My mind is such that it looks for patterns and relationships in everything. That’s why I’m a “numbers” guy - it’s easy to make patterns from numbers, whether it’s consciously or sub-consciously. For example, part of my parents’ phone number is 3-5-2-3. See the pattern/equation? I get 3-5=2 and 5-2=3. That sticks all the numbers together in my mind, so even if it’s been years since I’ve dialed the number (speed dial and storing the number in cell phone memory really has spoiled us), I’ll remember it. It doesn’t stop at just numbers, though. I find myself doing this with everything, from phone numbers to license plates to protocol designations at work to dates and times. Sometimes it drives me crazy; other times it comes in handy. I still remember things from ages ago because of this type of thinking. The license plate to the white Thunderbird my parents had 15+ years ago was TGT 701. Yeah, so that’s an example of where it’s not exactly handy. (Where’s the pattern in that, you ask? I guess it was “ee” sound and surrounding T’s in TGT that were enough to make the whole thing stick.) I often find myself (not on purpose) staring at license plates and trying to think of a phrase or some association for the letters. (Yep, I’d definitely be the guy you’d want around witnessing a criminal flee from a robbery via a car. Wouldn’t do well with the color, but I’d be all over the license plate!). Even if I don’t find a pattern, my mind must work at it so hard that it causes things to stick anyway.

While patterns can be great for remembering things like dates and phone numbers, they greatly fail when it comes to people. As soon as I think I begin to understand someone (especially girls!), the pattern and label that I’ve applied fails, and fails miserably. You can’t put people in a box; they simply don’t fit into any pattern or equation or label. Just because someone does this and says that doesn’t necessarily mean I should apply label A or pattern XYZ to the person. Two people may be similar in 99 out of 100 ways and I’ll stick the same label on both of them and expect them to behave similarly - according to the “equation” I’ve stuck them in as variable X. Then that 100th way, the exception to the “rule,” the one seemingly insignificant part that is different, becomes even more magnified and destroys my nice, neat pattern. And I get thrown for a loop because I tried to stick God’s awesome, magnificent and unique creations into the tiny, limited box that my mind could comprehend.

Just random thoughts; nothing triggered this post other than that random license plate from years ago popping into my mind on the way home. Thought it would make for a good post, though, so there ya go.