I can’t think of many awful habits as useless as gossiping. Gossiping is bad, not because it is inherently harmful (although it can be), but rather because it is pretty pointless. Seriously, what is the point of gossiping, somebody please let me know.

And yet, just like many pointless and useless habits, it is addicting. It’s especially addicting when the peer group you are in loves to gossip. I don’t know if it’s a result of a herd mentality or peer pressure or something else, but from my own limited experience I do know the gossip engine stars roaring around certain social circles I am in a lot more than others. And yet, as pointless as it is, I still find myself guilty as charged as soon as I’m around certain people.

I don’t like feeding monsters. It’s bad practice and ungentlemenly. So when I find myself doing it I feel it is akin to dieting hardcore for a week and then guiltily gorging on an entire chocolate cake. If only I took baby steps, this never would have happened!

That is why I like letting myself get away with eating chocolate cake every once in a while – so I don’t eat the whole damn thing. The same goes for gossip. The same goes for x, where x is the evil monster that is always hungry. Feeding it a little bit won’t stoke the fires too much, but it won’t make you eat the whole damn cake, either. The lesser of two evils.

Mind you, the best outcome would be to slay the dragon. But let’s be honest here, there’s just too many damn dragons. You can slay a bunch, as I have, but it’s nearly impossible to slay them all (unless you are a super monk or something.. or you live a long time and are actively slaying, I don’t know as I’m not there yet).

Gossip is like cake. It can be ok in bite sizes. Just don’t gorge. But if you can, get rid of it.