One obscure thing about me: I love tiny little boxes and drawers and doors.  I love cabinets and jewelry cases with a bunch of divisions in them that I can open and close and play with and use to organize things.  So I was delighted by this post about carved log jewelry boxes.  Look at all the cute little drawers!  My fingers itch to play with them.

haikujaguar mentioned that one of her characters, the Calligrapher, is an introvert.  He's a good example of how to build a life where you have connections to other people but they don't mob you all the time.  You can read his stories for free online or buy the hardcopy collection.

Some of my poems have characters who prefer to keep to themselves.  Introverts might enjoy reading:
"The Witch and the Frizzled Hen"
"A Doe in Velvet"
"Silicon Skin and Carbon Hearts"
"The Hermit on the Hill"

What other things have you read that feature role models for introverts?  Stuff you have written yourself, or read by other people, is all welcome.

I was direly amused by this article.  We did warn  people that attacks on gay marriage undermine all marriages.  I think the goddesses of matrimony are getting pissed.  That's not a good thing for mortals.

The general fund currently has $5 in it.  You may spend this on the last $5 poem, "The Festival of Lights," or you may  direct it toward either of the microfunded poems, "Choralia" or "Warning Sine."

I also forgot to post the extra freebie poem, since we had several new prompters.  I'm letting you choose from several $10 poems for this.

EDIT 12/5/09: Ignore "Stepchild Wit" on this poll; I forgot that it's already been published. Oops.

The poll is below.  I will leave it open at least until Saturday evening, longer if necessary.

Poll #1494727 Generally Sponsored Poetry Poll for December 2009
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 11

How do you want to spend the $5 in the general fund?

Which of the following do you want as the extra freebie poem?

After the original loneliness post and the basic socializing tips, naamah_darling observed:

Introverts like me have an extra layer of difficulty with this sort of thing, as does anyone with a disability or mental illness. Friendships and support networks can be really hard to build and maintain if social contact itself makes you uncomfortable or nervous, and if you are periodically (or perpetually) needy. Or if you are the sort of person who is only comfortable having a couple of close friendships.

So let's consider how introverts can have a healthy, enjoyable social life.

Know Yourself

First, understand where you fall on the introvert-extrovert scale.  If you sometimes function in introvert mode and other times in extrovert mode, try to identify the circumstances for each and whether there are any switches you can throw on purpose.  Next, understand that both introversion and extroversion can be healthy.  Your social orientation is only a problem if it makes you unhappy and/or prevents you from doing things you want or need to do, in which case you can work on shifting it.  If you're comfortable with it, leave it as it is and work on finding other folks who will accept you as you are.

Second, consider your wants and needs in the social field.  What kind of friends would you like to have?  How many?  How often would you like to see them?  What kind of things would you like to do together?  Is your family life the way you want it?  If not, what's missing?  Can you fill in the gaps by boosting some existing relationships, or do you need to find/create new ones?  How many social activities would you like in a month?  How long can you be around people before it stops being fun and starts to bother you?  Also check to see whether you have too much  going on in this part of your life.  If you feel overloaded, what can you reduce?  Here's a list of graceful ways to say "no" so as to avoid overloading yourself further.

Third, consider your talents, skills, and virtues.  What are you good at doing?  What do you enjoy doing?  Where are some areas that your endurance is higher than other people's is?  What do you enjoy doing, or at least not mind doing, that other people dislike?  What do you take pride in?  When X happens, people turn to you -- fill in that blank.  Also think about things you can't do yet, but would like to learn; you can keep an eye out for opportunities.

Don't Use a Screwdriver to Pound Nails

Modern American culture tends to favor the extrovert mode.  That doesn't make it better than the introvert mode, just more popular here and now.  Trying to make an introvert act like an extrovert is like using a screwdriver to pound nails: it might eventually get the job done, but not very efficiently and you're likely to smack your thumb or scratch the wood in the process.  The trick to building a happy social life for an introvert is to find ways to play to your strengths, not your weaknesses.  Understand that you're a jolly fine screwdriver, and there are plenty of screws out there.  Not everything is a nail in need of a hammer, so don't try to be a hammer.  Be yourself.

