I'm currently experiencing some odd passive aggressive behaviour from some people I share air with 8 hours a day, all because I'm not what you would call 'talkative'. I have always been one of the quieter types, preferring a book to a party, or a bookstore to a bar. Sure, I can say more than a couple words when I get into a conversation with the right person about the right topic, and I'm quite friendly when spoken to. But, in general, if I'm not currently talking to someone who isn't just talking for the sake of talking, or if I'm not engaged in some sort of customer service, I'm rather Callimachean when speaking outloud. And yes, I'm what many would call 'socially awkward', but that's really only when I'm in an awkward situation. Like this one. Nonetheless, since I don't feel that undoing almost 29 years of conditioning would be a useful exercise, and since I'm quite happy with who I am, I'm wondering if I should actively be doing something to help people understand that it's not them, it's me. Like designing some sort of clothing that both recognizes when someone thinks I should be talking and speaks for me, or has a built-in social media platform that tweets my thoughts through embedded LED lights and shows that I do actual engage in conversation with other real live people and am not, in fact, an antisocial hermit.
Having said that, if my clothing could tweet my thoughts, then everyone would know I think too many people have nothing intelligent to say, and that I don't give a flying baby seal what people think. Also, I now know that I am not built for the office environment, and I am perfectly okay with that.
(Photo of a relevant Westwood piece, originally posted
here)
