"AIR-HEADS"

I watched Iron Man 2 last weekend with Mitch and JD. As much as I love Robert Downey Jr. and Paul Bettany, the movie still left an unimpressive mark on me. It was flat. There were too much crappy dialogues and Tony Stark just became too problematic. Not complex, but problematic. I nearly fell asleep. Or maybe it's because I was never really a fan of Iron Man. To me, I could not take his kind of humor and confidence. Tony Stark 's character reminds me too much of people I wished I'd never met.

I could take that some people are just arrogant. I can even forgive those who may occasionally gloat in their successes. But there are just some people who think that the world is theirs to judge and they know the secrets and happiness of a better life that often translates to having unnecessary material possessions and being a constant, proclaimed high flyer. I'd like to coin them as "Air-Heads." Sila ang mga malakas magpahangin. Sobrang laki nang ulo, puro hangin ang laman. They don't know, think or seem to care if they are already being offensive, boring or self-centered.

Recently I found myself surrounded by Air-Heads. At most, physically, they are world's apart from the so-called Jejemons. But unlike Jejemons, they have an ego the size of a planet. And instead of a migraine, you suffer from suffocation.

You know you're with typical Air-Heads when...

1. They always seem to talk about money and joke about it. They insert money in casual conversations. They find it amusing to emphasize on stories that though they may "lack" money, they could still enjoy their standard of living by constant projection, resourcefulness and a "rich" attitude. Resourcefulness is masked by pretentions. Oh, and they talk in taglish.

2. They contantly boast their material wealth and possessions. They especially share stories on how it makes them appear more influential, rich and powerful. Most of the time they go to the ends of exploiting them even though people around them don't seem care anymore.

3. They could be immature. They test other people's beliefs, backgrounds and status as their brand of entertainment. They do this in public places with a smile. They would always want to assert themselves as the better ones sounding and looking intellectual.

4. They are mostly brand conscious and every chance they get to proclaim their newly acquired branded material, they would.

5. They are good social climbers. They camouflage well in highly influential groups. They study, adapt and bend to the higher people to be accepted in the elite circle. Exclusivity is what attracts them.

These people usually hang out in clubs and bars. They are particular about the crowd and the place. They are very picky and meticulous in their social lives. They usually smoke. They drink and they try to notice almost everybody to increase the illusion of popularity. These people dress well according to fashionable conventions. Noticeably though, they are mostly educated in prominent schools and at some point established in their respective careers.

These people are clever, and if not for the consuming air in the brain, they could've been my type of company. But ego gets in the way and it's a major turn off for people like me who would like to mind their own business and not be judged by my alma mater, my watch brand or the car I drive. These people like trivial things and by talking material nonesense, which is fun at first but tiring at the end. My patience with these people is very short and through time and constant exposure, I can now tend to spot them easily and immediately spare myself from a possible social meltdown