Show, don't tell.  Many social events are intended to "tell" people that they are loved and appreciated.  There are lots of ways you can "show" people instead, which may make them less insistent about dragging you into a busy event.  Many introverts are good at "fading into the woodwork," which makes it easy to observe people and learn what they like and care about.  You can then make their favorite food, play music they enjoy, surprise them with the perfect gift, etc.  This is a great way to contribute something to a relationship or community, to balance whatever you get out of it.

Do solitary tasks.  Some careers necessitate spending lots of time by yourself; these are better done by introverts than by extroverts who would be miserable.  Some events require setup tasks that would bore an extrovert -- somebody has to make the cake, fill the balloons, hang the streamers, plan the menu, etc.  This is a way to take part in an occasion that's important to you, without getting swamped by a crowd.  In a well-balanced group, someone at the event will pass the word as to who did which of the cool setup bits, then pipe the feedback to you later.  Another example is community theatre -- not everyone is an actor, and the people who make the costumes and the sets lend a great deal of magic to the final performance.  Some introverts become quietly famous "behind the scenes" for making things happen in their community, and are valued accordingly.

Be a good listener.  This is not a common skill in modern America, but it's an extremely valuable one.  Some introverts are perfectly okay with people as long as they don't have to do the talking themselves; these often make great listeners.  A good listener is a good friend.  Even if people make you nervous, you can use listening skills to lighten the load by getting them to talk about themselves so don't have to be there and  talk.

Practice companionable silences. Extroverts are great if you want to talk, but sometimes you think, "ZOMG if I get asked about this one more time I'm gonna scream."  Then it's time to hang out with your introvert friends who will not pester you.  Also, some activities lend themselves well to companionable silences, such as quiet walks through the woods or along a beach.  Some people enjoy doing crafts together and don't feel compelled to fill the air with words the whole time.  These are good choices for introverts who are friends with each other.

Explore quiet groups.  Not all activities are boisterous ones.  An introvert who feels over-stimulated by a party might feel comfortable in a class of yoga, meditation, T'ai Chi.  A birdwatching group might begin with a few minutes of greeting and discussion followed by several hours of relatively quiet hiking because you're trying not to scare all the birds away.  Also, if you don't want individual friends bugging you constantly, it can be very effective to socialize at defined times and places on a weekly or monthly schedule.

Communicate clearly.  This can be challenging for introverts, but it usually pays off, because misunderstandings so often cause tension.  Most of the time, you'll get better results from telling someone "I can be there for X hours" than just showing up and then trying to get loose early.  If possible, you should let your friends know that you are indeed an introvert, so they'll understand when you say, "It's been fun, but I'm getting all peopled out now so I need to go home."  They're less likely to get upset if they understand that they haven't bored or offended you, it's just a matter of your internal limits.  This also applies to limiting the number or size of your social engagements, as well as the length.

Offer alternatives.  People often want to include folks they care about, but they may not understand your strengths and weaknesses.  If they suggest something that would be unworkable for you, say something like, "I can't do X, but I could do Y instead."  Learn what kind of things you do that other folks find helpful, so that you've got a ready list of alternatives.

Maintain long-distance relationships.  If you're not comfortable having friends underfoot all the time, but you want to maintain some connections, try doing it at arm's reach.  The Internet is your friend, and your path to making as many friends as you want, who will not show up on your doorstep because they live halfway across the country.  You can share to the degree that feels right to you; most social networks have tools especially designed to help you control who can access which information.  Similarly, keep touch with distant relatives by exchanging cards, gifts, and personal news rather than frequent visits.


What are some other ways you have found, either as an introvert yourself or an extrovert who knows introverts, to use this mode of interaction for fun healthy socializing?

The previous discussion about fighting loneliness included tips for people with average to expert social skills.  Then mdlbear said this:

Terrific post; there's a lot of good stuff here. And some good suggestions: "Restore our support of people who are doing the hard work of sustaining others."... "Practice and teach social skills." "Build the biggest, strongest social network that you can."

Trouble is, these are all aimed at people like you who know what they're doing, and using it to help people who don't. I'm one of those people who never learned what I needed; I'm trying to learn it now, and I'm finding it tough going. Especially now that I'm also trying to help people.

