Island Girl

I’m not sure what my dealio is lately, but I’ve been in serious solitary mode.

I’ve written about this before, about how I’m very much an introvert, and that I feel most relaxed when alone or with just Ken, or a few good friends. (Thank goodness Ken is similar in that regard...neither of us is the clingy type, and I don’t feel neglected because he works long hours. Some people can’t handle that, but it’s cool with me.)

I’ve been feeling a self-imposed isolation more acutely lately, though. I find myself just completely immersed in reading, whether it’s news stories online or books. I’m kind of burnt out on the Republican primaries (honestly, I can only take so much vomit-inducing—to borrow Santorum’s imagery—rhetoric, and this primary has it in abundance), but I’ve been reading a lot about the Supreme Court arguments on the Affordable Care Act. I really don’t know how it’s going to go down, and just like everyone else, I’ll have to wait until late June to hear the ruling.

I’ve been tearing it up when it comes to books, and I’m making very good progress on the book club list. I mix those on the list up with other books, ones about politics, science, atheism/religion, and some just for fun. I’m not sure what this sense of urgency is that I’m feeling, but maybe it’s a matter of there just being so much that I want to read. I’ve been doing well on my workouts, an hour a day six days a week (I rest on Sunday, haha), enjoying lots of cool new music I’ve been finding while I work out, and when it’s nice out, I sit out on the deck and...well, read. I find myself backing away from confrontation in discussions on Facebook, and I’m not sure what is causing that. I sometimes enjoy a good debate, but I find that online debates do little to further the discussion; there are some people who are able to rationally and reasonably discuss things, and I enjoy exchanging ideas with them. There are others who just kind of flip out and start attacking people (I’m still laughing over a friend of a friend calling me ‘lil gal’), and I’ve found that I can either go ballistic back and let them harsh my mellow, or I can walk away. I’ve been choosing the latter, because I just don’t like getting that upset—and my blood pressure doesn’t like it, either!

So I can honestly say that I feel very content and happy, while at the same time realizing that I need to be careful about not being too isolated. I’m not overly worried about myself, because I still have a great time getting together with Shane and Matt, or with many other family members and friends. It’s very easy for me to be insular, so I have to work at it to make sure I don’t isolate myself too much. It would be way too easy for me to turn into a crazy hoarding cat lady. Or even a cat hoarding crazy lady.

Bored? Does not compute.

I've spruced things up a little here at Cyber Nutwood. I still love the previous look and may eventually go back to something similar, but I've been in a retro mood lately so I decided to give it a retro vibe. The pattern on the header is the classic formica pattern with its amoeboid shapes (Look for it at your favorite diner--the pattern, not amoeba!), the font is called Diner (I've been looking for it for a while, and stayed up late one night and found it!), and the pink and turquoise are common Googie colors. I stuck with my gray background, though, because it's always been easiest on my eyes. Even at the lab, where we could customize our screen displays, I always wanted the pale gray because that caused the least eye strain for me.

One guy used to modify his screen so that it was bright yellow, red, etc. Very vivid colors. We had to deal with enough eye strain as it was, with lots of microscope work, computer work, picking tiny colonies off agar plates...why compound that strain on your eyes with a Dayglo, Technicolor computer screen?

Ken and I ran some errands today and the temperature was much more tolerable, despite a brisk wind. Night before last, it got down to 19 below in our city, which was the fourth coldest temperature on record. The town my folks live in got it even worse, getting down to 26 below! I hope that's the end of the intense cold for this season. That's just miserable, and dangerous for kids and the elderly.

We got stuff for stir fry today. Doesn't that sound good? These boots were made for wokkin'...sorry, I couldn't resist.

I've read a few comments recently in which people wrote that they were bored. Now I want all of you to stop that kind of talk right now, young men and young ladies! There is no excuse for boredom! A couple of years ago, our friend Indigo did a turn as Guest Editor on the old AOL Journals, and I can't tell you how flattered I was that she included me in her list. One of the things she wrote was that boredom was not an option in my world, and I've never forgotten that. In fact, I've adopted it as my unofficial mantra. I included it prominently in my new header.

There's a lot to be said for having the ability to self-entertain. When I announced my retirement at work, one person asked me, "Won't you get bored? I'd get so bored." When I see our neighbor out at the mailbox, he asks me, "Are you bored yet? I'd be really bored." Some of Ken's coworkers asked him, "What is she going to DO?"

I can truthfully say that since I stopped working 9 months ago, I have not had one single moment when I thought, "I'm bored." Cabin fever is something else entirely. I told Ken today that it felt good to get out--even though I've had no problem keeping myself occupied, it's a mental thing knowing that you can't get out, as opposed to not wanting to. But boredom? Not even an iota.

I think that temperament and personality has a lot to do with it. I'm very much an introvert, and I've written before how I get my sense of "recharging" from solitude and from peace and quiet. Others get their stimulation from interacting with others and recharge their batteries that way. I'm not saying either way is better--it's very different for different people. I just happen to be able to get my jollies out of pursuits and interests that others might find boring. I've got a freakin' library downstairs, so shame on me if I ever say I'm bored!

I don't know if it's something that can be learned. For those who are extroverts and need to interact with people often, I doubt if my way could ever be their way. I might just be hardwired to have a Low Entertainment Maintenance Level (LEML, and I just made that up, but I like it...do you have a LEML or a HEML? Maybe you have a MEML.). I don't know, but I'm grateful for it. It doesn't take much to amuse me, and it has served me well over the years.

Bored? Not this gal!