INNIE OR OUTIE?

I have come to the conclusion that I am an "extroverted introvert". I can be outgoing, but, all in all, I am much more comfortable in my own company.

I, like you, only go to the stores when they are not crowded. A shop that is knee deep in people makes me extremely uncomfortable. I will not, as many women do, go shopping with other women. I want to go alone, wander around a bit if I want, buy what I choose, and get the hell out of there.

I like to walk by myself. This morning I walked to the gym. It was crowded, as it was closing early for the holiday. I was glad that I had my Walkman, as I could drown out the chatter of other people, and concentrate on what I was doing.

I find that I have little patience for large gatherings, even of people that I know. I may socialize well for a time, but long chunks of time with people give me a headache. Then I can't wait to get home.

I'm comfortable alone or in a group, altho' the ongoing conversation in my head can be quite unrelenting when around alot of people. So much irritates me. The older I get, the more judgmental I've become and that's not good, in my opinion. On various levels.
What fascinates me are people who have to have a crowd around at all times. Can't bear to be alone. My stepson is like that and he does have demons from his past that he's yet to deal with. I've always felt that his need to be around others keeps him from getting into his own head, which he so needs to do. Probably like that for others as well, who can't deal with being alone.

I find myself, like phoenix, to be a little of both, though I think I'm a 'happy medium'. I enjoy doing things alone - going to the store or to a park or vegging out at home. The alone times are few and far between as I've 2 kiddies and a 1 biggie at the house, but the times with crowds - are all to often. Daily at work and on the weekends church is a crowd - amusement parks are a crowd.

I can be comfortable in any setting mentioned above, but I tired quickly of the crowds and have to work hard to let the smile that's not inside show on the outside - I relish the moments I'm able to break away and breathe all by myself. Conversely, I would not want to spend all of my time alone, I like human contact.

I must say, about A2K, I feel it a crowd here - especially when a thread is lively and the posts are quick in coming. It's a pleasant, non-crowding crowd though, since it's virtual, and one which I can escape whenever. Sadly, all crowds - even virtual - are not so.

I wish I loved the human race.
I wish I loved its silly face.
I wish that when I looked at one,
That I could say, "What jolly fun!"

I didnt have my hand raised. why are you calling on me?

As brevity is reputedly the soul of wit, FM has shown himself the wittiest member here . . .

look into the Myers briggs scoring for group dynamics. The feds use it for profiling and industry uses it to predict outcomes of team efforts.
Introvert , to MB means that you derive most of your position from within yourself, and dont require constant input from others. Also, youll make a decision more quickly rather than just diddle with more and more data.
Im an iNTJ in MB speak. im a fan of this technique because it is fairly accurate.

However, i do like a symphony, or a jazz band in the flesh ,Mostly because there arent sound systems good enough to fully duplicate that sound.
Id rather walk by myself in an art show , I hate being lectured by someone who just read this stuff for the job interview.

I dont shop. Shopping is a past time when nothing else is available. Ahopping for food, not my yob. Ive been forbidden to go into a supermarket with a loaded sheckbook. Mostly because i will buy stuff just cause it sounds neat..

like Phoeniz sez "extroverted introvert"

Even a healthy extrovert must have some things they'd prefer to do alone. Strange, tho. No one has fessed up to being an extrovert yet. Perhaps true extroverts don't get enough stimulation online, huh?

I thought you were talkin about belly buttons, Innie, or outtie

Setanta, My friend once told me that I was a "see and be seen" type person. She was absolutely wrong. My avocation demanded that I be in crowds, but I always found one person to chat with.

One of my professors at UVA, conducted an experiment in bar behavior. All he did was sit at a bar and watch the people who came in and out and jot notes on a napkin. Never did see the results of that experiment. Wonder why?

Letty, there was an actual ethnography in the anthropology world called "Cocktail" or "Cocktail Waitress" I can't remember which. It studied, among other things, the art of flirting.

I'm a mix. In the BM test, which I get different results from whenever I take it, I often fall midway between the extremes. So, I'm right in the middle on the innie-outie scale and some days I go one way or the other. I can be exhausted by social gatherings, but I can be energized too, just depends.

Mostly, I'd say I'm an introvert. I can spend a day in my PJs with my animals with no other interaction that the computer or a good book. And I can only enjoy social settings for about 2 hours at best. I do think I'm becoming more extroverted as I age.

LittleK, The art of flirting? How provocative, and to think that all this time I thought it was innate. There is also an interesting theory called "The cocktail effect." It purports that when one is in a crowded affair and people are talking and laughing about nothing, the mention of your name can be heard above the cacophony.

It's not a guide to flirting, it anylizes the stages of flirting. Eye contact to breast brush.

eoe- I don't remember whether it was here or Abuzz, but there once was a popular thread about whether people on the forum were introverted or extroverted. As I remember, the vast majority of the people said that they tended to be somewhat introverted, although most enjoyed some socializing.

It figures. The true extroverts that I have known would not usually be happy sitting in front of a computer, writing to people. They would much rather be in crowds, at parties, and being with people, face to face, in general.

I like the internet, because I have a lot of control. When I want to "converse" with people, it is always there for me. When I have had too much, a flick of the switch will make it go away!

Phoenix - exactly!

innies and outies are all 'half' right;

in all things a ballance is the ideal (at least mine).

Set; your shopping early in the morning to avoid the crowds simply makes sense; however to let a little discomfort with closet agoraphobia rob you of the intense pleasure of being part of an 'event/performance', not obtainable from media of any quality level, makes none.
(And you have proven to me your ability to deal with lesser 'crowds' most eloquently!)

BGW, i am not entirely averse to the company of the rube, the quidnunc and the wiseacre, i simply experience, rapidly, the sensation that a little goes a long way . . . were i wealthy, i might afford the "reserved box," in which i could amuse myself with a pair of opera glasses to see the wiley clodhopper socializing in his natural habitat . . .


heeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheehee . . .

okbye

Here, here; didn't realize you were such a 'naturalist'. :wink: