Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Foreboding.

My orientation day for college is on Friday and I'm absolutely terrified, I'm not the best in social situations you see. I get to a stage where fear of the inevitable awkward silence becomes too much and I just. Don't. Shut. Up.

A perfect example of this is last Saturday at a party where I knew a handful of people as acquaintances amongst an incredible amount of strangers. I learned a lot about conversation that night and for your convenience, I have compiled a short list of topics that generally aren't suitable for light conversation with strangers:

Number 1 - Private information about yourself that is best kept private until the person has become a proper friend. For example, "Oh yeah I love hanging out at the library, it's class in there, I'm pretty good friends with the librarian at this stage, we go drinking together."

Number 2 - Suicide. "Oh you go running in that park? Yeah, I lived across from that place, guy hung himself while I still lived there. Crazy huh?"

Number 3 - Pickled produce. "Ok...there's gherkins, pickled onions...what's the other one? What? Beetroot? No, not beetroot. My brother grew some beetroots this summer, they were massive! Eggs! That's it, pickled eggs!"

I'm screwed. I'm going to wind up as the girl with no friends in college who eats sandwiches by herself and is shunned in the lecture halls.
The fact that I have any friends in the first place is beyond me really.

8 comments:

Sara Luxe said...

good luck with your first day

http://pmp-oneinamillion.blogspot.com

Audrey said...

Thank you!

travelling, but not in love said...

Those are all subjects that I discuss with strangers too. Except for the pickles. That's kind of fucked up. Sorry :)

Anonymous said...

Good Luck!

Cheryl said...

You too?!! I'm pretty shy at first, especially in unfamiliar situations. But I also love to be around people. So I ramble on and on. And on. I think nearly everyone feels like that, though, in those situations. You don't know these people. They don't know you, so you're basically feeling each other out, and you tend to judge yourself pretty harshly even though the other person might be thinking you're really great.

I have a feeling you have nothing to worry about. Anyone who loves to have fun, like you do, is going to have lots of company.

Cheryl said...

oh, forgot - Good luck! Enjoy this time in your life. It is a great, great place to be.

B said...

EVERYTHING is suitable conversation with a stranger, I didn't use that first semester efficiently at all. You know no-one!
It's a period completely free of the tiniest hints of peer pressure, fear of failure, etc.

Audrey said...

TBNIL, don't worry I agree.

BMD and Cheryl, thank you, really needed it, went ok in the end, I managed to limit myself to 'what's your name and where do you come from?' and it was all relatively pleasant.

True that, B, fresh start and all that malark.