I’m not talking about San Diego, although their weather is always good too. I’m referring to small talk. For an introvert, small talk is scary… like a “heart racing, not sure what to say next” kind of scary. I’m not sure when it started or why, but small talk makes me nervous. Christmas parties? Terrifying. Ice breakers? I’d rather not, thank you. I know I have a mass communication degree, so this doesn’t make sense. I could talk in front of 500 people and feel more confident than I do waking down the hallway at work. But the weather is always a good topic.

One of my pet peeves is when people walk quickly past you in the hall and say “Hi, how are you doing?” They don’t really want an answer and don’t give you enough time to respond, let alone return the greeting/question. If they just said “Hi” or “Good morning,” that would be great. The rest flusters me. If I happen to be walking by/with someone though, the weather is always a safe topic for me. Most people can chit-chat about the weather. It’s not threatening, not too personal, and there is absolutely nothing that you can do about it. You can’t make it hotter or colder or dryer or wetter. That’s all up to God & Mother Nature. It’s not political or controversial either. The weather is safe.

I realize it takes me a while to feel comfortable with new people. It takes a while to get to know me. (Unless they read my blog, I guess) Once I feel comfortable though, I can chat for  while. Normally I just let Cameron do the small talk. It’s a skill of his that I envy. My husband has the ability to captivate people, and talk for hours. The thought of that makes me exhausted. I guess that’s one of the ways we compliment each other. He’s not with me at work though. I’m on my own for that. Slowly the walls come down, and relationships are formed. Until then, “How’s the weather?”

Peace be with you on your journey of enough… and if someone only talks about the weather, play along – they may be an introvert. 😉