Wish I Liked (Or Loved)

Gretchen Rubin once said: You can choose what you do but you can’t choose what you like to do.

Sing it, Gretchen.

So here, in no particular order, are things I wish I liked (or loved).

• Spicy food. I manage to hobble through life avoiding spice – I’m talking heat, not flavour – but occasionally the only thing on offer is spicy and it makes me miserable. It also feels like bring-your-own-Sriracha/(insert other specialty hot sauce) has become a cultural phenomenon – one in which I can’t participate, leading to some version of #FOMO.
• Mornings. I am not a morning person. I can interact with people and get things done (with kids early mornings are unavoidable). But I wish I was the sort of person who could leap from bed singing the Newsies soundtrack and rush to embrace the day. In reality, I’m more of the swing-one-creaking-leg-over-the-edge-of-the-bed-at-a-time-while-moaning sort of morning person.
• Pets. Hear me out all you dog and cat lovers. My mother was, and still is, terrified of dogs. Some of my earliest memories are of my mother avoiding and/or actively running/biking away from dogs. I’m also allergic to cats and dogs (with fur). So the fact that I tolerate (and even like) most dogs is a huge leap forward. But I wish I loved them. And it’s not just dogs, I feel very meh about pets in general.
• Sweating. I actually know people who enjoy sweating. I loathe it. And I almost always end up cold after I’ve been sweating. Ick.
• Rollercoasters. There is a hit of adrenaline, but I’d rather stay on terra firma.
• Classical music. I like classical music, but I wish I loved it. I feel so out of place when I look around at a concert and see people with their eyes closed in this trance-like state; I’m more likely to be thinking about my grocery list than paying attention to the music. I often put on classical playlists when I’m working, but aside from Beethoven’s Symphony No.7 in A major op.92 – II, Allegretto, which I enjoy immensely, it’s mostly tolerably pleasant background noise to me. (I do love lyrical music, though.)
• Winter. No matter how I approach this subject…I don’t like winter. I’m well aware of the fun of sledding and skiing and skating. I still don’t like winter. Do I try to make the most out of it? Yes. But it all happens through gritted, chattering teeth.
• Home renovations. One acquaintance actively looks for areas in her home to have renovated (she does outsource everything, but loves the whole process -from planning through to having contractors at her house for months on end). Another friend will randomly text that she decided to paint a room over the weekend – like this is NO BIG DEAL. To someone like me THIS IS A VERY BIG DEAL. I dislike every aspect of renovations – DIY or not. I can’t paint or use an electric drill properly and I can barely manage to hang a picture on the wall. But I also stress when someone else is in my house painting or hammering. Sigh.
• Fresh flowers. I love the idea of fresh flowers but they always strike me as depressing in my own home. When I receive flowers I see another living thing I have to keep alive (I already have this responsibility with children!) that will inevitably die which means these flowers are a waste of money. (I do like plants, though, and seem to have good success keeping them alive by only watering once every 2 weeks – it’s my only “secret” and may have more to do with good luck than anything.)
• Big groups. I’m introverted and wish I didn’t feel so ill at ease in most groups bigger than 2-3 people.

Sometimes it makes sense to work on certain areas of our personalities so they become more tolerable, but Gretchen Rubin’s right: generally, I can’t choose the things I like to do.

This means I’ll have to accept I’m unlikely to become a dog-walking, rollercoaster-riding, paint-brush-wielding gardener in my retirement years.

And that’s totally okay, right?

Your turn. Anything you wish you liked (or loved). Do you love fresh flowers, winter, home renos, and spicy food? Please tell me someone else dislikes sweating and mornings?!

Header photo by Uljana Borodina on Unsplash