I move into my very first apartment on Monday! It’s an itty bitty little studio in a cute apartment complex. I really like and I’m SO looking forward to living on my own. After bouncing around from dorms to home to living with my boss to living with friends, the chance to have my own place sounds like paradise (despite not having my furniture and TV for a few weeks).
I can’t wait to go shopping for kitchen stuff and start decorating the place. My life in Atlanta is FINALLY coming together. Yay!
Good luck to my sister, the colorguard, their instructor and my best friend Brittany, and the whole band at State this weekend. I love the show and you guys are awesome! Kick Dunbar’s butt!
Here’s a video of the show, “Radiant Joy” from last week at quarterfinals. I just love this show. The pre-show music reminds me of the happy-go-lucky music from A Bug’s Life and Toy Story! (Wait…is it? Quick, somebody tell me.) Enjoy!
Introspection. You hear about it a lot in Objectivism. Oists talk about how difficult and long a process it is and how important it is to know thyself. And I totally agree. But what nobody ever says is HOW to introspect. This might sound kinda silly, but nobody ever tells you exactly how to think systematically and rationally. They just tell you to do it and call you out when you don’t get it right.
I’ve always found introspection hard. Yes I have a brain and I’m smart, but when I sit down to think about something, my mind often shoots out in a zillion different directions if I don’t have some kind of structure. Hence, it can take me a while to reach a definite conclusion. And thinking about myself and my personality has always been the worst. I’m with me all the time, so I see all sides of myself in all contexts. Pinning down myself, my traits, and my character has always been difficult. (Despite the number of Myspace surveys I’ve filled out!)
Enter Kelly and Jenn all a twitter (literally) about Myers-Briggs personality types. First, I was extremely confused why Twitter had suddenly erupted with all these letters. Then after reading I was mildly intrigued, but not at all sold. To me the personality type quiz was just another Facebook test, not really accurate, but fun to take and compare with friends. I got INTJ the first time and reading the personality profile I thought, “OH MY GOD THIS IS SO ME!” My friends who knew more about the types rolled their eyes in the background. And with good reason. I am so not an INTJ. But the fact that I jumped on the somewhat similar profile type indicated I didn’t know much about myself. And as I became more interested and knowledgeable about the types, I grew to learn myself better.
At the thrift store I happened upon a book called Do What You Are. It’s about using Myers-Brigg personality types to find a career that suits you. The first few chapters broke down each trait of the classic four-part personality types. It gave in depth descriptions of each of the types and provided examples of how a person possessing a certain trait might act. Then at the end of every chapter it presented a continuum between the two traits and you marked where you thought you fell on it, similar to this:
Rather than taking a quick test, I read about each trait and really thought about where I fit in on each continuum. After going through the the first few chapters, I pegged myself as an ENFJ. In the later chapters of the book there were in-depth profiles of each type, as well as a career profile giving examples of what each types strengths, weaknesses, likes, and dislikes were. Reading on, I didn’t identify much with the ENFJ profiles. I followed the book’s suggestion in this situation, which was to go back and read other profiles, changing out traits where I was borderline. After lots of reading and flipping back and forth, I decided upon INFP. It was the most like me, and reading through the career profile I had flashbacks to various working experiences which fit the profile almost perfectly. I hate conflict. I like flexible schedules. I work best when I think it’s in line with my deeply held values. I get caught up in ideas and skim over details. I prefer to work alone, but occasionally with others for meaningful feedback. Reading through the profile and doing some of the exercises I became more clear of what I needed in a job and I was clearly able to see why previous jobs were enjoyable or completely miserable. It was a revelation!
At the moment, this is where I think I fit into the types.
Since reading the book I find the Myers-Briggs types to be particularly useful in understanding myself. I think I’m Introverted, but only slightly. Still working that one out. I definitely straddle the I/E fence a lot. Different contexts bring it out one side or the other. For example, among friends or discussing something I really care about, I’m an ebullient chatterbox. But at a frat party I clam up and drift off into my own world. And in situations with new people, I can be equally shy or open. I sway back and forth and I’m still trying to figure it out.
I’m very Intuitive. I love big ideas and projects and often get swept away in my imagination of things. I tend to connect everything together by similar concepts and very rarely focus on minute details. I’ve found this can be both a very good and bad trait. The good: I can come up with super creative ideas and projects and see the bigger picture at the end. The bad: I tend to overlook reality or cut short projects when I get to the nitty gritty work.
I’m a pretty moderate Feeler. This is probably the most important trait I’ve discovered about myself. I’ve ALWAYS had issues dealing with my emotions and getting past them. Example: it took me a solid year to get over my first boyfriend and we only dated 5 weeks.In discovering that I’m a Feeler, I’ve realized the reason handling my emotions was always so hard is because I rejected that side of myself. I would never let myself fully experience a feeling and get it all out, thus it clung on inside me, bothering for months on end. Since learning about the personality types, I’ve discovered that when something happens, I need to have an emotional reaction right then and there, and let it be as intense as necessary. Over the past few months I’ve worked to do this and I’m much more emotionally stable!
And last, I think I’m a P, but only a little. Similar to Introversion/Extroversion, I’m on the fence when it comes to Perceiving/Judging. I’m a compulsive list maker and often need to know what is going to happen in the future, whether it be today, next month, or 10 years from now. But at the same time I can be very easygoing and I’ve really learned to just see where things go. The move to Atlanta definitely proves that. I also feel like I would be on time a lot more if I were very J. This one I still need to think on quite a bit.