So I'm going to add a very basic layer of tips for folks who may not have learned about self-care and socializing from their family while growing up.  In addition to all the stuff here, you can also read  about these topics and skills.  Hunt around until you find something that seems applicable for you.

Taking Care of Yourself

When you take good care of yourself, you are showing love and respect for yourself.  This puts you in a stable position to help other people.

First check your physical needs.  You should have nourishing food to eat, comfortable clothes to wear, a secure residence, and enough sleep.  Skimping on those tends to reduce your energy level and makes it more likely that you will get sick.  Pay close attention to signals from your body because it will tell you if it needs something special.  If you aren't sleeping well, you may need a different bed or a darker room.  If eating wheat upsets your digestion, you may need to remove it from your diet.  If your background included people telling you to ignore such things, or that you weren't really feeling what you felt, then you'll need to get rid of that interference so you can understand yourself clearly.

Next check your emotional needs.  People benefit from having a least a few, and preferably more, people who love them.  This can be your parents, sibling(s), spouse(s), child(ren), friend(s), or whatever.  They should be people who say nice things to you, support your successes, sympathize with your setbacks, exchange favors, and otherwise share your life.  If the people around you are nasty, they can undercut your progress, and you should consider replacing them with more wholesome relationships.  Ideally, contemporary relationships span both local (facetime) and distant (cyberspace) venues.  But if you haven't yet found local relationships that are supportive, you can practice your social skills in cyberspace until you do find local connections.

Consider the difference between need  and want.  Modern American society actively tries to blur this line, which is a very destructive thing to do.  Needs are things which cause harm if not met, and in some cases can be fatal.  You need  an adequate supply of safe, healthy food; if you don't get that, you might lose or gain too much weight or suffer from deficiency diseases -- or even starve to death.  Wants are things that may make you happy or unhappy based on whether or not you get them.  Furthermore, wants belong in the middle ground: it's bad for you if you never get anything  you want, but it's also bad for you if you get everything  you want.  If it's cold, you may need  a sweater.  You might want  a fancy angora sweater, but a plain wool sweater would keep you just as warm.  You should never feel ashamed of meeting your own needs.  Aim to meet some  of your wants.

Exploring Yourself

If you didn't get enough opportunities to learn about yourself while growing up, you can do it now.

For physical needs, start with the standard human baseline unless you've already discovered some differences.  So for instance, most humans need about 8 hours of sleep.  (Our society doesn't make that easy to get, which causes many problems.)  If you don't get enough sleep, you'll feel tired; but if you get too much, you'll also feel tired!  So, try to get a few days when you can sleep for 8 hours.  Note how you feel.  Then try 7 hours, and then 9 hours, again taking notes.  Compare results.  Most folks will find their optimum sleep time around that range, but you can go wider if necessary.  It may not be possible for you to arrange your life to give you the right amount of sleep immediately, but sometimes it is; and if nothing else you'll know what to aim for.

Now transfer that basic process to other situations.  Exploring yourself means choosing a topic to investigate, looking at some different options, and trying on different ones.  Then you compare the results and aim for the one that suits you best.

If you're used to taking guidance from other people, so that you freeze in situations where you have to pick something yourself, there are ways around that.  The most straightforward is to pick a guide that is not a person.  For instance, you might pick something from a list by starting with the first item on the list, and then next time try the second item.  Alphabetical order, left-right order, and chronological order can also be useful.  After you've worked your way through a list once or more, you may discover that you like some things better than others, so you can pick those more often.  Or you might decide that just working your way through a list is comfortable for you.

Some good things to explore early include colors, foods, clothing styles, home decoration, and entertainment.  (If you got pushed into a particular career, religion, family life, etc. by other people then you may need to revisit those choices -- but those are a lot more serious and complex, so learn your self-awareness and decision-making skills first.)  In addition to the try-it-on methods described above, you might also find it useful to explore some personal analysis tools.  There are some very heavy-duty ones such as the Myers-Briggs or astrology, for which it's best to consult a professional, but you can find approximations elsewhere.  There are also many quizzes online and in print that can tell you fun things about yourself; they are not necessarily "reliable" but they can give you things to think about whether you agree or disagree with the results.

