Getting over the overshare

  
I overshare. 

I overshare  about my woes- “but then the outfit I wanted to wear wasn’t dry, so I had to pick a different outfit.” I overshare about my wins- “my boss said she likes my shoes, you guys! My. Shoes.” I overshare about what I like- “let’s talk about every podcast I’ve listened to in the last decade and rank them by best intro music!” I overshare about what I don’t like- “Lima beans, am I right? What bozos.”

I don’t always know I’m doing it, but I get the impression at least from some people it’s not their very favorite. And as a person with at least a modicum of self-awareness, I promise, it’s not because I don’t inquire about other people’s lives. Because I do. On a politeness scale of 1- actively pushing strangers to the ground, to 10- giving handfuls of money to strangers who have been pushed to the ground, I’m a solid 7. I’m 7 polite. I’m very good at asking a person about their day.*

But lately, as I’ve started reading more and cooking more and generally doing more (and not having a roommate to take the brunt of it), I find myself sharing more and more things with the same people who I think, and this is surprising, are fine without my every-five-minute updates.

“How do I tone this down?” I asked myself earlier today. It doesn’t come from an attention-seeking place as much as a desire to share things with people. Whether they like it or not? 

They may not like it. So how do I come to the realization that my brain is following a pattern set by the thousand different forms of social media that insist I update the world on a moment to moment basis when really I need to be fostering deeper thought, helping myself become a fully actualized person? And then I remembered: I have a blog. I’ll tell you people.

So in honor of my initiative to tone down my most useless in person updates, and maximize ridiculous Internet updates, so I can keep my in person connections (because let’s face it, computers are definitely a fad.), here’s the first batch:

Meredith’s Sunday Facts and Feelings and Musings and Day Dreams:

– Sometimes I drink water out of a wine glass when I want to feel fancy, but am also concerned about hydration.

– Queen Victoria made rules about male and female authors being beside each other…on book shelves. Their books couldn’t touch. Wacky Victoria.

– I wonder if Julia Child ever bought a vegetable because she thought it was pretty. Because this eggplant is on point.

– I think when I have a company that has interns, I will call them minions. And at least once a day, I’ll yell something like, “fly my pretties!” Or “be prepaaaared!” Or “KEEP SINGING!” a la Ursula. And a coworker will have to have a talk with me about how no one thinks it’s funny.

Blog posts coming soon: the time I almost set my kitchen on fire cooking coq au vin; why I like things and what exactly is material culture; and times you need a roommate.

*a person who is a 10 on the polite scale would never admit to such a brag. They would, give you a high-five, however for your sweet hairdo.