Here are two great posts busting some myths about introverts. We’re not distant, or aloof, or weird. Maybe a little slow, ok, but we are being thoughtful. And in a world that is speeding along, maybe a little slowness is a good thing.

I might have, but I’m too lazy to check. Anyway, this is a good reminder of what we can be like. Pay attention to who the introverts in the pictures are. Surprised?

(as an aside, wow, Meryl Streep is hot…)

The Introverts Strike Back.

If you want to be a racist, fine, be a racist. Don’t threaten me, and I’ll stay on my side of the street. But for the love of God and all’s that’s right, THINK BEFORE OPENING YOUR DAMN MOUTH!

BNONews.com – First in Breaking News.

When I was a junior in highs school, we all got class rings.

And of course, I ended up losing mine. Where, I don’t know, maybe in the house, but I fear it landed in the trash. Since we didn’t have much, that was a huge deal. Those things aren’t cheap.

Now, while Mom was mad as a hatter at me, she did something I wasn’t sure she’d do. She bought me another one. This one, I made sure I held on to.

Until I went to college. But this time, no do-overs, since I moved on to another place. But over the years, whenever I came home, I wondered what happened to it.

One day when my mom was cleaning a room in my grandmother’s house, what did she find? A tarnished class of 1990 ring with my name on it. I’ll probably clean it.

But hopefully I won’t lose it this time.

If the man was to wear whatever jeans he wants to wear, I say let him. He’s earned it.

Robin Givhan: Can Obama Elevate the Look of Presidential Downtime? We Can Only Hope. – washingtonpost.com.

Coat hooks.

You come home after work, or going out, and you put your coat on a hook, and the coat stays there, right?

Instead of a coat, picture negative thoughts. Like mine…

You’re a black man, you should be… (insert some dumbass stereotype)

You’re 37, you should…(insert some screed about what’s appropriate for my age)

You’re a man, you should be..(insert some dumbass stereotype about what guys should do with women)

Note that I negative thoughts–show me someone who doesn’t. I’m human, it happens. But I notice something–they don’t hang around. They make an appearance in me, then they just seem to move out, replaced by stronger, more positive thoughts. There’s no place inside me for the negative thoughts to take roots, and that’s the key.

The  mind, the heart, the soul, they are all fertile ground. What is good grows well in it.

lol…

I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognized wiser than oneself.
- Marlene Dietrich

The heart is forever inexperienced. – Henry David Thoreau

(note–I’m posting TFTDs because I’m tired and don’t feel like writing)

Silence is argument carried out by other means. – Che Guevera

3 inmates break out of Belgian prison in daring helicopter escape – Yahoo! Canada News.

Ricky Williams has always been a fascinating guy to me. Yes, he is a good football player, but you could tell that his sole reason for being is not the game–good for him. Unlike most players (I would hazard to guess), his identity, who he is, is not bound up in football. A hard thing to believe these days. Namaste to you, Mr. Williams.

Ricky Williams Is Hoping to Heal Others, and His Image – NYTimes.com.

I don’t know if there’s really a call needed for such a movement, but the points made here are great ones.

Alone but not Lonely: A Call for Introvert Rights – Travis D’arby – Open Salon.

It’s not going to happen. Really. It’s not going to happen. Go back to your homes.

This poses many good environmental/transportation questions. But it ain’t happening, so calm down. Central Park will remain as it is now…

Central Park Airport Proposal Brings Internet Fame to Environmental Parodists – Fresh Greens (usnews.com).

The Unpriveleged Opinion: Dear Extroverts,.

I like golf (rooted for Tom Watson this weekend), like to get out on the driving range, but this is a little over-the-top…

The Associated Press: A long way from No. 1 to 18 at this golf course.

Progress isn’t made by early risers. It’s made by lazy men trying to find easier ways to do something.

— Robert Heinlein

In our society, we have a tendency to box people in who go against the grain, and Neil Armstrong was one of them. Instead of wanting, desiring, all of the adulation that came with such a singular achievement, he left NASA two years later, and taught at the University of Cincinnati. He didn’t need the accolades, or the fame or the celebrity. He desired to be normal. And for that, Mr. Armstrong should be saluted.

Neil Armstrong Took One Small Step, Then Made a Giant Retreat Into Private Life – washingtonpost.com.

I was born about three years before the first moon landing, and missed out on the excitement of it all. Here is a cool way to relive it. Yes, much of it right now is ambient noise and static. But hey, what are you gonna do when your 200,000 miles from home?

We Choose the Moon: Pre-launch.

Introverts can be a quiet sort, and that silence could denote we’re not engaged, not paying attention. Au contraire, mon frere….

Tips introverts can use to get heard – Small Business – Executive Inbox | Crain’s New York Business.

It is always dangerous to declare the end of something. History has a way of making us look like dullards. So let me become one…

I think that with the deaths of Michael Jackson and Walter Cronkite, we may have tie a ribbon around this era. We are seeing the last of the people who could command power and attention on their own without the incredible levels of scrutiny they surely would have if they came up today. The prevalence and the diffusion of media now makes it impossible to declare anyone the King of Pop or the Most Trusted Man in America.

