Walking the tightrope.....

Good morning folks!  Yep!  I changed my blog header from "Nancy's Thoughts", to "Mental Floss....  A collection of rants and discoveries in the journey of life.".  Besides the name change, I changed the look.  It was all just for fun, but I am happy with the end result.  The reason I chose to change is because this blog is more than just what I think (which it has a lot of my thought in it), but it is my cathartic release of those pesky little tidbits of things that are trapped in my brain.  Kind of like getting food stuck between your teeth.  It is totally annoying and you need to use dental floss to get it out.  I hope you enjoy the new format, the new look and what should become an interesting journey through my eyes.....

Well, yesterday the clouds parted and the angels sang when my ah-ha moment of something that has been so obvious for so long finally got it's recognition....  There are men, there are women, and there are the mutts (aka tomboys).

Wait!  I just had a wonder moment.....  If girls that relate more to boys and have tendencies to be less than what a girly-girl is are called tomboys...  What do they call guys that relate more to girls and have fashion sense like girls?  And scratch the thought that they are gay.  They like girls, okay?  I wonder what name they get?  Are they Renaissance Men?  Now, I am really curious to know...

Okay, getting back to the thought of the day and the next lesson to achieve.....  Figuring what a person expects in a conversation.  Do they really want to vent or do they want opinion?  I am calling this bit of interest :the tightrope effect.

Think about it....  There is a really fine line that makes one thing into two.  It is like choosing sides in a debate. The pros and cons of a conversation.  Talking can be a breezy fun event or a down-right drag-down battle.  It is all in how you participate.  Well, the breezy fun thing is a bit far fetched, but you get my drift, right?

There are times I can spot-on when talking to a person and all goes really well, but there are times I get my wires crossed and make a complete disaster.  Yesterday was a perfect example and I got to experience it twice and saw an actual result...  How cool is that?  Here are my results....

Conversation #1:  Went into fix-it mode and got the level of misunderstanding that created a verbal smack down....  Bad move.

Conversation #2:  Bit my tongue, waited to listen to everything, nodded in agreement, looked surprised or shocked when needed, took a full minute to assess the situation and realized that it was not a fix-it talk.  The vent session went really well and it was over as fast as ripping off a band-aid.....  Success!

Helping factor between the two?  Laugh if you must, but it was selective hearing.  Every guy has this talent and so do I.  It is like being locked in on the football game and someone decided to talk about making plans for the day.  You know you are going to be quizzed once the commercials are on, but you have enough information that makes it sound like you were listening.  Actually, you were multi-tasking ;)

Now, selective hearing might have saved my butt this time, but I need to hone in on my balancing abilities.  Walking that tightrope and getting the 4-1-1 if I need to be in "fix-it mode" or not.  Find the inner chick and just listen...  Not selectively listen, but really listen.  Ask questions and let the ride begin.

Gotta fly, more things to experience today and maybe talk about tomorrow.

cya!