My biggest question is: how do we fix it? People’s past experiences predict how they’ll treat people currently. People who treat others badly have a history that leaves them with wounds that prevent them from behaving in pro-social ways. All of these anti-social people (ASPs for ease in the rest of this post)—from sexual predators … Read more
This is something that I’ve thought of in defensive and angry contexts but am now thinking about when I’m not triggered… Some people who I talk to totally understand weird crazy shit in my brain. I can talk about a reaction to something that I know isn’t a rational or logical reaction, and they get … Read more
There is “common knowledge” about what the personalities are like in different parts of the country. This body of knowledge told me that the people in the northeast—where I’m originally from—are rude and standoffish and always in a hurry—and that life is slower and people are friendlier in AZ. I’m here to tell you that … Read more
As a child, I was an introvert and socially anxious and shy. As a result, I spent a lot of time watching. I was so anxious about making a social misstep that I watched and learned quite a bit about how other people interact (for better or for worse). As a result, I notice a … Read more
I’ve heard so many stories of people’s celebrations … so many stories of Christmases not exactly as planned but still lovely … of new beginnings … of “probably the lasts” … of new traditions with old people … of old traditions with new people … Thank you for sharing your stories with me. If you … Read more
While many of us have families that are less than ideal to spend time with, a couple of things have shown up lately that put some perspective on that. First, in my On This Day on Facebook, my post about Santa coming to school has shown up multiple times. (Different days for different years.) I … Read more
There are so many creative, often silly, sometimes ridiculous photos and videos that get passed around nowadays, and the response to many of them, from many people, is: “Someone has too much free time!” But you know what? If someone wants to use their time to create something that gives them joy to create and … Read more
I run cold. If I’m in a room with a lot of people and I’m comfortable, I assume that the majority of the people in the room are somewhere between a bit warm and uncomfortably warm. This is part of why living in Phoenix is a good choice for me (though the ridiculous amount of … Read more