Thursday, May 31, 2012

What do people most misunderstand about me?

People who meet me in real life frequently think that I am angry or unhappy, regardless of whether or not I'm smiling.  I've never understood why, and when asked, they've only ever said that my face always looks angry or unhappy.  I never see what they see.  It used to be something that would irritate me badly, to be in a great mood only to be asked, "What's wrong with you?"  Now that I'm older, I just figure that my mien scares off the people who aren't interested in seeing below my surface, for which I am somewhat thankful.

People who have only known me online often think I'm cold and unfeeling.  Perhaps this is because I choose to communicate in proper English, and I'm more comfortable when I am certain that what I'm trying to communicate is what I'm "putting down on the page," which translates to more formality than most people are used to with emails, Facebook or blog comments.  I do try to utilize emoticons, especially when I'm just not sure that what I'm saying is what they'll "hear."

In reality, I'm neither chronically unhappy nor cold or unfeeling.  I'm just a white chick with baggage.

I like the English language, the nuances of using it properly.  I love books.  I love learning new things.  I hate talking on the telephone.  I like sex and I'm not afraid to talk about any kind of sex there is to any person who brings up the subject, even if it's not a sexual activity in which I personally would indulge.  I love babies of all  shapes, sizes and species.  Except roaches.  I don't like any of those, babies or not.  I'm not a smiler or a laugher, so if you get either out of me, consider yourself among rare company.  I've made mistakes, some pretty bad ones, ones I'd rather people didn't know, but I'm also willing to share those mistakes when I see that someone may be able to take my lesson and use my consequences to avoid some particular pitfall in their own life.  I like proper pronunciation and enunciation, and have to work not to correct others' speech, since my only child is grown and out of the house now, and hers is the only speech which I had a right or responsibility to correct.

Do people often misunderstand you?


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