Karenne’s comment that I was missing out on the Twitter party and my reply that I had never been any good at house parties has got me wondering whether the metaphor can be taken any further (because you can never stretch a metaphor too far). There are certainly some similarities with me. I tend to find myself a comfortable spot on the sofa or in a corner and talk to whoever is next to me until they manage to drag themselves away to mix a little more, and when I’m not talking to anybody I’m quite happy to look through people’s book and CD (if such a thing still exists) collections. Similarities there with my total lack of interest in what kind of blog posts are most popular and writing about whatever I’m thinking about and avoiding large online groups of people. I seem to be able to make people laugh after a couple of beers but have a tendency to get into too deep conversations too early in the evening, and even the interesting or funny things I say tend to be conversation stoppers (hence the lack of comments on the blog??) When it is my own party I spend zero time decorating the place and let people introduce themselves and generally leave them to it, hence my lack of Youtube vids etc and several days in a row when I can’t even be bothered replying to comments on my own blog.
Karenne, if I’m not mistaken, would be one of those people who not only gets to know everybody at the party but also helps them get to know each other, but without being a shallow networker in any way. Those idiots from job sites who keep offering me dull blog guest pieces would be the shallow networkers. Sandy McManus would be the guy next to the beers in the kitchen that everyone found hilarious but vaguely unsettling.
And you?
Hi Alex,
I’ll let you in a secret… which means of course that I’ll let everyone else who reads your blog in on the same secret (man, if you just spent some time in BELTfree I could say this in private…)
I’m shy.
I’m coming out with this because this it’s the second time in the last couple of days that I’ve read that I’m a networker… Not that I mind, it’s just so weird.
I did a personality test a few months back which put me as being an introvert (mad creative was also on the list) who has mastered the art of appearing to be an extrovert.
That came from teaching to be honest ’cause you have to make it fun …as we all know.
But really, I’m a curl up with a good book (blog these days) kind of person and don’t like loud people and am very philosophical – you think you can say some things that are too deep… I wrote a whole screenplay on the purpose of life and the questions of destiny…
Hmmm, the introducing everyone at a party… LOL that’s simply so that I don’t have to stand against the wall and pretend to be sipping a drink I don’t really like drinking.
Aah, the hats we wear! Na ja
Happy, happy Monday, Alex – really enjoyed my cup of tea and visit on over to your place.
K
This describes me perfectly as well. My teaching personality and my day to day personality are completely different. I would rather be at a coffeeshop alone reading a book than at a party.
re: twitter – I dismissed it when it first came out, but decided to give it a try when I needed to network in my 2nd career (web development) in which I didn’t actually know anyone in the field. it has since become incredibly valuable to me. If I were still blogging seriously on ELT I would definitely be tweeting as well.
Hi Karenne
I did specifically say you weren’t a networker (which is an insult in my vocabulary). Perhaps “online hostess with the mostest” is the best way of describing it. From your comment it seems like that might be your party self as well. When you’ve completed my interview we’ll know everything about you!
Hi Sean
Good to see you active in TEFL blogland again. So, if you were at a party… and how is that similar to your online self?
I think I come close to Karenne. . . except I’m an introvert who’s mastered the art of looking like an introvert. I don’t really do house parties, because I wind up drinking to fast (to have something to do) and tend to make myself a whisky and settle in with a good book.
I’m crazy and funny in my ‘safe zones.’ (That includes my family, anywhere my wife is and, now, work.) But other than that, I’d be the one at the party either drinking too much. . . or joining only the groups of people where I already knew someone.
Now I’m going to spend all day wondering how that’s reflected in my blog. (Actually, I hope the day has some distraction built in.)
At a house party I’d like to think I’m somewhere between Paul Daniels and Jack Daniels. As for my online self, I fall into the category of being one of the ‘shallow networking job site idiots’
Alex,
I dont’ go to parties. Parties mean having to actually talk to real people. Yuck.