BBQ

I went to a barbeque at my brother’s house Sunday afternoon. I thought it was going to be a family thing but it turned out to be mostly co-workers of my brother and his wife. Interesting that I had just spent time reading up on personality types as a result of coming across the quiz I mentioned below, because it turned out to come into play today. I mentioned being an ‘E’ for extrovert but I am really just slightly so. I know how to socialize and definitely in a work environment am willing and able to be charming and conversational. It also helps that the conversation is usually relevant to work in some way. But put me in a setting like today where I don't know anyone and after a little while I have to retreat to sanity somewhere. So, after spending as close to an “appropriate” amount of time as I could take, I escaped into the house for a bit. No sooner did I do that, than my 13 year old nephew plopped down on the sofa across from me looking just as weary. He is a great kid and although I have no idea what his personality type is I can guess it would be an ‘I’ something. We were just starting a nice chat when from outside his dad (my brother) bellowed in through an open window that he should stop hiding and being anti-social. My nephew yelled back that he had just come inside and we continued our conversation. A little while later my sister-in-law popped into the kitchen for something and said essentially the same thing to him. I asked why them why they were harping on him about being anti-social and was told that part of it was because a girl he liked was at the bbq and they didn’t want him hiding from her. The other part was that they thought he spent too much time alone and would rather he be interacting with everyone. Even if he wasn’t already an introvert, did I mention he is a 13 year old boy?

His dad is a big time extrovert and was a major flirt since he first noticed girls, so I can understand why he doesn’t understand. I've thought of sending him some of the info on personality types and see if I can get him to read it. It probably would help him understand his son a bit better.