Last night I attended a party to kick off the SLC Pride weekend. The event was hosted by some friends of mine--whom I have not kept in touch with very well for the last couple years. It was good to see them again, even if we didn't really get to catch up much. I also enjoyed mashing buttons and getting thoroughly trounced in the Smash Brothers tournament. Other than that I was rather annoyed with the evening.
As I have been getting out and socializing more these days, I am realizing why I don't do it much in general to begin with. I don't keep the volume down as low as some people I know, but when I must strain my voice to speak it's too loud for me. After a while of being in the middle of the throbbing electronica, I had to go outside and lie on the grass to keep from being sick. Also, I don't drink alcohol, smoke, or care for... well... other stuff. I've never found any real enjoyment out of my experience with them. In fact, my system seems far more interested in trying to let me know how much it doesn't appreciate being exposed to any of it, rather than responding in whatever amazingly great way it seems to for so many others.
As a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP*) I have a low threshold of tolerance for stimuli. Crocheting and watching MST3K is plenty exciting for me when it comes to an evening's entertainment. I think this is why I usually find general socializing with LDS people more tolerable than the gay community. The former tends to run at a more restrained level--sober, in multiple meaning of the word--that my system can tolerate.
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*This is from The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron. As a book about a general trait, this book describes me very, very well. If I had the money, I would buy a copy for every supervisor/manager and HR director I work with.
Based on some responses I've received to this post in another forum, I feel I need to add some explanation.
ReplyDeleteI should have said I didn't feel the party was bad, per se. In a lot of ways it was good and in many ways I'm glad I went. Being around a large group of people in such a casual, social setting is something I wouldn't have even been able to consider a year ago. I have never been a social butterfly, and I did not go to the party with the intention of trying to chat everyone up or get to know as many new people as possible. Simply being there was enough of a step for me at this time.
I'm sorry if this seems like a slam on gay people in general. I do know a lot who are very nice people who I do enjoy being with. While I found the environment overloading, I did find much of the company very nice. I did talk to a couple people I hope to meet again and get to know better; we even exchanged information.