Published on 12, July, 2020
I'm reading the 10th edition of Asperkids and it lists a bunch of Neurotypical social norms and "rules" and woah. I'm 23 and can't believe I didn't realize these things. I wish I'd had this book in middle school - it would have save me a lot of trouble. Do people actually just pick up on this stuff automatically? Why did no one tell me?
Suddenly my job search from last year is making a lot of sense as to why the interviews didn't go well. Apparently someone having a book on their office shelf doesn't mean they've read it or plan to read it and asking them about it makes them uncomfortable and embarrassed - no wonder I didn't get that job. But I figured if you have a copy of The Art of War proudly displayed you've read it or are planning to read it - but I guess it was just decor? But it wasn't even a particularly nice looking edition, just a generic hardback, the type you can get on Amazon. Why display a book you haven't read or don't plan to read when it isn't even pretty? It reminds me of that part in the library in Gatsby but I figured people stopped doing the whole fake library thing when books became more affordable.
And then there was that guy I corrected when he said there were six continents and the business he worked for did business across all six ... he forgot Antarctica.
And suddenly every annoyed boss and potential boss and professor and teacher starts to make sense. Apparently people in places of authority don't like to be corrected or questioned. But aren't we supposed to ask questions and shouldn't corrections be made if something is wrong?
God, how do you figured out when to question and correct and when to just shut up?
I figured out when I heard few times from my teachers and not only, that I should keep my philosophies for myself. I promised myself to shut up and since then I’m super cautious and also anxious about saying anything. I also wondered if all those people with high positions really read these books or just have them to show how smart and educated they are. I came to conclusion that it’s the second. Of course it does not mean they are smart they just show off. Despite being cautious I still sometimes say something hmm. Yeah, I think I should read this book.
Its so silly that people would display books they haven't read or plan to read! I think people who see themselves as "important" display things they think make them look smart even if they haven't read it or don't know what it is. My mom has a friend who's dating this rich guy and he has a massive portrait of Ella Fitzgerald over his grand piano and I asked him if he liked jazz and he asked why I'd ask! Well sir, you have a massive Ella Fitzgerald portrait. I thought it'd be a reasonable deduction that he liked big band jazz. But alas, we do not live in a Sherlock Holmes story and it often seems that people's possessions don't necessarily reflect who they are but who they want to be seen as! Quite cattywampus if you ask me.