You Wouldn't Understand...

It's a _________ thing....you wouldn't understand.

What exactly does that mean? I was driving behind a Jeep on the highway, and his spare tire cover read, "It's a Jeep thing, you wouldn't understand." I immediately thought to myself, "How difficult is it to understand that you have a small penis and have decided to compensate by appearing to be rugged and outdoorsy, driving around during the summertime with your doors off, your shirt off, and blasting T-Pain from your waterproof stereo system?"
I chuckled to myself and congratulated myself for being clever. But then I kept thinking. I have seen variations on this slogan for a wide variety of different activities: cheerleading, Greek life, culinary school, etc. I started to wonder if these people legitimately thought that their chosen hobby is so incomprehensible that "normal" folk literally could not grasp the enjoyment therein. The rest of us, the boorish, unrefined and uneducated lot that we are, simply will never possess the cognitive prowess to ever wrap our sad little brains around the grandeur and pure bliss that encompasses your chosen activity. Or maybe.....

Maybe what you really mean is "It's a _________ thing, you wouldn't appreciate, enjoy, or find fulfilling any aspect of that which I and my kind do in our spare time." But that really isn't as catchy and uppity(catchity?) as what they prefer to print on their t-shirts, bumper stickers, and coffee mugs.

I think, ultimately, people want to feel special, and there's nothing wrong with that. If somebody enjoys a particular activity that is not widely appreciated, they may be inclined to feel a sense of elitism. This is especially true if they can convince themselves that the reason their hobby is not widely appreciated is because most are unable to do so. In some cases, this is true(skydiving, bear wrestling, father-raping), but in most cases a given activity is nowhere near out of reach to the common person. They almost dare us to "Go ahead, give it a try", but would be sad to find out that if most of us did so, they would either prove their activity to be dull and boring, or they would all love it, and suddenly your precious exclusive "club" is overflowing with people, and you are no longer special or unique.

Because let's face it.....you aren't. Neither am I. Everything I've ever done, thought, or thought to do has BEEN DONE. Many people before you have been cheerleaders, chess club members, and overly aggressive Jeep drivers.

It's a "I desperately crave attention and just want to be loved" thing....you wouldn't understand.