Are you aware that shyness seems to be increasing? Besides the fact that surveys, at least in North America, have for some time revealed the number of people who perceive themselves to be shy increasing (usually over 50% now), in sociologist Eric Klinenberg's 2012 bestselling book, Going Solo - The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of … Continue reading Shyness Re-emerging
Autism | When they admire you
For some years now I've been editing my old journals, condensing them, getting rid of the paper. This morning I came upon the entry for Sept 12, 1969, one of the most important dates in my life. In an upscale bar frequented by the insurance industry, I had met Matthew, a young underwriter who I … Continue reading Autism | When they admire you
Autism|Toronto’s Van Rampage one year later
This spring new memorials appeared on Yonge Street commemorating the anniversary of Alec Minassian's van attack when he killed ten pedestrians and injured many others. The Toronto Star published a three page article (I was friends with Alek Minassian. We were both outcasts - April 21/2019) by writer Evan Mead, who attended high school with … Continue reading Autism|Toronto’s Van Rampage one year later
Is Anxiety Natural?
In the Jan/Feb 2014 edition of The Atlantic, journalist Scott Stossel told about his own lifelong debilitating anxiety, then discussed the nature of anxiety, ending with this: Is pathological anxiety a medical illness, as Hippocrates and Aristotle and many modern psychopharmacologists would have it? Or is it a philosophical problem, as Plato and Spinoza and … Continue reading Is Anxiety Natural?
Shyness |Accept yourself, but don’t expect them to accept you
My book The Shyness Guide basically does three things: It presents the evidence that shyness is natural It tries to convince you to accept yourself as a shy person It shows how you can function in the social world in a shy way, rather than in the outgoing way that is constantly urged on you. … Continue reading Shyness |Accept yourself, but don’t expect them to accept you
Shy Careers
In one section of my book The Shyness Guide, I discuss the problems shy people encounter in workplaces today. Though not insurmountable, those problems are significant enough that I included this recommendation: There are shy careers. I was hoping to one day become a field geologist or biologist, so I could live my life in … Continue reading Shy Careers
Morning Mashup |What is all the Talking about?
One morning I was drinking coffee in McDonalds and reading/writing while, courtesy of McDonalds, I involuntarily listened to Nicole, Ryan, etc on the Sirius Satellite radio 'Morning Mashup'. The aim of all their talk, as far as I could tell, seemed to be just to keep talking, with the ultimate goal being those raucous moments … Continue reading Morning Mashup |What is all the Talking about?
Rescuing Loners | The Firing of Dwane Casey
I have to say something about the firing this week of Toronto Raptors coach, Dwane Casey. Though named a finalist for 2018 Coach of the Year, after the best-ever season by a Raptors team, and winning the first round in the playoffs before losing to Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Casey was dismissed. Yet … Continue reading Rescuing Loners | The Firing of Dwane Casey
World War 4 | Don’t you want to know what happened?
Back on Jan 1, 2018 I put my little three page World War 4 story (Dawn of a New World on the White House Lawn) on this site as a free PDF, and I see that it has had almost no takers. Hmmm ...... can it really be that no one wants to know the outcome … Continue reading World War 4 | Don’t you want to know what happened?
Alan Conrad 