Quote of the Week...from Alan Watts

I owe my solitude to other people.                                  ---Alan Watts.

Alan Watts (1915-73) was an English philosopher and author who tended to focus on Eastern thought systems and spiritual outlooks.  So, it might not be surprising that the above quote of his might seem a little bit Zen in its overt sense of paradox.  I, on the other hand, am in no ways bound to his training or possibly poetic tendencies, seeing his statement instead perhaps more literally than he had intended...I guess I'd have to resurrect the dude and ask him to his face to make sure, in any case.  Not exactly known for being a gregarious lover of people and their company, sometimes their manipulation and annoying presence that messes with my mental, emotional and spiritual equanimity just gets to be a little bit too much and I feel the strong urge to retreat a few steps.  If you're one of those aforementioned annoying gregarious manipulators, then you might condescendingly say that I'm going into a shell and hiding, but then again, I've already described you as annoying and manipulative, haven't I?  Besides, I'm not saying I want to be a hermit, as I have a small circle of loving family and friends that I find reassuring and supportive...God bless them all.  I simply find much human interaction as tedious and draining...and some days, like yesterday for example...severely test my ability to withstand all the bull thrown my way.  May today go better...I'm being proactive in that regard by bracing myself against more social aggression and manipulation...