#oneaday, Day 207: Up ‘n’ Down

I think I might be bipolar.

Granted, my only justification for that is a cursory glance at Wikipedia and the observation that yesterday I was a depressive mess barely able to function, while today I’ve been not exactly what I’d call “enthusiastic”, but have at least got some things done and felt relatively “normal”.

There are, of course, extenuating circumstances to the way I’m feeling so it may not be a chronic condition after all, and naturally I wouldn’t want to publicly declare myself a manic-depressive without consulting an actually-qualified professional. Rather than, you know, a website where you can look up the details of a Frijj milkshake immediately after consulting it for psychiatric symptoms. (Consulting the site. Not the milkshake.)

The mind’s a funny thing. I often wonder if my mind and imagination work the same way as those of other people. I have a very visual imagination. I can picture things very clearly. I can imagine situations actually happening and unfolding. I can empathise with people because I can picture myself in their situation. And if there’s something I’m anxious or nervous about, I generally make it worse for myself by “replaying” the potential situation in my head before it’s even happened, and when it might not even happen at all.

This kind of mind is great for creativity, of course. It’s great for writing, too. When I want to write a cool description of something, all I have to do is imagine the thing in question being right there in front of me. In my mind, I can look at it from all angles, pick it up, touch it, smell it, taste it or punch it in the face. Where appropriate, of course. And then I just have to summon up the words to describe those sensations. It’s an interesting skill to have, and it’s one thing about myself that I wouldn’t want to change for anything, as inconvenient as it can be at times.

Inconvenient? Yes. As I said, this kind of imagination sometimes leads to anticipating things before they happen. I’m not talking having “visions” or premonitions or anything. I’m talking picturing what “might” happen, and “planning” the event in my head. Inevitably, things never quite go the way I expect them to. Sometimes this is a good thing. Sometimes this is a bad thing. It goes to show the pointlessness of the whole exercise. But still I do it.

Sometimes I do it in reverse. I picture a situation that has already happened and I “plan” what might happen should I suddenly and magically get the ability to reverse time and do something again. Or indeed, to load a quicksave. (I swear, being able to “quicksave” would be the best superpower ever.) This is an even more pointless exercise. There’s no way I can change the fact that, when unexpectedly confronted with Don Woods, father of the adventure game, I didn’t really know what to say and ended up babbling like a schoolgirl confronted with Justin Bieber. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. At least it would be if you could do anything about it.

Oh well.