Socializing

Most humans come equipped with some very fancy wetware that facilitates or even automatically performs such functions as face/name recognition, language acquisition, and social interaction analysis.  If you didn't get the whole standard bundle, or your upbringing overwrote it with malware, or you got a different bundle, then that will make your life harder.  It is often possible to fix some or all of the problems by cobbling up something in your head that will do most or all of that work.  And if you have the standard bundle but lacked opportunities to use it fully, some of the same basic steps will help expand usage.

First, in order to socialize, you need other people.  At least some of them should be healthy decent people.  If you can handle diversity, that's a good thing, so try to find different kinds of people to be around.  It's okay to be around nasty people some of the time; they have their uses too.  If you don't already have people to be with, look for some who will share your interests -- so if you like reading, hang out in libraries or bookstores; if you like sports, go to sporting events or supply shops.  Most communities have some kind of free or cheap classes on various topics offered at a community center, park, store, library, etc.  There are also community events such as fairs or picnics that attract plenty of people; worth a try if you're okay in a crowd.

People are easier to approach when you have a common interest or other icebreaker.  If you see someone holding a book you've read, you can talk about the book.  If you see someone with a dog on a leash, you can talk about the dog.  If you are both at an event, you can ask someone what booths or panels they have visited.  In some areas, especially big cities, people try to tune each other out most of the time so it's harder to make new friends unless you're in a venue that really lends itself to that -- which is why those places tend to have "singles dances" and "friend parties" and so forth.  In towns or rural areas, people are often more open to chatting with whoever is nearby.

Observe other people.  What are they doing that works?  What are they doing that doesn't  work?  What makes you feel good when they do it?  What makes you feel bad when they do it?  Many social interactions are essentially rote scripts that can be memorized; that can be very useful for smoothing casual interactions.  If you have quirks that make people react funny, try different approaches and explanations until you find some that lower the tension; that's better than avoiding people altogether.  Certain things can go a long way towards facilitating social interactions: chief among these are smiles, "please," and "thank you."  It's hard to overuse those.

In particular, it helps to have some people in your life who are happy and functional, and some who are not.  Whenever you find someone you admire whose life is working, you can observe that person and try to copy what they do.  Then keep any of those habits or practices that seem to work for you.  We often admire people who are manifesting what our own strengths would or will be when fully developed, so this can be a step in the right direction.  Whenever you find someone who is obnoxious and annoying, with a life that doesn't work very well, you have a bad example.  They will show you all kinds of things not  to do.  That's really useful information if you find people shying away from you but don't know why.  Most folks are aggravated by people who have the same kind of flaws they do.  So if you have a hard time seeing your own flaws clearly, the people who are most annoying to you will probably be good mirrors.

Helping Others

If you're just getting started helping other people, and especially if you're still trying to get a handle on your own personality and processes, keep it simple.

Check for physical needs first if someone comes to you upset about anything.  If someone is hungry, feed them, and try to make it nourishing comfort food.  If someone is cold, warm them up.  If they are tired, encourage them to take a nap or sleep over.  It's amazing how often people don't take good care of themselves -- and how big an improvement it can make once the basic needs are met.

Listen for expressed needs and wants that you could meet.  Sometimes a situation is really complicated, but other times all someone needs is a ride to the supermarket or someone to water their plants.  Quite frequently, all they need is someone to listen.  Whatever social skills you're developing, learn that one, because listening gives you the most bang for your buck.

Whenever someone does something nice, say "Thank you."  It takes two seconds, you can memorize lots of situations if you don't have an auto-prompt for this, and it's hard to go wrong with this.  It makes people feel great to be noticed and appreciated.  You can thank people for favors done for you, or for things done for other people.  If you want to make a big impression, get a carton of paper thank-you notes and send those when someone does something special.  This used to be routine but is now rare, so paper cards get you extra credit.

Watch for occasions when the help needed is simple and obvious.  The classic example is opening a door for someone whose hands are full, but there are plenty of other opportunities.  (If you're not sure help would be welcome, you can ask, "Would you like me to ...?")  This is the kind of social glue that helps hold a society together, but is getting rare.  You can improve that.

