The Inbetweeners: What It's Like Being An Extroverted Introvert | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

The Inbetweeners: What It's Like Being An Extroverted Introvert

Hmm, I wonder if I'll be outgoing or shy today.

56
The Inbetweeners: What It's Like Being An Extroverted Introvert
Mikayla Lawrence

I've never really believed in a person being fully extroverted, or fully introverted, but if I had to label myself, I would do so with the latter.

But then again, there are parts of me that display the opposite.

It's hard to explain to someone who knows you as the person that never leaves her room that you love to sing and dance like a fool, but not all the time and not around every person. Or that you love being around people, but only when you’re not tired or hungry or in a bad mood.

Does that even make sense? Probably not. I can't even explain it myself, so I don't expect everyone to understand that while I politely decline every invitation to go out while I'm at school, I went to Ireland for a week and a half and was at the pubs every night.

Even after 20 years, I still don’t know if it’s a mood thing or the people I'm around; essentially, you never know what you're going to get with me -- I never know what I’m going to get with me. I could go without talking for three days straight and then decide halfway through a sentence that I don’t want to talk anymore. And I’ll do the opposite. I’ll go to a concert and strike up a conversation with a stranger, but I only have a small handful of close friends, and another handful of regular friends. I love working with and being around people, but I also love retiring to my room at 7 p.m. to read or watch Netflix until it's time to go to sleep.

I’ll act a little goofy on any given day and everyone and their mother will comment on my unusual good mood, but it’s not like I can easily tell them that I was just as happy as I was yesterday when I was in my room watching stand-up comedy and eating Chipotle alone. But it’s true -- there are some days where I will read for seven hours straight (no joke), and others where I will sit in the living room all day because I miss my roommates and I want to see them. And not because I haven’t seen them in a while, either. I’ll just miss them.

My life is like one of those really confusing math problems where you’re given a pattern and you have to try to guess the next sequence based on the previous one, but for the life of you, you can’t. Except I’m pretty sure in my case, there isn’t even a pattern at all (and honestly, I think that about those math problems sometimes, too).

There’s a reason I’m an editor (other than the fact that I hate those stupid pattern problems): I’m better at fixing or adding on to what other people say than I am at saying it myself. But, obviously, once a week or so I conjure up 500 to 1,000 words of my own, and they don’t sound all that bad. Do you see what I mean?

I wouldn't by any means call myself an extrovert, but I don't think I can classify myself entirely as an introvert, either. I guess I'm an extroverted introvert.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Gilmore Girls
Hypable

In honor of Mother’s Day, I have been thinking of all the things my mom does for my family and me. Although I couldn’t write nearly all of them, here are a few things that moms do for us.

They find that shirt that’s right in front of you, but just you can’t seem to find.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons To Thank Your Best Friend

Take the time to thank that one friend in your life you will never let go of.

798
Thank You on wooden blocks

1. Thank you for being the one I can always count on to be honest.

A true friend will tell you if the shirt is ugly, or at least ask to borrow it and "accidentally" burn it.

2. Thank you for accepting me for who I am.

A best friend will love you regardless of the stale french fries you left on the floor of your car, or when you had lice in 8th grade and no one wanted to talk to you.

Keep Reading...Show less
sick student
StableDiffusion

Everybody gets sick once in a while, but getting sick while in college is the absolute worst. You're away from home and your mom who can take care of you and all you really want to do is just be in your own bed. You feel like you will have never-ending classwork to catch up on if you miss class, so you end up going sick and then it just takes longer to get better. Being sick in college is really tough and definitely not a fun experience. Here are the 15 stages that everyone ends up going through when they are sick at college.

Keep Reading...Show less
kid
Janko Ferlic
Do as I say, not as I do.

Your eyes widen in horror as you stare at your phone. Beads of sweat begin to saturate your palm as your fingers tremble in fear. The illuminated screen reads, "Missed Call: Mom."

Growing up with strict parents, you learn that a few things go unsaid. Manners are everything. Never talk back. Do as you're told without question. Most importantly, you develop a system and catch on to these quirks that strict parents have so that you can play their game and do what you want.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends
tv.com

"Friends" maybe didn’t have everything right or realistic all the time, but they did have enough episodes to create countless reaction GIFs and enough awesomeness to create, well, the legacy they did. Something else that is timeless, a little rough, but memorable? Living away from the comforts of home. Whether you have an apartment, a dorm, your first house, or some sort of residence that is not the house you grew up in, I’m sure you can relate to most of these!

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments