The Mute of Shame

I would like to blog about a phrase I got going around our apartment now.  It's made a few people defensive, but I'm pretty sure we all think it's rather funny because of how truthful it is (most of the time).

Let me share this from my perspective:

I love Bejeweled on Facebook.  It's a minute-long game with colors, explosions, and a score that constantly goes up (as long as you are playing), three of my favorite things (I like watching numbers increase,okay?).  Naturally, it's a great way to relax and de-stress because it's fun and it only takes a minute (granted I play more than a few rounds...don't judge me).

However

This game is quite possibly the loudest game on Facebook, so whenever I start the game, I have to make sure my sound is off.  Usually I mute my computer by clicking on the sound icon in the system tray, because if I press the mute button on my keyboard, then it makes a high-pitched beep that annoys me and lets people know that I don't want them to hear something.

It used to be that I could rest assured that people would assume I was muting a blog with music on it, but not so anymore. Know why?

Because sometimes I forget to mute before I start playing.  So then I jump at the sound Bejeweled makes and quick press the high-pitched beeping-mute on my keyboard.  But it's too late.  Everyone knows I'm playing Bejeweled like the addict I am.

I call it the mute of shame, because right after you mute it, you feel ashamed (whether you should feel ashamed or not is up in the air for debate, so hack away at that issue if you'd like, but I really don't care--I just know that I feel ashamed) for one or two reasons: you just annoyed people with a loud, startling sound, and maybe they were trying to study or nap or do something more important than you are obviously doing (because in all honestly, Bejeweled isn't important), or you feel ashamed at your addiction.

And don't say you aren't addicted.  If you know what I'm talking about, you are most likely addicts. And I live in an apartment with other addicts who mute shamefully.

So welcome, addicts anonymous.  You now learned a new term for your behavior: The Mute of Shame.