Anxiety With Friends

W is worth only 4 points?

Lately I've been playing Words With Friends a lot. For those of you that don't know what it is, it's basically just Scrabble for your smartphone or a Facebook game that you play with your friends. I like it particularly because I don't have to overly commit to it and can play at my own leisure. I make a move, you make a move. It could take days, even weeks, for a single game to end.

Sometimes I have to look at a specific game-board multiple times (couple of days) before I can finally decide on what word to play. And If my opponent notices that I haven't played a word for a long time (3 days+) he/she starts pestering me, "Hey man, it's your turn on Words" or "Are you ever going to play your word?" It's not particularly annoying and most of the time I just brush them aside until I have the time to actually sit down and play my turn.  Yet, I can't help but think that the pestering has a subtle subconscious effect on my mind.

For example, let's say you're hopelessly in love with a person. In fact, let's not even use the word "love," because it's more like a crush. Now let's say that you hardly ever see this other person--in other words, your opportunities to interact with him/her is extremely limited. That sucks. But what can you do? You live life in waiting for the next time you will run into him/her, stuck in a perpetual state of limerence.

But every time you do see them, it's like an unconscious reminder--"When are you going to see them next time? Why don't you seize the opportunity now and just do something." It's like that friend who pesters you to make your move on Words With Friends. You feel obligated to initiate something. Otherwise you may lose the opportunity. Then, after hours of worrying, I end up playing a lame 10-point word, costing me the game.

But what if I'm not ready to make my move? What if I don't necessarily have the letters I need for that awesome triple word, triple letter, 100 point+ combo? What if I am preparing for an even bigger move in my next turn?


On a side note, I think my happiness is a function of the weather.