Watch for people drifting to the corners of an event or activity.  You don't necessarily have to pull them into the middle, but it will help if you just acknowledge their presence.  Say "Hi" or something like that.  Some people purposely migrate to the fringes because they don't really want to be there; they'll try to shoo you away, and that's okay.  But some people wind up on the fringes because they don't know what else to do, and sometimes they are really eager to talk and make friends, if somebody else makes the first move.  Then there's a third group: some folks know that their best match in most groups will be someone else on the fringes.  These people nab a corner or a wall and watch for each other.  You can see them scanning the room and they'll usually nod to each other when they make eye contact.  All you have to do to get into this loop is follow the same pattern: move to a wall or corner and sweep your gaze across the other people who have done the same.  People who don't want to be noticed usually keep their eyes down or aside.  People who want to be noticed will also be scanning the fringes, and they'll hold eye contact for a few seconds.  Then you just work your way around the edge of the group until you're standing or sitting next to that person, and you can start talking.

Smile.  Unless you're at a funeral or other solemn occasion, you pretty much can't go wrong with this one either.  Seeing someone else smile helps lift a person's spirits -- and it does the same thing for you.  It's not a cure-all but it's a nice little boost, and it's free.

I was delighted to hear from haikujaguar that Createspace is expanding its distribution to brick-and-mortar bookstores.  This will be very helpful for people who want to turn their cyberfunded project into a hardcopy book.

I got an early Christmas gift today when I read that Createspace had announced expanded distribution channels, which means that at long last you can walk into a physical bookstore, request a copy of one of my books and get it. Likewise, libraries and academic institutions can now request copies, and independent retailers.

With great excitement, I went to my account to Make It So because at last here's the final piece of my dream: to be available in a bookstore. Maybe not on the shelf, but at least over the counter. The Kherishdar books have a problem: they're not an industry-standard trim size for bookstores, so I can't enable their distribution there. But Shell is elgible for all three channels. I tick three boxes and just sit in my chair a moment, basking.

Then, crass businesswoman that I am, I look down at my royalty rates. I'm used to making around a couple of dollars a book, depending on whether people buy directly from Createspace or if they go through Amazon, so I'm expecting it to be somewhat less.

And it is. Exactly thirty-three cents.

Thirty-three cents. Per book!

And then I start laughing. For a couple of reasons:

1. When I first started submitting to major publishers, I was told the royalty rate I could expect as a nobody-newbie author was 10-20 cents a book. 33 cents should sound pretty good... but not after earning several dollars a book for over a year.

2. Having realized my dream of being available from a bookstore, I am now considering whether it's a good business decision to be available from a bookstore...!

Talk about the things long expected taking the form of the unexpected when they come! I never expected to be wondering whether I should bother making my work available through multiple distribution channels. But thirty cents won't even buy you coffee these days. I'm still thinking of this as an early Christmas present... but rather than a "dream come true" gift where I get to walk into Barnes & Noble and order one of my novels, it's more like a "God wants you to giggle" gift where I get to put this in perspective, really question the value of a brick-and-mortar presence.

If you're really married to the idea of ordering my work from a bookstore, now would be the time to tell me! Also, librarians and folks at universities? I'd love to hear your input too, if you think it's worth it to make the books available to you directly.


Stardancer Home.

This fishbowl began with a steady flow of prompts that lasted for a while before petering out.  I worked from 11:30 AM to 12:30 AM, so about 11 hours allowing for lunch and supper breaks.  I wrote 15 poems, almost all medium.  There was only one epic and two short poems.  Several form poems appeared along with the free verse ones.

This month brought moderate participation.  Please welcome new prompters natasiakith, my father Anthony Barrette, my partner Doug Edwards, and probably the anonymous person who mentioned "treppenwitz" too.  (I just realized, I got so caught up in the fishbowl, I forgot to post a freebie poem!  Oops.  I think I'll let you pick it, to make up for being late.)  I can put your options for that into the generally sponsored poetry poll.  All told, there were 41 comments including mine.

The following poems have been posted:
"All the Sleeping Heroes"
"The Culture of the Earth"
"haikoan"
"History Returned"
"Stepchild Wit"
"The World We Made"

Epic poem report:
This month we're carrying over two poems, one epic and one long.  Give a cheer for the cosponsors who are microfunding these!

