I've been binge watching "Friends." Yes, I hopped on that bandwagon. I shall say it is a pretty good show. I can see how creators grabbed inspiration from an urban TV sitcom known as "Living Single."

But to the point, there was an episode that had me somewhat question the human condition. Chandler Bing is the very sarcastic and often funny one. He reminds me of Martin from the "Martin" TV show. His gestures and need to pick at each and every one of his friends in a very sarcastic manner are closely similar. Chandler decided to lie to Joey, the more handsome one, about not being able to go to the Knicks game. “They're courtside seats," said Chandler in awe and extreme disappointment. Instead of telling the truth that Monica, his wife, was ovulating and they are trying for a baby every chance they get, he did what men often do. He lied his way out only to find himself in an even bigger mess. Eventually, Chandler told the truth and lucky for him ended up going to the Knicks game out of guilt. Typical human nature.

Why couldn't he just tell the truth from the beginning? Why do we make it so difficult for the truth to be told? What Chandler said had me thinking: is it usually better to lie than to have a complicated conversation?

Chandler lied to avoid the conversation about why he couldn't go to the game as opposed to just not being able to go. I'm assuming that is the difficult conversation he was trying to avoid. But is that more difficult than having the conversation about why you lied in the first place? I don't think Joey would've been completely hurt if Chandler had just told the truth, but the way the world works is that we seem to subconsciously crave going around roundabouts (the lies) as opposed to taking the straight road (the truth). We think of the consequences while we are going through them instead of avoiding those consequences in the first place.

I know it is only a TV show, but if your impulse leads you to lie about the simplest things, what about the most difficult conversations, like a doctor avoiding the conversation of cancer with his patient, or my grandmother's children avoiding the conversation that her nephew in Haiti died after 3 days of speaking to him.

The reflex is often to lie, but is not telling the truth another form of lying? Maybe we are just not asking the right questions.

I often find myself in complicated situations where I question my ability to be honest, like scenarios that involve me having to create these white lies in order to find a way out. Instead of telling your boyfriend you’re chilling with a guy friend, in order to avoid any bumps down this fictional yellow brick road you’d tell him you're hanging with the girls, sipping wine. What are the chances of him finding out? Or so you'd think. Or instead of telling your friend you really just don't want to go out, you avoid them or come up with this lie that you're doing something else.

Recently I lied about something very simple, but it was truly to avoid that complicated conversation where I'd probably seem like the bad person. I could've just told the truth but I didn't. I, like Chandler and many others, chose to maneuver around these roundabouts. I can't say I regret lying, but so far I have yet to face the consequences of it and hopefully I continue not to.