CRS
Chandler, Arizona, United States

There's an old saying. If you don't want someone to join a crowd, you ask them, "If everyone were jumping off of a cliff, would you?" Well, I have. So my answer would be "Yes". True story.
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Hypothetical Question About Meeting Your Third Favorite Singer

Saturday, July 28, 2012

this entry brought to you by nirvana, "frances farmer will have her revenge on seattle"


Through a series of events that you couldn't possibly duplicate, you get bumped up to first class on an 8 hour flight. You settle in your seat, amazed at the extra foot room, unable to believe your luck. And right as you're saying that it can't get any better than this, your third favorite singer of all time comes and sits next to you. You want to gush and tell this person what a fan you are, but you think the better of it-- you don't want to make this eight hour flight awkward for either of you.

The plane takes off, and about thirty minutes in, your third favorite singer leans over and starts chatting with you.

You have an in. Your third favorite singer has initiated conversation, the two of you have a report, you absolutely have got to say something.

These are your options: You can lie and say "You're my favorite singer!", because who the hell cares? You're expressing your gratitude about his talent, there's no reason to tell the singer that they are number three, and besides, there's no way they'll know you're lying. On the other hand, you'll be lying, and that might make you feel weird sitting next to one of your favorite people but somehow having lied to them for no reason.

You can tell them the truth and say "You're my third favorite singer", risking the singer asking "Oh? Who's above me?" and disapproving of the company they're in. On the other hand, if they approve of the company they're in, they might even be more flattered that you would consider them in the same class as themselves. Example: Saying to Hugh Jackman "You're my favorite actor!" might not mean as much as saying "You're my favorite actor, behind only Brando and Liz Taylor". On the other hand, saying "You're my favorite actor, along with Ryan Reynolds and Channing Tatum" might backfire, because he'll think you just like him for the hunk factor.

Your third option is to simply say "You're one of my favorite actors", which avoids all of the pitfalls of before, except now you risk sounding insincere from your lack of specificity.

Which do you choose?
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with love from CRS @ 3:38 PM 

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