"Choralia" (began microfunding 11/3/09, $9 remaining)
"Warning Sine" (began microfunding 11/5/09, $17 remaining)

All currently sponsored poems have been posted, and I've sent the backchannel copies of the other poems to their respective prompters.  I still need to write a donor perk-post.  I also need to make up a poll for the generally sponsored poetry; you have $5 to spend and an extra freebie to pick out.

December's donors are ellenmillion, nhpeacenik, and janetmiles.  Slow month for donations, but I love you all.  Donors make the CFC world go 'round.  I also appreciate the folks who show up to give me ideas, and who assist with networking.

The poetry fishbowl project has a permanent landing page.

You claim skill in every art
and knowledge of every science,
Yet you cannot even hear
what your own heart is telling you.

Until you can hear that simple voice
How can you be a keeper of secrets?
How can you be a traveller on this path?

-- Version by Jonathan Star and Shahram Shiva

Spots the Space Marine is a twice-weekly crowd-sponsored serial. Find out more and read prior episodes.

Flea. "****. We're gonna die."

Scythe. "Can that **** and do your job."

The crabs are streaming from both corridors and over the fallen wall. The team has its backs to one another, facing out. They expend their first-generation shields against the hail of alien needles.

The crabs keep coming.

Spots. "Claws! Shield power?"

Claws. "Zip."

Spots. "Rewire from something else!"

Claws. "There's nothing ****in' nonessential LEFT."

The crabs keep coming until they're climbing over their dead and into Team Kitty's faces.

Scythe. "****! Back up!"

Hairball. "Got a wall here, boss!"

Spots punches a final combination on her glove and shoves her way in front, slicing through the first three crabs with the edge of her shield.

Claws. "****! Spots!"

Spots. "Help. Me. NOW."

Claws fumbles through the power shunt and jumps after her, clearing the crabs in front. Fang recovers first and shoots past the falling pieces.

Claws. "****. ****. ****. ****." He nearly gets punctured by a crab pincer. "****!"

Fang. "****, stay alive, you ****er, you're the only thing keeping us up!"

Claws. "**** you!"

Scythe. "KING!"

Fang. "MINE!" She aims past Spots and Claws. "****, stop weaving!"

Hairball grabs the back of her suit and pulls her. "Up!"

Fang glances back, then jumps onto his knee and aims past the crabs Spots and Claws are killing. First shot: head explodes. Second shot: thorax explodes before the head has time to fall past it.

Scythe, catching green marks on his HUD. "Watch your shots, we've got friendlies!"

[ Company ] [ Peaches ] : Good plan, Sergeant.

[ Company ] [ Flea ] : ****, if we're not happy to see you!

Peaches and the relief cut away from the crabs from behind, Team Kitty from in front. They meet in the gore-soaked middle surrounded by mounds of crab parts.

[ Company ] [ Scythe ] : It's good to see you, ma'am.

[ Company ] [ Peaches ] : You all in one piece?

[ Company ] [ Scythe ] : Yes, though we burned through our power cells.

[ Company ] [ Peaches ] : Head on back, then. We'll mop up and take the rest of your shift.

[ Company ] [ Scythe ] : Yes, ma'am. Switching to squad channel. "You heard her. Let's go."

Fang. "Nothing left to do here anyway. Hey, Flea."

Flea. "What?"

Fang, grinning. "I'm waiting for your tally of headshots."

Flea. Long pause. Then: "**** you!"

###

Armory, six hours later. Peaches is unlocking her helmet when the Gunny shows up. She is exhausted, sweat streaking her hair to her temples.

"Ma'am?"

She looks over. "What's up, Gunny?"

"Priority message."

She nods and steps outside the door, leaving the rest of the relief team to unsuit. Once there: "Let's have it, then."

He hands her a tablet, which she scans... and then closes her eyes.

"They're coming...." She looks at him. "My God, Gunny, we got them. We got the company from Depot A! We're going to be reinforced! We might live through this assignment after all!"

Gunny. "From your lips to God's ear, ma'am."

