A Few Things
Having spent yesterday afternoon getting my yearly dosage of the extended paternal family, I need to talktype about some of the things that bug me about them.
-The reaction to Yes, I am bringing my cat to Iowa with me. From my perspective, that's not... optional.
-The reaction to No, I have not actually visited the University of Iowa campus. I was the same way about Rochester: I'm not going for the scenery, I'm going for school.
-My own reaction to cousin Julia, who has Aspergers, and therefore gets away with spending family get-togethers reading a book and not talking to anyone. I do not deny that I resent her, nor do I deny that it's because I am insanely jealous. Because everyone accommodates her and it never even occurred to anyone to accommodate me. When I was kid, I would have killed to have been able to just read at family gatherings. There were even a couple times yesterday when I caught myself staring enviously. And then Aunt Louise is complaining about how Julia says she's happier not socializing, and I find myself trying to point out that that is, in fact, a valid lifestyle choice without mentioning that it is, in fact, my lifestyle choice. I mean, I get the push to make her be able to interact with people enough to be employable. But, you know, I take my anti-anxiety meds, and I go to work, and I deploy my coping mechanisms. And then I spend the majority of my free time hiding out in my apartment with my cat and interacting with people via the buffer provided by the internet because that's what I like to do. So now I'm mad at myself for not admitting that this is how I live and that I'm happier this way. And while I do bust out the occasional [in-person] social interaction, if Julia is happier to not, then that's fine too.
But yeah, as far as family goes, I think I'll stick with my sister and "cousin" Skip.
When you're in trouble, you can call DW.
-The reaction to Yes, I am bringing my cat to Iowa with me. From my perspective, that's not... optional.
-The reaction to No, I have not actually visited the University of Iowa campus. I was the same way about Rochester: I'm not going for the scenery, I'm going for school.
-My own reaction to cousin Julia, who has Aspergers, and therefore gets away with spending family get-togethers reading a book and not talking to anyone. I do not deny that I resent her, nor do I deny that it's because I am insanely jealous. Because everyone accommodates her and it never even occurred to anyone to accommodate me. When I was kid, I would have killed to have been able to just read at family gatherings. There were even a couple times yesterday when I caught myself staring enviously. And then Aunt Louise is complaining about how Julia says she's happier not socializing, and I find myself trying to point out that that is, in fact, a valid lifestyle choice without mentioning that it is, in fact, my lifestyle choice. I mean, I get the push to make her be able to interact with people enough to be employable. But, you know, I take my anti-anxiety meds, and I go to work, and I deploy my coping mechanisms. And then I spend the majority of my free time hiding out in my apartment with my cat and interacting with people via the buffer provided by the internet because that's what I like to do. So now I'm mad at myself for not admitting that this is how I live and that I'm happier this way. And while I do bust out the occasional [in-person] social interaction, if Julia is happier to not, then that's fine too.
But yeah, as far as family goes, I think I'll stick with my sister and "cousin" Skip.
When you're in trouble, you can call DW.