Water torture
Ronald Reagan had a great way of sizing up his political competitors. Apparently at the start of a meeting he would hand out a jar of jelly beans – He later explained, ‘You can tell a lot about a fella’s character by whether he picks out all of one color or just grabs a handful’.
I’m definitely a ‘grabs a handful’ sort of person…
But I have my own method of divination when it comes to facing another across a table – I balance a glass of water so that it just hangs over the side of the table. With some people, they’ll constantly look towards the glass as you talk… some might point it out… others have been known to stand up and move it away from the edge themselves.
The only time I have to worry is when they don’t react at all. It takes a grave situation or a character of strong will to ignore the glass.
Not that I find myself in that sort of situation very often. As far as I’m aware, I don’t have a nemesis yet. There’s plenty of time, sure, but I’m thinking of putting an advert in the newspaper – wanted, nemesis, must enjoy all the things I don’t.
Not applying to be your nemesis, but I’m the type that would just move the glass onto the table. Not sure what that says about me. I’m also the “grabs a handful” of jellybeans sort.
Yeah, I have no idea what each reaction means… I think of it as a scale of neurosis with a subscale of dominance.
That is, to be bothered by the glass shows some level of neurosis, whether you do anything about it suggests how you control your world.
I grab handfulls of jelly beans because I’m greedy and like sweets, it doesn’t go much deeper than that.
So I’m neurotic and controlling. Can’t really argue with that, actually.
Might I suggest Mr. Muscle as a nemesis?
I know he loves the jobs you hate, maybe that extends to other things as well?
/b
Genius. Mr Muscle is a universal nemesis!
Hmmm. It would seem to be a very sound idea. Perhaps I’ll “borrow” it.
I’m pretty sure I’d just ignore it. There’s no willpower involved, I’m just fairly oblivious to such things.
“DAMN YOU AND YOUR DAMN PRECARIOUSLY PERCHED GLASS!”
That is essentially how I’d react.
you are not alone in this
I usually find that talking to someone for a few minutes is the best test of personality ………
Ahh, a traditionalist.
I don’t understand how your glass test works?
When I am in a meeting, I tend to ignore things that aren’t of immediate import.
Esp. when I am in a meeting in a chaotic environment, like underground where there is alot of noise and movement.
I’ve noticed that a few of the senior guys just ignore everything, even their phones ringing until the meeting is over.
So I don’t think your glass test will work very well.
Well, that’s pretty much how it works:
I would see that you’re not distracted by the glass which would tell me that you are the sort of person that concentrates on the task at hand.
Sure it’s not an encyclopedia of information, but when trying to asses a situation it all helps.
Just looking at this picture puts me slightly on edge.
I’m definitely the type who stands up and puts the glass in a safer position, as Adam likes to demonstrate to our friends!
I also always pick out orange sweets first.
I like that restaurant in Austria with the big bowl of stale donuts. According to the propaganda, there are three types of people in the world: those who look at a bowl of donuts and think nothing of it, those who dream of flinging donuts at others, and those who actually take a donut out of the bowl and fling it.
I see a bowl of donuts and start craving donuts.
I hear “I see a bowl of donuts and start craving donuts.” and start craving donuts.
I hear “donuts” and start craving donuts.
i’d be tempted to nudge the glass of
water off the table and into your lap.
sera the nemesis you’ve always wanted.
was that your leg? sorry i kicked it.
pass the rolls, nevermind, i changed my mind.
You know what that tells me about you? It tells me that you shouldn’t mess with a Seraphine, especially if you are thirsty.
I don’t know if the glass would bother me or not…I know that I have a weird urge to clean up in anyone’s house/office/school/building other than my own, mainly at parties, which tends to irritate people (Last weekend I was walking around collecting empty glasses and washing them up at 4am at a mates party) but glasses on the edge of the table…I’d probably watch it, wait till it falls/gets knocked and then say “I saw that coming” or some such.
I would take your glass.
Also, I’m going to start a current events-based, scraggly-lined, rainbow colored comic.
I EAT NOTHING BUT THE BLACK JELLY BEANS! HA!
i eat all but the black ones, bleah~
i just got home from California, and apparently my cat’s been missing for three days, in the middle of the monsoon’s flooding and the ever-present coyotes.
It wasn’t that cat that was streaking on the baseball the other night was it?
Seriously tho, I hope you cat is ok.
that’s just the sort of thing he’d do
thanks.
I have a similar tactic, I meet people at restaurants and pubs quite a bit, and usually find an excuse to knock the salt shaker or catsup bottle over… then I leave it. Not usually intended as a judge of will, but rather as a test of how high-maintenance a new friend is, or to gauge the mood of an old friend (as they usually know about this and will either studiously ignore it if in a good mood, or “James! Quit dicking around!” if not so much”
i take only the red, i dig through the entire bowl until i have every last one, just because im fucked up like that, as for your glass test i would be one to purposely knock it off the table, just to set the tone of the meeting at hand.