I’ve been reading Quietby Susan Cain in efforts to turn my brain off at night and maybe find out why the word “networking” gives me acid reflux. Yes, telling a group of strangers “what I do” is my idea of a nightmare. I tend to melt into corners at parties and I’d rather crawl into an industrial washer than attend another “orientation week.” I often marvel at the fact that I’ve managed to make any friends at all. Indeed, many parties and people send me running for the hills, but of course there are exceptions–nights and humans that leave me warm, inspired, and happy to have a mouth. Cain would argue that socializing can be difficult for an introvert because they tend to crave “deeper” connections, the sort of connections that go beyond weather and work dilemmas. Me? I’m just looking for people who get choked up when they hear this song. Everyone else is heartless and weird.