Sometimes I just think I'm so smart. That's usually when I prove that I'm not.

I should know better, too. I've known all my life that I don't have the world figured out. Part of it is because I've lived by myself so long that I don't really know what makes people tick. I'm a total social doofus, and if it weren't for books and movies and TV, I wouldn't even be able to fake it.

When I'm presented with one side of an argument, everything is perfectly clear. If you tell me what you think, I'll try to see things your way. I'll go along, right up to the point where I hear the other side, and that's when things start to get fuzzy. Maybe it's an empathy thing. I want to believe in people so much that I see things from their point of view, even if it contradicts what I actually know.

So anything I say here should be viewed with a skeptic's eye. That's especially true if I make big pronouncements about right and wrong, and try to tell other people how to live their lives. All that means is that I haven't looked at all sides of the question, because once that happens, all certainty falls away. Every time I bungee jump to the wrong conclusion, be sure to wait for the recoil before giving me any credit. You'll be sorry if you don't.

Hey, but I'm a good listener. And if you're the last one to get to me, you'll probably find me nodding and agreeing with you. As soon as a real argument breaks out, though, you'll see me fade into the furniture. Or behind it.