###

And that concludes Part 1 of Spots the Space Marine! Part 2 will pick up next week when we meet the reinforcements from Naval Depot A and see how taking the attack to the crabs works out. I hope you've enjoyed reading so far! And thank you again for your patronage, which has fed me and allowed us to give back to the community through the charity donations. I'm having a great time and hope you are too. :)

Stardancer Home.

haikujaguar recently posted about this article on loneliness and how it spreads. She said in part:

I think this is pretty important and have been thinking about it for a day, particularly in the context of how we like to talk about "cutting off" people who are "dragging us down." I understand that carrying lonely, annoying, spiky or poorly-socialized people is a burden, but it's always felt important to me to try. Here's science saying, "It is important, and we have a tendency not to."

This is one of many ways in which the social fabric is fraying. There's another feedback loop not mentioned in the article, however. It used to be that society rewarded and supported people who "carried" others. Now that happens less and less. So the people who do this work tend to get used up in the process. It becomes a self-destructive habit, because not enough people take care of the ones who do it. When nobody's helping you carry a load, you can either let it crush you -- or lighten the load. Most people lighten the load. The ones who get crushed become an object lesson to everyone else, so that this is taught not as a virtue but as a vice. There are then fewer and fewer people available to do this kind of work.

Furthermore, it's very difficult to do this sort of work "in moderation," because damaged people can be extremely clingy around their last few friends. About the closest you can come is working with just one lonely person at a time. You still need to have the extra time and energy to deal with someone else's problems in addition to your own responsibilities and issues, because if you don't have extra, then you not only exhaust yourself, you also let down the healthy people who are depending on you to fill your social role in ways you can't if you've spent yourself out propping up someone broken.

That leads to another aspect of this collective mess: fault tolerance. That's a system's ability to absorb shocks, drains, or damage without losing function. We've built a society with almost no fault tolerance; we're running near, at, or beyond maximum safe limits on most things most of the time. So every bump and joggle and setback tends to be felt keenly. There is rarely any kind of extra capacity or safety margin to compensate for inevitable challenges. That means more people get hit hard enough to sustain real personality damage because they're closer to the wall, that fewer people are available to help them recover before the damage becomes irreversible, and that there's unlikely to be much if any backup for the people who might try to help them, so that if a helper goes down even for a little while that causes hardship for someone else who relies on the helper.

Now bring in the money aspect. Loneliness is getting worse because we've discarded many long-term bonds of extended family, church congregation, secure employment, etc. -- so society responded in the classic capitalist way, paying people to do the work. We've thrown more of this burden onto counselors, social workers, and other professionals. Unfortunately, they tend not to get called in until the situation is already a total disaster; and their services are unaffordable hence unavailable to many people. That throws the burden back on a person's friends and family, if any. So the subsystem we devised to deal with the gap doesn't actually work very well. And what's worse? Almost all the "helping" professions routinely function beyond safe capacity. This loops right back to burnout, which is where we started.

It's not a vicious circle. It's a vicious tesseract. Every piece of it connects to the others and makes the problem worse.

So, how do we address this problem without causing more damage to ourselves or somewhere else?

1) The article mentioned one excellent approach: catch problems early before they get really bad and really hard to fix. It's better to prevent someone from drifting to the edge of the social web than it is to haul them back after they get that far out.

2) A huge help would be to restore our support of people who are doing the hard work of sustaining others. Do you know somebody who does pastoral counseling or marriage counseling or community outreach or is otherwise acting as a social grease trap? Try doing something nice for them. Take them out to dinner. Wash their car. Pick up the slack if their work makes them temporarily unavailable. And tell them you appreciate what they're doing. This sort of thing is much easier to do in moderation, but it helps make more people available for social support over a longer time.

3) Practice and teach social skills. People who grow up in subfunctional families often don't learn everything they need. Sometimes friends can help fill in the gaps. Especially listen for people saying, "I don't know how to..." or citing bad examples from their background. Those are good openings for more positive examples: "One way to do that is..." or "In my family, when this happens, we..."

4) Use the tools you have. In this context, cyberspace can be tremendously useful. It's not a substitute for facetime socializing, but it can keep people connected in circumstances where facetime socializing is difficult or impossible. It's also a terrific addition to more conventional activities. I know lots of folks who use LJ to keep in touch with other people, lighten depression, or rustle up social support. You can socialize freestyle or look for helpful memes; this is part of my inspiration for the "Hard Things" and "Plans and Goals" memes in my LJ, which are visible under the "community" tag.

