An interesting question

G'day all!

I know you want to see the goodies from Rhinebeck but I am still getting photos and reading through some interesting emails.

We've been discussing extraversion and introversion. It seems that extraverts need people and extreme extraverts are the ones who tend to do extreme sports - they need the extra thrills just to get a little excitement. They need lots of stimulation. Introversion means that you do not need lots of constant interaction with people (and for some lots of activities) to maintain your mental balance. I tend to think of the British Stiff Upper Lip (and the Brits themselves) as tending to demonstrate introversion, whilst loud, brash Americans are the image of extraversion. Of course there are introverts and extraverts everywhere - it is normal. Introversion is practically considered a pathology these days - it is something that needs to be treated. One of my friends, K, asked "Does this mean that introverts have a greater chance at happiness because they are not constantly restless, or is that another issue altogether?"

Of course introverts get constant outside stimulation but we don't seek it in the same way as extraverts do. Extraverts need human interaction on a very regular basis. I watch my husband. If he is unable to talk to people (except me and I don't count cos I am part of him apparently) then he goes bonkers! He becomes lonely and sad. He goes introvert and then the fun starts. He needs human interaction, preferably in person but online helps given noone to talk to i person (except the aforementioned spouse). He does need some cave time but compared to me...

Have I mentioned I am an introvert or is that obvious?

If I have a day where the most I get to chat with someone is saying thanks at the checkout, then it isn't a disaster, I don't get sad, I don't get lonely, though the next day I am more likely to wander off to a place where I do get to interact more with people, preferably people I like (hi LYS!). If I go to a party or a social event three times a week then I am totally over being social. Heck, sometimes once is enough! I don't enjoy having to be on display and talk to people all the time. I like being in my own little world and doing things I like to do. At Rhinebeck I wanted to see stuff and not chat all the time but peoples wanted to chat cos they know each other and see each other maybe twice a year, so I ended up wandering off on my own, finding a friend from Fort Collins, buying a lot of fleece from her and doing stuff on my own. Very typical of an introvert - one or two people at a time are fine, a crowd isn't, especially when you don't know the people. That was fine by me cos I had not experienced the place before. I know for many people meeting up with friends *is* the experience but for me, having to think about what I am saying, filtering it for naughtiness an/or impoliteness and/or snarkiness gets a bit difficult and I need time out to recover. (I still have difficulty not saying "Where's the dunnies?" and the T-word that offends more Americans than the worst cussing you ever did hear!) Looking at stuff by myself is a good way for me to recover from Too Much Social Interaction. So is sitting and knitting or spinning or gardening - solitary activities (that can be done in a group admittedly but it is hard to knit with other people holding the needles for you!) I was always the kid who liked following the ant trails or finding bugs or growing plants. It wasn't that I did not have outside stimulation, I just didn't need lots of people or lots of excitement. Riding the old trike (ie no brakes) down the steep hill I grew up on was plenty terrifying enough for me. Especially given the car park at the bottom of the hill was half gravel....

So are introverts happier within themselves? Are they less restless? Are they more contented? Wikipedia says no (scroll down some) (computer says... no). What are you and are you happy being who you are?

I am quite sure that I am happier and/or more contented than DH. He is constantly seeking something, something to fill the need in him. I don't seem to have that same drive or craving.

I shall return with pics of stuff interesting to knitters and spinners! Honest! Well maybe I'll find something else to yab about. Oh, and that sting the other day? I am almost sure it was a type of sweat bee. It was hot on ?Thursday? and I was sweaty and it must've been lapping up salt off my arm. I think it was orange and green instead of yellow striped and green cos it was half squashed. We don't have sweat bees in Oz. I obviously didn't die from it and it now looks like a little scab, not some large and life-threatening lump :-)

anon!