It explicitly says you don't have to perform -- I would totally cook something.

NO was my answer too. Unless it was among really close friends. That party is not an introverts friend.

Although I wouldn't jump for joy at the chance, after thinking about it, I think it would be OK if they let you set up a table showcasing your talent that you could either stand by or not, as a choice instead of performing.

It actually makes me think of my Theatre Honor Fraternity induction, which to this day makes me seethe with rage. I actually walked out on it. The idea was to be poking fun at regular fraternities/honor societies and hazing, I think. So you had a bif brother/sister, and they prepared you by making you memorize all this stuff, and get ready, and then it was ALL A JOKE. They made you take a test where the answers were impossible, while distracting you, called you up on stage and made fun of you, made you recite a Shakespeare monologue while they heckled you, and it culminated in an improv where they thought it would be funny to have me, who was not an actor, and hated improv, be the lead character.

So I literally had a breakdown and left in the middle of the improv. The professor advisor had to come get me and try to convince me to come back.

What was really good about it was that the professor actually understood that I was angry and not sad, and the next year we let the inductees in on the "joke". We also made in nicer for non-actors.

Tom, I would put together a portfolio or two, and have them placed on tables. No performing or speaking, but sharing.

Then you can also smile, which, in your case, is absofuckinglutely a TALENT.

ION, why do people want to to be doing work this morning. Jesusita, I JUST did work last week!

Today's teefury - HP Lovecraft: [link]

Yeah, since the invite says you don't even have to be there to fulfill the requirement, or do anything while you're there...just point them at a web page and you're done. You wouldn't' even have to post anything new. Easy McPeasy. It's totally the best "let's all play!" invite I've ever seen. Since I've managed to expand my performance level skills from "hit people" to "teach people to hit people" "argue harder" and "draw porn" I'm really in high demand at parties. My sister's birthday weekend will be killer.

Yeah, my immediate reaction was NO too. That's usually my reaction to anything I'm told to do because It Will Be Fun!!. If I were going to such a party, I'd do a striptease. F U, that's my talent. So what if I'm fat now? Your invitation didn't say you had to enjoy it.

But seriously, Tom. Don't do it if you don't want to. If you do want to, take a bunch of your photos and show 'em off. You could even wear a t-shirt that says I Am Not A Photographer, which will satisfy your imposter syndrome and also confuse people.

*Everyone* has imposter syndrome. I swear. Okay, maybe not everyone, but an awful lot of people. "Yeah, I'm making it up as I go, I'm waiting for them to find out I have no idea what I'm doing and fire me." Me too. My degree is in anthropology! I'm a lazy antisocial scatterbrain! Why did they hire *me* to keep track of hundreds of different projects and soothe fretting professors? I have no idea what I'm doing here.

I would just bring a pie to that party.

That imposter is a hell of a photographer

Yes, this. I have one really good photo of TNG, and that's the one that Tom took. I need to get it printed at some point.

"draw porn"

I can tie really great rope corsets on people (they look super cool, seriously). And yet I think that might be the kind of party where the explaining would be...awkward.

Better improve my poi-spinning skills. (Does "hitting myself in the head without concussing myself" count as a skill?)

*Everyone* has imposter syndrome. I swear.

I have imposter syndrome about my professional stuff, but in fandom I have, in defiance of Dunning-Kruger, determined that I'm a pretty good writer. This does me no good in my life outside fandom, except that I've learned to take editorial critique with a modicum of grace.

Oh, and my boss actually said in a meeting the other day that I was a better writer than he is! Which is very nice to hear, but then I've got probably fifteen years on him, so it's not actually a surprise.

My co-workers (up through CIO) think it's worth remarking on how well I write and present most business docs (it seems to also be remarkable about the ones I fumble, unfortunately). Uh, no--I think I'm pretty damned good in general at those, actually. We can take that for granted and move on to why I keep fucking up the other ones--what is wrong with me there? Requirements? Expectation? Framework? Subject matter? I need to see if there's a common ground before the next occasion...

Steph, I would love a party at which someone without context and unkinkily tied rope corsets. Fuck explanation, that's just so cool. I still haven't managed to find a group for that closer than San Diego, or maybe Pasadena, maybe.

I feel I should decide on one or two yellow belt techniques in case I'm ever asked to "teach krav" on demand.

Because...that could happen, right? Any time now.

Unrelatedly, I was kinda histrionically accused of being stupid and male and not personally familiar with sexual assault the other day. I forgot I hated gawker. But I wasn't on jezebel! I didn't see that coming. I was sarcastic to a guy downplaying the incidence of rape, and got taken seriously and she just went off. Like, based on my first sentence she had a whole riff that ignored the part where my last sentence said I was a woman.

Sometimes this internet addiction gets exhausting.