Don't YOU wonder these things too?

After I hear a particularly dumb advertisement on the radio, or I see a idiotic or confusing ad on television, or I read a poorly written article about something, I do what most people do. I think, "Wow. That was really dumb." I'm pretty sure most people have that reaction.

What I wonder after that, however, is maybe something not everyone else thinks about. I wonder, "How many people saw this ad/article/whatever, and not only gave their approval, but also thought it was a brilliant idea or a hilarious bit of humor or something?" People get paid a lot of money to make these ads. Other people get paid lots of money to look at them and agree that they are brilliant. I get paid no money, and I think they are stupid. I think the people who made and approved them are stupid.


Sometimes I just barely miss getting on an elevator, or get to a busy intersection right as the stoplight turns red, or I just barely miss a bus. I think most people think, "Dang! I was just a little bit late, and now I have to sit and wait for a long time!". Sometimes I also think this. Usually, however, I think of something else.

Often when this happens, my first thought is, "What did I do in the last 10 minutes that could have saved me 15 seconds and made me get through the stoplight or catch the elevator/bus?" Usually it's something like: I dropped my keys. Or: I sat in my car for 10 seconds longer than I needed to because I was listening to the radio.

This makes me wonder what I've almost done in my life. I wonder if I would have found $5000 or something if I had always caught that elevator, or made that green light.