A lot of communication is now a lot less fun for me

[glowingfish]

I am not one of those people who has always "hated small talk", and I actually actively enjoy public speaking. For a lot of my life, when I was going and travelling different places, it was fun to find a stranger and see if we had common ground. Especially in my late teens and early 20s, when I thought it was fun to ride Greyhound buses across the country, I liked meeting eccentric characters and finding out their entire life story.

Now, meeting new people and talking to them feels like a chore. Most people's anecdotes and opinions feel stale and irrelevant. A big part of this, obviously, has to do with social and political changes in the US---there are so few neutral topics I can talk about before I start hearing something that is either stupid or objectionable. We used to be able to talk about the weather, at least, but I am never sure when I am going to start someone off on talking about HAARP. And then I smile and nod. Wonder what to say. A lot of times, it just doesn't feel worth it to me. I would rather put in my headphones (even though it causes ear problems) and tune out the outside world. 

(This also relates to my post about being "neuroskeptical", because my dislike of socializing is a recent thing, and caused by specific events in my life. It is a bit of a spiritual crisis, really, and not something easily categorized.)

Comments

[enigmacat]

Small talk is a day-by-day thing for me. Sometimes I can get a ton of mileage out of a drop in temps or anticipated tornado watch, but sometimes it's like trying to pull my own teeth. Anyway, the older I get the more I think the weather is a great topic. So far no one has brought up HAARP with me .. perhaps I'm just lucky.

[glowingfish]

I might be exaggerating a little bit about HAARP, maybe I am just paranoid. But yes, it can be a problem, sometimes, wondering what type of territory I am going to get into with what I hoped would be a simple conversation.

[enigmacat]

The landmine I wind up worrying about is global warming. I feel it's hotter than it used to be and summers are more difficult than they used to be for me personally. But a climate change denier can get a little shirty if I mention it.

[glowingfish]

Yes, that one is the most obvious one. Although there are some climate change deniers who believe it is HAARP that is doing it---that the US government is causing hurricanes with a radio array in Alaska.

[rafqa]

Wow, HAARP. This is news to me.

My initial guess that it stood for Hippie AARP was apparently wrong.

[glowingfish]

Glad to introduce you to another bit of internet craziness.

Besides, HAARP is a real thing. Just some of the theories about it are bonkers.

[death_beat]

I enjoy talking to new people still...but, I am usually in yoga groups though so we tend to align a bit more than I would with random strangers. I do love learning about others very much though. But I feel you about the smiling and nodding and feeling more drained if conversations become weird.

[glowingfish]

It could also be, I need to find different groups, or that I should think better of the people around me. I don't know why I got so tired. I mean I do, but I also don't.