OddballGreg - Social Awkwardness

According to the internet, being a penguin is about as socially awkward as you can get... Or at least, according to the meme.

You ever put up your hand for a high five and been left looking like a monkey that doesn't realize it's not in a tree? Or offered a hug and ended up looking like you were auditioning for a role as a tree in the school play? If so, you've probably experienced a bit of social awkwardness in your life. Good thing it's funny.

I have met many socially awkward people in my life. I speak to a someone who believes she is socially awkward every day. (Don't tell her I said so, but I think she's socially awesome. Teehee) And, to be fair, I was and am rather socially awkward myself. The difference being that I find it amusing these days. (Have you ever walked around a shopping center in mafia gear? The way people avoid eye contact is hilarious.)

Believe it or not, my magnificent self was not always as confident as I am now. For the first 15 years of my life, I was more awkward than a penguin that's had it's toes glued together. No confidence, stared at my feet when I walked to avoid tripping, spent break times at school reading Harry Potter in class, spent my days playing with computers. Very much your typical nerd. (Ironically, I still do the latter 2. Harry Potter is still cool, I'm sorry.)

What's really fun about being socially awkward is realizing just how funny it is. Everyone is weird in their own little ways, (okay, in my case, many big ways.), so why I should I be embarrassed about who I am? Saying awkward things at the wrong time, drawing unicorns and chirping out unnecessary innuendo's is funny because everyone makes such a big deal about it. Can you imagine if it was awkward to breath? ("Hey. Did you see that guy over there? He's totally a breather. Oh my gosh... you're doing it to... and so am I. We are such losers.")

The ridiculousness is that people say things are awkward, when in truth, awkward is just another term for something out of the ordinary that nobody knows how to deal with. Once you get around that, the person is as awesome as anyone else, but with the benefit of being something different and fun. The other day I was at a funeral and while leaving, stood with my arms outstretched to offer a hug to the grieving... who didn't notice me and continued with a conversation she was having. Haha, after standing like a tree for about 30 seconds I dropped the hug and started laughing with everyone else. It wasn't embarrassing, it was just funny, and everyone present understood that as they laughed with me.

So the next time you meet someone who does something that you're not sure how to deal with, don't make the other person feel awkward. The greatest people have the strangest habits. (Mine is having one sided conversations with the internet? Sounds quite sane when I put it that way. Teehee) So if you're a fellow awkward person, or simply someone who understand how to deal with us, why not say hello in the comments below or over Facebook/Twitter. We're always happy to meet cool people. Even better, if you know someone who's been feeling awkward and out of place, why not share this post with them. I'm sure they'll appreciate your thought. And of course, if you would like to read more thoughtful posts like this, then do be sure to like the official TCSA Facebook page and/or follow us on Twitter so that you can get the latest articles, as they're posted. Regardless of what you do though, I thank you for having taken the time to read this post; hope that you have/had an absolutely FANTASTIC day, and I will speak again soon.

Stay awesome my friends.