i can't help but to hear an exchanging of words

in class yesterday we were discussing tapping (as in bugging phones/computers/etc, not the dance). my professor kept saying things like "when an average person is overheard," "when a politician is overheard," "depending on what we overhear." it reminded me of the common phrase that i'm sure everyone's heard/used/read/watched. "i couldn't help but overhear..." when, in all likelihood, you very well could have helped it.

overhearing is passive. when you overhear something, you are not trying to listen. you are just sitting minding your own business when the sound waves wander upon your ear uninvited and unannounced. tapping a phone is about as far from passive as you can get. you are not just strategically drinking your coffee near the couple having an argument to get a good story to tell at lunch, you are being way more invasive. you are taking active measures to ensure that you hear everything that is said through that phone. you are listening to conversations thought to be private. you are not just "overhearing" anything.

i dunno why it annoyed me so much, but it just seemed like they were rationalizing. you mainly only rationalize things you feel guilty about or know you shouldn't be doing. i'm not saying that tapping is inherently a bad thing. in some cases, it is needed. but the wording used to describe it just rubbed me the wrong way.

*I Write Sins Not Tragedies - Panic! at the Disco

why don't you listen to me?

i hate it when people don't listen to me. i learned a long time ago that some people are talkers and some are listeners. i am undoubtedly a listener. always have been. but when i say something, listen god dammit. don't ignore me. don't act like what i'm saying doesnt matter. don't pretend that you know me better than i know myself. i am not a child. i know what i want - sometimes - and what i dont want - most of the time - and i need you to recognize that. when i say that i dont want to get married, especially not to you, do not tell me that when you set your mind on something you always get it. what are we, cavemen? do you think you can drag me by my hair to your cave, grunt a couple of times, and pronounce me your wife? do not tell me that we will get married and make it seem like a good thing. i am not that easily distracted. do you think that because you say 'we will get married and it'll be like a dream come true' i will forget that i dont want to?? do you think ignoring what i say will make me start to ignore it too?? are you really that delusional?? when i say you're a clingy drama queen, that does not mean i want to have your babies. really. even if you already have their names picked out.

when i talk, listen. hear what i'm telling you and not what you want to hear. when you are busy planning my future, think about taking what i want into account.

*Listen - Goo Goo Dolls