When NASA first started sending up astronauts, they quickly discovered the ballpoint pens would not work in zero gravity. To combat the problem, NASA scientists spent a decade and $12 billion to develop a pen that writes in zero gravity, upside down, underwater, on almost any surface including glass and at temperatures ranging from below freezing to 300C.
The Russians used a pencil.
It just shows that people overanalyze almost everything — from the easy where to eat for lunch, to the trickier what a man thinks of a woman he’s looking at. The solution can be right there before their eyes, but they go through a more complicated process of solving things. Why spend billions of dollars for a pen when you can always use a pencil to write? Why spend hours just deciding where to eat when you can always go to the nearest and cheapest cafeteria or fast food joint? Why do people assume that men and women are from different planets just because they think differently?
Now let me ask you: How many petals are around the rose? If you’ve read the question carefully, then you’d know that the answer will always be either 0 or an even number. Try your luck.
It’s been 3 weeks since Ederic had me play the game on his newly acquired Palm Treo 650. I immediately got the logic of the game, but was unsure at first. Some people took months to figure out how it goes, but really, you just have to think uncomplicatedly.
Jason: May itatanong ako sa’yo. Sagutin mo ako ng derecho.
Me: Sure, pero dahan-dahan lang baka di kita maintindihan.
Jason: Okay, sagutin mo ako ng derecho ha. Pangit ba ako?
Me: Hindi.
Now what’s wrong with this conversation? It’s that I didn’t listen closely to what he was saying. I braced myself for the question, concentrated on the forthcoming question too much, that I completely disregarded the simplest detail. He said, “Sagutin mo ako ng derecho.” Twice. So why in hell did I have to answer his question, instead of giving him the answer that he provided in the first place?
It’s human nature to analyze the stuff going on around us. We search for reasons and answers, and look into things too much that we end up getting frustrated and confused at times. It’s either we don’t think inside the box, or we think way too much outside it. Are we just afraid to make the wrong decisions so we think — long and hard — ahead? Are we afraid that we might hurt people along the way? Or are we afraid simply because we might bruise our egos? Why do we have to think of reasons of life? How can we enjoy life if we don’t let our guards down and feel the moment? Maybe we’re too intelligent. Maybe we’re too critical.
Or maybe I’m really just overanalyzing things. 
The Algebra photo is taken from All Funny Pictures. The Petals Around the Rose Flash game is stolen from Free World Group. And just for the record, the ballpoint pen and pencil thing is an urban legend. 
