Thanks for inviting us, Solitary Soul! I'm gonna take the opportunity, and anybody who sees this as way too long can just skim or skip me...
Anbody else out there feel bad talking about themselves, and yet strangely really want to at the same time? I guess it's just the act of putting all the stuff you think about all the time on the outside: it's good stress relief. The brain gets convinced that since it wrote something down and exposed it to the public, it must be someone else's problem now... I guess that makes sorta sense. Either that, or Cary Grant was right and it's just the narcisist in all of us clawing to get out and terrorize the people around us! ;D Anyway: for those of you with a lot of time and patience, preferably suffering from heretofore incurable insomnia... I present the intro-survey responses of your radioactive weasel of a co-member:
Are you in school?... College?
I'm starting art college this fall... I have to share a room, ugh.
Not an ideal situation for a shy introvert.
... living with your parents/grandparents?
with my parents
... unemployed?
yeah, but in the fall I have work study, which is almost like being employed, except no interviews, and I dunno if they're actually allowed to fire me
... married?
no
... children?
no... and would I really want to pass on these genes to unsuspecting little children, anyway?
... an escapee from a mental institution?
still living in one, if my sister's presence is any indication
... a troll living under a bridge?
not witty enough to think up anything amusing
Age? 18, though I look about 14 in face and form, and often feel like it, too
Male or female?
female
What are your interests? ... hobbies? ... what do you like to do for fun?
I like writing and art, although both can be difficult when I haven't got enough motivation; I like to read a bit, though not as much as I used to; and I have a newfound love of the internet ever since I got my own internet connection. I like to play video games some of the time--especially the more recent Zelda games because of the atmosphere of combined innocence and gravity, I think.
What part of the world do you live in? Maryland, in the US
Are you living in a town, or an unincorporated rural area?
the suburbs
Do you like music? ... favorite album? ... favorite song?
I like music, not all music... in particular I like some Celtic type stuff, and alternative rock, and some classical music, ... But I don't really have favorites, so much... I like the two Third Eye Blind CDs I have, and I like some movie soundtracks a lot, including Lord of the Rings, of course; and Pirates of the Caribbean; and I've been meaning to see about Sleepy Hollow's music, cause it's very atmospheric and all of that.
Favorite singer/musical group?
don't really know
Favorite movie?
I think maybe
Death Trap, although I like a lot of movies.
What is the nature of your shyness? ... is it preventing you from achieving your goals in life? ... what ARE your goals in life (if any)?
I am very bad at taking part in groups and in making friends "from scratch," you might say. I used to be incredibly quiet in school, and now I'm just very- to medium-quiet, I think. A number of people still seem to treat me as though I am retarded and will only be able to understand English if it's spoken cheerfully, clearly, and somewhat slowly.
Shyness is a big hindrance for me in the goals of having a significant other and friends I can relate to. But in my goals that don't involve relationships, I guess it's not quite so bad. I want to--hope to--do something in writing or painting in the future, and in these fields, past work does a lot of the talking for you (for better or for worse), so it's easier in that way. That's why I'm quite glad to have a bit of ability in these areas (see! I'm not bitter about
everything )
What is the nature of your relationship with your parents?
pretty good, though their habit of playful teasing makes me reluctant to really confide in them
Have your parents been able to maintain the viability of their relationship?
yeah
If they have seperated/divorced, how old were you when it happened? ... and did it have a major impact on your own life?
they haven't, so it couldn't
Did you have a strict upbringing? ... are your parents over-protective?
My parents have never really been strict, mostly because I never gave them cause to be so. I think my mom is a bit overprotective; she always seems exasperated when, once in a blue moon, I actually want to do something with a friend. My dad is the opposite, though; when I tell my mom I'm going to a movie, her response is rolling eyes and a cold, "Alright. I guess it's ok. If you
really want to." My dad says, "you don't have to come home right away, you know. Have some fun." So even though I don't chat very much with my dad (he's non-shy, but an introvert), I often identify with him more.
Any siblings?
I have one sister who is two years younger than me and is one of the most terrifically self-centered, illogical people I've ever known--exactly the personality type I can tolerate least. She's the kind of person who you can't play games with, because she's as nasty a winner as she is a loser. I also have two brothers, one four years younger, the other seven years younger. They're normal siblings: we annoy each other sometimes, but basically we have fun.
How many friends do you have? ... any of them that you would consider "close?"
I probably have about four friends, people I could call on the phone but wouldn't necessarily; one of these is a really close friend that I've had since elementary school, when she brazenly declared as I sat by myself, "I'll be your friend!" Lol. The best thing about this friendship is that we can each go off on ranting trips and the other one listens sympathetically. She is very much an extrovert, though, so although we think about many things in the same light, our lives and our personalities are vastly different.
Have you ever been in an intimate relationship? ... still a virgin?
Still very much a virgin; no intimate relationships at all, though I can tell you, I am trying! I actually asked a guy I like to the movies, and it was so hard I felt like I was going to explode in the middle of my sentence; I don't know, now, how I ever found such courage. He said sure, to my pleasure and surprise; however, since I was unclear about my intentions, a couple of other people ended up coming with us, and he's now one of my friends, and doesn't seem to understand how I feel. If he does, he's carefully avoiding addressing the issue.
So, I'm not getting anywhere with the "intimate" part, though I'm pleased to say I
have forged a "relationship"--a friendship, which is really good for someone like me.
Were you/are you a target for bullies in school? ... held up for ridicule?
I've been made fun of before, but I was never picked on with regularity. I can only think of one, maybe two kids who were really taunted to this extent. I don't really know why I wasn't one of them, since one of these guys was almost as shy as I was. I guess, though, that people often did annoyingly express gleeful astonishment whenever I spoke up more than they were accustomed to hearing, from me. As for being held up for ridicule, I
still remember when my teacher in second grade forced me to stand up and say, "I can speak for myself." Teachers can be worse than the students, and I gather from some of the posts I've read on this site that this is a fairly common occurrence.
Are you over-weight? ... under-weight? ... physically disfigured?
I think I'm about 5'2", around 100 lbs, so I'm an ok weight, though I object to the thoughtless way in which my body has decided to distribute it. My back is "slightly curved," so I always look a little dumpy despite not being overweight; I've got a slightly squinty left eye, and if I could change just one thing, I'd at least want symmetrical "windows to the soul..." Also, my waist is strangely somewhat asymmetrical as well. Like someone else said, sometimes I think I am really icky-looking, and at other times not so bad. I think, in the end, I'm just very ordinary-looking, much to my dissapointment. Looks are still so very important; it sucks to be not pretty.
... handicapped? ... speech impediment? ... poor eyesight (requiring thick glasses)?
not handicapped; I, too, trip over my words sometimes when I'm nervous, but it's not too bad; and my eyesight is very bad, but thankfully I've got contacts. I try not to wear my glasses in public because my nose is sort of crooked at the top and it makes my glasses look skewed.
Many apologies for being so long-winded! I never know when to shut up, or what to edit out; can't seem to curb my tendency to write a lote more than necessary.
Maybe I've at least helped you pass the time, though, huh?