An Exception

(First, a note to all my fans {cough, cough -- is anyone out there? Anyone?}. I apologize for the long break between my last post and this one. My left hand, you see, was eaten by a crocodile ... Oh wait, that was just a dream. I have no good excuse, other than "Writer's Block". Now some of you would discount that by saying you have to be a writer to get writers block. Okay, duly noted. Anyway, I am back. On with the show ...)


I woke up this morning with a thought. Although it was just an ordinary Tuesday, my thought was anything but. Oh, I wish I were more like you, normal people, who when you wake up have thoughts like “Wow, am I hungry”, or “Should I wear my red shirt?”, or even “Cripes, I shouldn’t have pressed snooze that 18th time ‘cause now I’m going to be late for work and my boss will be mad and tomorrow is my annual review so the timing of this is pretty awful unless I stop and buy coffee and a donut and bring it to my boss, pretending it is his birthday and that is why I am late for work since the line at Tim Horton’s was so very long and that cashier with the nose ring has got to be the slowest cashier on the face of the planet but I braved the long lines for you, Sir.” Yep, I wish I had normal thoughts.

But this Tuesday morning was something out of the ordinary. I woke up, looked outside to see the snow gently falling on my freshly cleared driveway (just kidding, I have not cleared my driveway since August), and then the thought hit me. "Every rule has an exception." Or does it? If that is a true statement, then that statement is also false.

If every rule has an exception, that means the rule “every rule has an exception” has an exception. If there is an exception to this rule, that means there is at least one rule that has no exception. Let’s say, for argument, that the one rule without exception is the rule “every rule has an exception”, that means the “every rule has an exception” is not true because it itself is an exception. That would make that rule a hypocrite.

Now, let’s back up and say the rule “every rule has an exception” is not the one rule with an exception. Let’s pick a different rule. Let’s say “It always rains on Good Friday” is the rule without exception. Then, when it does rain on Good Friday, thereby ruining all the Easter eggs you hid out in the yard, which was not a wise thing to do considering it always rains on Good Friday and you should really consider using water proof colouring on the eggs, not your kids washable markers, then the rule “every rule has an exception” is proven to be false.

So here is my question. Is the rule “Every rule has an exception” intentionally trying to deceive us, knowing full well there are rules without exception? If that is the case, then this rule is pure evil, malicious at best . Maybe the rule is a hypocrite. Every rule has an exception except the rule that every rule has an exception. The rule knows better, but seems to say to the world “Do as I say, not as I do.” Such a rule cannot be trusted.

Or is this rule just ignorant? Maybe this rule just shot its’ mouth off in the bar one night, after a few too many Fuzzy Navels, and all those listening assumed the rule was speaking from an intelligent view point and spread the word that there is an exception to every rule. Now the poor rule cannot live it down, kind of like the time I ... oh, never mind.