Masters of Manipulation: How to Spot Narcissists, and How to Deal with Them
honestly, ask enough questions and enough follow-up questions. nearly everyone will open up to something immensely strange and satisfying. it takes work. it takes practice. but—really—I promise—most people have some oddity or personal moment that will make you happy that you got to see it. for quiet people- you might be the only person that knows it. sometimes it takes patience. but it’s there. it’s like holding orchids in your hand, while they are still alive, and in their habitat in the rain-forest. you can see colors shimmering off the spectrum, nearly.
or turning a corner onto something stranger and more lovely than you’d ever thought possible.
I’m mostly lonely b/c I’m grouchy and literate and picky with high standards. Most people do like me, and I facilitate a lot of other friendships- I know enough good about each person to make good introductions. But what I want to talk about? Mostly, I don’t. I scare people, or I’m talking about some obsession that bores them silly, or I’m playing with ideas that make sense to my close friends- it’s how we got to be friends- and are considered arcane by most people around me. I expect people to be obsessive about their interests, and I get to hear what makes it great, without having to work on it, myself. So there is an upside to asking questions and listening to stuff I don’t care about.
