Talking to Strangers: An Introvert Hits the Streets: January 2014

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

An Obvious Distinction That May Be Escaping Us

Michael Grimm as himself, former Marine turned federal investigator turned Congressman turned goon.

Mark Harmon as Leroy Jethro Gibbs, former Marine turned federal investigator, turned introspective, large-hearted hero.

THIS IS REAL.

THIS IS TELEVISION.

"The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted." -- D. H. Lawrence

About Me Lately

When I started this blog in 2011, I'd been living in Bellingham, WA, a new town in a new state, for four years. I spent the first two years getting an MFA in fiction, and the second two recovering from this process. By the beginning of year five, I was walking my dog, worrying about my grown children, and writing with little focus. I got some help with the focus thing (if you need a coach, I know a good one), my kids solved their own problems, and I started coming out of myself a little. I went back to teaching for a year at a local community college, where I loved my students, my colleagues not so much. It probably doesn't take most people six years to fully relocate--to a new place, an empty nest, and life after the MFA, when all that's left is to sit down and write--but no one has ever accused me of moving fast. Now that I have placed my rear end in my chair, my introversion, which has always felt like a curse, feels like a blessing. I still need to hit the streets occasionally. This blog is one way to do that.

How to Talk to Strangers

1. Blurt something out. 2. Allow time for shock. 3. If no response, don’t give up. 4. Make a self-deprecating joke. (In my case, there's plenty of material.) 5. If you see a smile, even in the eyes, ask a question. 6. If no response again, walk away. (It looks better if you do something else first, like bend over to tie your shoe.) 7. Don’t be surprised if, when you run into this person a few minutes or a few days later, a conversation ensues, and this time you won't be the one who starts it. 8. Some people won’t have anything to do with you . . . ever.

Readers!

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

An Obvious Distinction That May Be Escaping Us

"The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted." -- D. H. Lawrence