The words every 23 year old should read

From Salon.com’s “Since You Asked” column, thoughts on what it’s like to be 23

It was fear of failure, and fear of being judged. It was fear of being mediocre, of joining the human race and being a worker among workers, of not being special, of turning out to have all the same problems and limitations as everyone else.

It took me quite a few years and quite a few tears to realize that, yes, I too am mediocre. I don’t want that to sound as snooty as it does. But when you have big, grand dreams of changing the world — or at least being sort of famous — to realize that you’re not as special as you thought you were — i.e., becoming an adult — is quite a friggin’ blow.