5) Build the biggest, strongest social network that you can. Spread it across multiple layers of family, employment, spirituality, locale, whatever works for you. Encourage people to connect with each other. Do things to create and strengthen connections -- celebrate life's milestones, gather for holidays, send cards or gifts, plan activities together, etc. Share news. The better the network, the more likely people will be there for each other in times of need.

When challenges arise, do one thing yourself and then pass the word: "John's car broke down. I drove him home; he'll need someone to run him to the grocery store tomorrow." Depending on how well you know your listener (and how well they know the victim), you might throw in an extra phrase such as, "What about you?" or "Do you know anyone who could help?" or "What are you doing?" There's a delicate balance between inviting people to take part in a social network, and pestering them. But the hinting can be really helpful to folks who want to take part but don't know how because they've never belonged to a functional group before.

Don't try to do everything yourself; that way lies burnout. Instead, try to spread out the burden across multiple people so that it doesn't cause serious hardship for anyone.

What are some ways that you use to create and support social connections in your life?

This poem came out of the December 1, 2009 poetry fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from haikujaguar, and from my partner Doug who threw in a reference to "The Blind Men and the Elephant." The poem was sponsored by janetmiles.





Six aliens came down to Earth
And parked their cosmic bike.
They all resolved to spend the time
To take a little hike
Across “the culture of the Earth”
To see what it was like.

The first one went to Africa
And therein made his score.
He saw a bigger heap of grief
Than he had seen before,
And said, “The culture of the Earth
Is very like a war!”

The second went to Europe where
He stayed a week at least,
And in the cafés of the land
He sampled bird and beast
And said, “The culture of the Earth
Is very like a feast!”

The third attempted Asia till
The weather called a halt;
The Himalayas stymied him,
Though that was not his fault.
He said, “The culture of the Earth
Is very like a vault!

”Australia was the port of call
The fourth one called his own
But shortly he got pounded flat;
His cover was all blown.
He groaned, “The culture of the Earth
Is very like a stone!”

The fifth to South America
Was beckoned to embark
And there he found compelling things
To chase from dawn to dark.
He swore, “The culture of the Earth
Is very like a spark!”

At last in North America
The sixth made his landfall.
He shopped his way across the states
Till he could hardly crawl,
And cried, “The culture of the Earth
Is very like a mall!”

When they returned to share the tales
Of everywhere they’d been,
They could agree on nothing, not
A single specimen –
And that is the last the Earthlings heard
Of those little green men.

The wives of the explorers soon
Had puzzled out the gist
And when each one stopped laughing, she
Said to her husband, “Hist!
Forget ‘the culture of the Earth’
As it does not exist!”

Sorry this took so long to put up, folks, I had an emergency that derailed my plans. Rest assured that no matter what, you will get your blessing.

Okay, go for it! Post your blessing requests here! Be as specific or as general as you'd like. I look forward to seeing them.

This week's posts over on Gaiatribe: Ideas for a Thinking Planet include:

Politics: Native Water Rights
Weekend Meet-n-Greet 11-28-09
Make Your Black Friday Green
News: “Leaders Agree to Delay a Deal on Climate Change”
Three Questions: “Population & Environment”

This poem came from the December 1, 2009 poetry fishbowl. It was inspired by an anonymous prompt and sponsored by janetmiles.





The perfect rejoinder
arrives a minute too late
to be flung like a dagger
at some departing back.

It lives on the staircase,
a creature of nooks and treads,
crannies and shadows,
never braving the spotlight of speech.

To the French, it is
l’esprit d’escalier.
In German, it is
treppenwitz.

In any tongue,
it’s the stepchild wit
that we only imagine would save us
if we spoke it aloud.

My partner Doug sent me this link for an article on global warming. The lead is long, but there's some valid stuff farther down.

The climate is warming. It is almost certain this is caused by emissions of greenhouse gases caused by human activity. Nobody has come up with an alternative explanation that stands up. If the present warming trend continues, nasty things will probably start happening to humans within the next century, possibly the next decade. Something must be done. If nothing is done, then the benign climatic conditions that have sustained human civilisation for 10,000 years are in danger of collapse to be replaced by… well, write your own disaster movie.