Fact or Fiction: Is Karl Pilkington a character or a real person?

Does it really matter, though? Regardless of the possibility that Mr. Mystery Karl Pilkington may be a made up character, there’s just too much to appreciate about him. At least for me.

I was first introduced, like most Pilko Pump Pant fans, through the HBO series, The Ricky Gervais Show; and immediately, there was an instant connection to Karl’s perspective of the world. It was easier for me to relate to him because he is mostly misunderstood by his peers and his dire attempts to explain his views usually end up with laughter.

Mindless, but yet mind-opening, its hard not to agree with him when we look at the bigger picture of his worldly wisdom.

And this is what Karl Pilkington taught me.

“There are more idiots in the world than bright ones, but it’s the odd good one that makes a big difference.”

Strive to be the odd good one.

“You know how they say people have six senses? There’s loads more than that. [The ability to feel someone looking at you], that’s been around since man and dinosaur were knockin’ about.”

Our intuition is one of the strongest senses that we take for granted.

“Does the brain control you or are you controlling the brain? I don’t know if I’m in charge of mine.”

I don’t care what anyone says – Karl is on point with this question. I mean, do we really know whose making the decisions ? Like right now, I’m thinking of ways to not come off as an ignorant fool, typing away on my laptop, and it feels like I’m making the choice to do so, but how do I really know? Who’s to say? Science?

“Stay green, stay in the woods, and stay safe.”

He’s referring to chameleons here, but great life motto, either way.

“I find that if you just talk, your mouth comes up with stuff.”

People like to believe that being a “social butterfly” tends to come naturally, which can be true in some cases. Personally speaking, I have some characteristics of a shy person (though everyone in my life would state otherwise.) Meeting new people or engaging in conversations used to scare me to death, so, I would force myself to talk because awkward silence was even worse. Soon I realized that once you start talking, it’s pretty easy to find things to continue to talk about. Now, I can’t shut up.

“Any problem solved is a new problem made.”

Makes sense; anytime you think you’re done dealing with one problem, a new one arise.

“You never see an old man eating a Twix.”

I wonder if I’ll eat chocolate when I’m an old woman?Anyway, the deeper meaning here is the importance of eating right to live longer.

“If you don’t sleep you get run down. Sloths never get a flu, cos its good innit thats when your body’s replenishing.”

I am an insomnia sufferer, and sleep is something I wish I was able to do like a regular person. When I have too much on my mind, I can easily stay up for 2 days straight. I didn’t see it as a problem, and justified it with counting the amount of things accomplished during sleep strikes. That was, until I caught a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror after a recent binge. The dark bags underneath my eyes, and the pale, death color on my skin wasn’t the only visible issue. I began to notice how swollen and sore my throat felt, and the throbbing aches punching me in the back. Depriving myself of sleep was physically displaying symptoms as if I was a sick person. So Karl is right. Sloths never get the flu because they always get a proper amount of sleep.

“People who live in a glass house have to answer the door.”

If you put yourself out there, (almost like I’m doing with this blog), you can’t expect to never reap consequences or questions regarding things you say and do.

“You don’t have to do it straight away, but just do it before it gets really bad.”

Taking your time is fine, however, Karl warns of the dangers of procrastination. It’s okay to push things off for a bit of time, but waiting until the night before, or even worse, the day of, sets you up for disaster to take place.

“Stop looking at the walls, look out the window.”

Instead of thinking you’re stuck in a 8 x 8 cell, look at the beauty behind every obstacle that gets thrown your way. This is my interpretation of this quote, but I can see it going in other directions,

“The best thing you can do is look after yourself. Get on with it.”

Quit the pity party. It’s unhealthy. You always have to make sure that you are taken care of before anything else. What good are you to the people in your life, your career, and the world around you, if you don’t have your own back 1000% of the time? If it’s not fulfilling you in a positive light, do yourself a favor and move on. Let go.

“Treat the world like a head.”

You take care of your head by protecting it; like wearing a helmet during a bike ride, or going to the doctors for headaches. Karl is basically saying we should look after and guard our planet with the same basic intention we do with our heads. We would never pile garbage on top of our skull, so why do it to the environment?

“You won’t get anything done by planning.”

Sometimes you need to just do more, and talk less. If you spend more time planning something than you do taking action towards it, you won’t get anything done.

“It annoys me a bit how people like squirrels but not rats. at the end of the day they’re the same thing, except that squirrels have had a better upbringing.”

Accept people (and animals) for who they are, not what they look like. Karl should be the poster by for equal opportunity.

“I always have a problem liking things that I’m told I should like. This has been the problem with most of the Wonders I have seen so far. The fact that this one is called the ‘Great’ Wall of China annoys me. I’ll decide if it’s great or not. It might end up being the ‘All Right Wall of China’ to me.”

People should make decisions for themselves. Why is it that people want to tell you what you like and dislike? Everyone thinks differently so to assume really does make an ass out of me and you.

“I think people would live a bit longer if they didn’t know how old they were. Age puts restrictions on things.”

I’m constantly worrying about deadlines I set for myself, specifically when it involves writing. It’s hard to get out of the mentality that certain accomplishments or milestones should be met by a certain age. Sometimes we spend more time worrying than living because of these societal expectations.

“I was still using my eyes even though I had them shut.”

Close your eyes. You’re aware of your surroundings, though your eyes are shut, right? Just because you aren’t looking, doesn’t mean you don’t know what’s going on. Don’t deny your instincts.

“Why is it alright to be going around, going mental with a gun, shooting all the monkeys and killing them? Because one day we’re going to run out.”

This is why we should care about the extinction of animals. Once they’re gone, unless we start cloning the ones that no longer exist, then they’re lost forever. Future generations will only get to read about their past existence, just like the dodo bird.

“We’re just a weed in the universe.”

We’re a nuisance. Society impacts the environment in a negative way just like weeds do to a garden. We don’t allow the world to flourish because we’re here destroying it.

Thank you, Karl Pilkington. Fictional or not, I still appreciate the way you twist and turn your words in a way that makes me appreciate my quirkiness, or possibly lack of formal education.