Totally crazy!

Your esteemed blogger has recently installed a new A/C unit (thanks to kind uncles for the loan!) in his apartment, which means he's moved beyond envying Scott's men as they died of frostbite.

Anyway, as I was basking in my newfound chill, a thought occurred to me: "Is crazy the new nice?" I've happened to hear "crazy" used as a generic compliment a few times recently, as in:

Me: "Is he cool?"
Friend: "Yeah, he's pretty crazy."
Me: "Cool."

I have no problem with that, I just think it's funny.

Which brings me to another issue: That of generic compliments, particularly the word "nice". I think of "nice" as being a compliment of very little meaning. Almost anyone can be called nice, as in, "He seems like a nice guy". To me, it means nothing more than that the described person isn't actively belligerent, malicious, or antisocial. It indicates that he meets a basic standard of civility.

But it doesn't require the committed judgement of, say, "He's a good/honest/trustworthy man" or "She's a good friend". "Nice" is safely neutral.

It's also toothless, as anyone who's ever been rejected with "You're a nice guy, but. . .." can testify (I haven't myself, thank God). There it seems like more of a stock courtesy than a real expression of "You truly are a worthwhile dude, but I don't return your romantic affections".

Heck, I even consider "He's cool" to be a step up from nice. "Nice" means nothing more than "On cursory inspection, he does not appear to be a sociopath". "Cool" implies that, in addition to that, I like them and/or find them particularly admirable in some way. "Awesome" or "really cool" is another grade up.

Or something like that. It's not a definite system.

Peace out!