I’ve also found the personality types to be incredibly useful in figuring out and dealing with other people. By taking the time to consider what type someone might be, I’m forced to think about their behavior and consider their motivations. By the end of the process I feel like I understand them better and I know how to interact with them. For example, I know Kelly’s P-ness is huge (hehe), and so I expect her not to want to plan things out very far in advance. With that knowledge, I know we’re more likely to hang out if I don’t call her several weeks out. Understanding her personality type leads to more fun and less stress. Hooray! Another example: Reid is introverted. Not as much as most other math dorks, but he is definitely in his head. Which means he is often oblivious to the outside world and misses things. Instead of getting flustered, I know he just needs to be reminded sometimes of certain things. Again, understanding him and his type reduces the stress and makes our relationship move much smoother. The more I talk and think about the types, the more discoveries I make in myself and other people. My dad and I had a big discussion about it in the car and telling him about it helped us mend some rifts that were caused between the clash of him being a Thinker and me being a Feeler. Awesome. Sauce.
I’ve found the personality types to be a great tool for understanding personalities and improving relationships. I consider the types a guide for understanding people, but not a dogma. I think people can change and their types along with them. But overall, the types are a very Good and Useful Thing.
So, I’m a figure model. An art model. A nude one. And I’m gonna write about it soon(ish). (Like after I move into my apartment.)
So ask me lots of interesting questions and I’ll make a big blog post about it.
I love this verse:
Of course I was raised to gather courage from those
lofty tales so tried and true
If you’re able, I’d suggest it ’cause this
modern thought can get the best of you.This rather simple epitaph can save your hide, your falling mind
Fate isn’t what we’re up against there’s no design, no flaws to find
This was my Christmas wishlist, but now it’s just an ongoing wishlist for myself and others.
Stuff:
Pride and Prejudice Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Art:
Girl with a Pearl Earring by Vermeer
Books:
Nourishing Traditions Cookbook
Alberto Vargas: Works from the Max Vargas Collection
A Time It Was: Bobby Kennedy in the Sixties
The Small Stakes: Music Posters
DVDs:
Last weekend I drove home to Kentucky for a whirlwind of events I absolutely must go to, seeing friends and family, and catching up. I was quite busy, but it still managed to be a vacation for me i.e. I got some sleep.
I started off in Bowling Green visiting my college friends. I’ll admit, at the very beginning of the trip, I was very nostalgic. I caught up on all the PJ gossip and goings on in my friends’ lives. The town was just as cute as ever with the trees were bursting with color and a refreshing chill in the air. I visited all my old haunts and started to really miss it. It was all so familiar and seemed so much easier than my life in Atlanta has been going. I just wanted to grab a blanket and coffee and curl up with some English homework under one of the orange trees. I also missed being around people my own age. My friends in Atlanta are awesome, but they’re all at least 10 years older than me with houses, partners, and sometimes kids. It’s great because I can talk to them more and they give me great advice, but the downside is that in contrast to their stable lives, I often feel even more off kilter and juvenile. It was really nice to socialize with people in my position of still figuring it all out.
I was also feeling very jealous during the visit. All my friends have apartments. Even some of the ones younger than me who should be in dorms have their own places. Since starting college it was always my goal to move out of dorms as soon as possible and get one of the quirky old houses surrounding campus. I found them so charming with their 20 layers of paint, weird layout, and large windows that let in the most amazing morning light. My friends were living that dream I once had while I’m in Atlanta still trying to get on my feet. Suddenly my choice to move didn’t seem so great. Or so adult.
But as I spent more time in BG and settled back into it, I remembered why I left. At one point during the day I got bored and couldn’t think of much to do. And then I remembered how small BG is and how limited the opportunities are. In Atlanta I’m always super busy. I went to a party and realized it was exactly the same as a zillion other college parties I had been to. I remembered Stoney’s Pub parties with all my friends and longed for that instead. I realized that while I missed a lot from Bowling Green, it wasn’t meeting my needs like Atlanta did. As I left, my decision to move to Atlanta was not shaken, but solidified.
I finally got home. It was great. I really miss my family and their crazy antics. I miss the family dinners that always turn into a comedic argument of playful accusations and old stories. I miss the conversations with my parents. I miss lounging about the wide open house. I even miss the fridge, filled with familiar foods.
And I miss marching band. Oh, do I miss it. I finally got to see my sister and my old high school marching band perform. It was a super cute and lighthearted show called Radiant Joy. It was so strange that my first time seeing it was fully completed. I’m so used to watching the show build over the months from band camp to state finals. I wish I could see the show more, it’s so hard to take it all in in one viewing, especially since I was watching my sister the whole time. I also got to see my best friend Brittany, who’s on staff for the colorguard. She let me in on the top secret plans for the upcoming winterguard season and I am so excited. It’s going to be an amazing show and I wish I could be there to help.
Some other highlights of the trip were seeing a house Mom might buy, discussing Myers Brigg type personalities with Dad, and going to my godson’s first birthday party. It was a crazy trip and I wish I could have stayed longer, but I am glad to be back in Atlanta.
The picnic was a blast. I had so much fun shooting portraits of my friends and their families. I haven’t shot anything in a while, so it was great to get back to the camera. After the portraits we hung out and chatted while the kids played. I only wish I could have played a bit as well on that sweet playground. 
Slow blogging as of late because I am insanely busy! But a good busy. A great busy. A busy that’s going to earn me enough money to get into an apartment soon!
When things calm down I’l write about the bajillion things going on in my life.
I really love this song. I always imagine a group of people sailing from “ze old country” on a grundgy boat and talking about the better life they’ll have in their new home. And the plans aren’t outlandish or unrealistic: aluminum walls and cinnamon treats. Not much, but so much better than the life they left. And in the last lines of the song I always imagine Ellis Island rising over the horizon with the sun rising behind it. I just love it!
