Islands and Bridges

This post idea has been knocking about my brain for some time. I suppose it's time to get it out.

Remember that old Robin Williams' movie where he becomes a hotel owner in the Caribbean? Yeah, I barely remember it myself. But there's one piece of dialogue I do remember. Someone tells him "no man is an island."

"What does that mean?" he replies. "No man is a woman, either."

I love Robin Williams.

Anyway, I think people fall into two categories - islands and bridges. Actually, I think they fall into way more categories than that, but for the sake of brevity, I'll confine it to those two today. (Which reminds me of a Robin Williams' quote from another movie: "There's only two kinds of people - those who smoke and those who don't. Figure out which one you are and be that." Where's it from? Hehe!)

So we've got islands and bridges. What does that mean? To me it's a description of introverts and extroverts.

Introverts are islands. They are content in their own inner world and it is difficult to lure them out of the jungle.

Extroverts are bridges. They are so interested in other people's lives it's almost impossible to get them to pay attention to their own. They certainly don't spend any time navel gazing. They have no idea what keeps introverts so introverted, so they push and prod and pinch until the introvert is forced to walk out to the beach and smack the interlopers.

Both types are necessary. If not for bridges, no one would connect to anyone else. If not for islands, no one would get any work done. Islands are notoriously good focusers on things that interest them. Bridges...not so much. Unless it's getting islands to talk to them.

Not a great post, I'll admit. Not terribly profound or even interesting, but I suspect it will come up again, so I wanted to get it out there.

In college, I had a roommate with whom I was very close. At times, we would look at each other and ask, "Did I tell you this or just think about telling you this?"

Now I've told you.