Is the Era of the Great Man over? Probably. Maybe that’s ok–technology has a democratizing effect. But it can have–has had–a coarsening effect on our discourse, and our need to out-snark, out-yell and out-pontificate has exploded. Jackson probably couldn’t sell 100 million copies of a single album now–and survive the allegations thrown his way. Cronkite could have declared Iraq a stalemate, but it would have been drowned out by partisans questioning his patriotism. Cronkite declared Vietnam a stalemate, and President Lyndon Johnson reportedly said if I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost middle America.

Maybe this, coupled with the economic struggle we’re in, herald a new age. Diffusions of power–economic, media, fame–leave us unmoored, adrift in a sea we have trouble making sense of. So, how to raise our sails in a difficult ocean? Here’s a question to answer a question…

What are your universal values? Some fashion has no staying power. Staying power, anchors are what these times call for.

Walter Cronkite Dies – CBS Evening News – CBS News.

It’s ok–needed, even–to think before you speak…;-)

Undo Send in Real Life – Peter Bregman – HarvardBusiness.org.

It’s been written that Neil Armstrong is an introvert, and this story is a pretty definitive read on that score. Even though he wasn’t interviewed for this–he rarely is–his humility, his humanity comes through.

Here’s a thought. Could anyone but an introvert have handled well the aftermath of such a singular achievement? Hmmm…

“I guess we all like to be recognized not for one piece of fireworks, but for the ledger of our daily work.”

via Original Moonwalker: How Neil Armstrong kept his feet on the ground despite becoming the most famous man on Earth – Science, News – The Independent.

A two-fer

Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself. – George Bernard Shaw

Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

A proposal is making its way through the Italian parliament that would fine bloggers if they didn’t remove offensive comments within 48 hours.

No. No. No.

I read many blogs a day, and some of the comments I see leave me cold and wondering what people can really be thinking. But to close off that valve for people to safely blow off steam is inviting trouble.

Italian bloggers strike | GlobalPost.

As an introvert, our energy is precious–we have to be smart about how it is sent out and how it is replenished. I’m not saying keep it in–the world can benefit from what we possess. We have to manage a gem of a resource.

It is amazing the inspiration you can get from what you read.

I was thinking that yes, I enjoy and love a good romp in the sack as much as the next guy, but–and maybe it’s me, but I think a certain amount of relaxation and concentration is essential for a great experience. After all, I want to please my partner, and there’s more than one way to do that. The body of a woman should be savored, not run through like Sherman tearing through Georgia. Like Dr. Ruth said, the most important sexual organ is the brain–and I try to use mine.

I’ve heard this speech four times today. It never gets old. Never.

I’ve donated a little bit to the Jimmy V Foundation today. It’s not much, but with cancer, every one bit counts.

I said it before, and I’m gonna say it again: Cancer can take away all my physical ability. It cannot touch my mind; it cannot touch my heart; and it cannot touch my soul. And those three things are going to carry on forever.

Here’s a story about France–and American football. Who says the french hate Americans?

As an aside, when I was living in Brussels, I went to only one sporting event–the World Bowl, back when NFL Europe was going. I remember the Berlin Thunder winning, and Coolio playing the halftime show. And the Amsterdam Arena was half-empty.

Football, American Style, Is Alive in France – NYTimes.com.

How many times did you want to curse today? Fess up, you know you wanted to. And science says it’s ok, curse away. What the church says, though, may be another matter…

Why the #$%! Do We Swear? For Pain Relief: Scientific American.

I heard this song last night on WRTI. Definitely not for everyone, but if you can get into it, it is a wonderful masterpiece of creativity and spirituality. The words sung in it are beautiful and uplifting….

There was a time, when peace was on the earth,
And joy and happiness did reign and each man knew his worth.
In my heart how I yearn for that spirit’s return
And I cry, as time flies,
Om, Om.There is a place where love forever shines
And rainbows are the shadows of a presence so divine
And the glow of that love lights the heavens above
And it’s free, can’t you see, come with me,

The creator has a master plan,
peace and happiness for every man
The creator has a working plan,
peace and happiness for every man
The creator makes but one demand,
happiness through all the land

Pharoah Sanders: The Creator Has A Master Plan.

Quote of the Week at Paulo Coelho’s Blog.

Introverts love differently. Of course we can be romantic and passionate just like everyone else. But after the fireworks die down (and they always do), then the realness of ourselves really shows. We may not be the most loquacious, but our hearts, our souls and our beings give to those we love. The ways we manifest it aren’t loud, but they are present. In our words, and the words of others, our hearts come out.

Sometimes on Saturday nights, when I get home late or can’t sleep, I turn on the radio to WXPN in Philadelphia and listen to Star’s End, an overnight show with ambient music. I’ve always liked that genre–it can be a tad inscrutable, but the soundscapes that are painted have always had an appeal to me. Little did I know that Philly was a hotbed of ambient…

Broad Street Review: Something different: Ambient/space music.