HOW TO SURVIVE EMOTIONAL VAMPIRES

How to you spot Emotional Vampires?

Like the cliched fictional vampires, they tend to blend in, all smiles and apparent friendliness.

You spot them as you would a cliched fictional vampire:

1.) THEY ARE UNDEAD

Translation: they are not self-sufficient. 

They take emotional energy from others, for they do not know how to take emotional care of themselves.

Since they are always running on low in emotional energy, they have none to spare to give others.

2.) COLD TO THE TOUCH

In interpersonal exchanges, they usually are cold and distant though the face smiles.  

They are lacking in personal energy and so get defensive if they sense you might ask something of them.

3.) USUALLY HIGHLY ATTRACTIVE

They have been able to get by in life without giving because their sexual allure and dominating presence 

to get what they want by unstated promises of something worthwhile to come.

4.)  MANIPULATIVE

They hunger for attention and will get it by forcing their way into the center of focus.  

Passive aggressive maneuvers such as emotional blackmail or bullying are their stock in trade.

5.) LIVE IN THE SHADOWS

They will often be the first to rush to someone hurting in need, not to help, 

but to gain a Renfield to serve them in the future.

6.) HAVE A DARK PRESENCE

Because they are low in emotional energy, they often appear dark, mean, and brooding -- 

or leave you feeling that way if you have spent too much time with them, leeching you.

7.) THEY HAVE NO REFLECTION

They don't like themselves or who they see in the mirror, so they continually wear a mask to hide themselves from themselves and you.  

They cannot handle criticism or authentic affection (without thought of gain) from others.

HOW TO SURVIVE THEM

1) LEAVE THEIR PRESENCE AS SOON AS YOU CAN 

That is often not possible.  Then what? 

 Only spend a short time with them.  Find ways to limit exposure to them.

2.) TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF

Exercise.  Eat right.  Do things that re-charge your emotional batteries. 

3.) TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS

Feel drained whenever they're around?  Guess what?  You have a vampire on your hands.  

Value your emotions and yourself.  Take time to reflect how to do the two above approaches to survival.

4.) HAVE THE SELF RESPECT TO SAY "NO"

Set boundaries of acceptable actions and words from them.  Distance yourself from them at least within your thoughts,  

They are damaged, not you.

5.) TAKE TIME TO PLAY

It will build inner reserves of emotional strength and inner distance from their attacks.

6.) BE OPEN AND AFFECTIONATE TO POSITIVE PEOPLE

Smile, hug, shake hands with whole people.  Their company will re-new you.

WORDS without MEANING_ IWSG post

Take WE THE PEOPLE

pretty straightforward, right?

Still, politicians, even Founding Fathers, 

have to placate expediency so ...

Blacks were counted as half a People  
and Native Americans as only 25% a People 

and that was only done to satisfy the bickering states 

for population count was important in determining the number of representatives each state had in the House.

Yet those words and the ones following them are important because of the ideals that lay behind them.

William Shatner let those ideals slip as his ego took control of his performance ...

and we as writers should learn from that.

Our words should not draw attention to us but to our story.  

Our words touch the reader's heart to feel when

we keep from telling them what to feel.

Take the two words above:  

Touch ...Heart

Say I write: 

"It felt so good when she touched me."

It just lays there, right?

 

Now, read Jim Butcher's way of writing it:

“There’s power in the touch of another person’s hand. We acknowledge it in little ways, all the time. 

There’s a reason human beings shake hands, hold hands, slap hands, bump hands. 

It comes from our very earliest memories, 

when we all come into the world blinded by light and color, deafened by riotous sound, 

flailing in a suddenly cavernous space without any way of orienting ourselves, 

shuddering with cold, emptied with hunger, and justifiably frightened and confused. 

And what changes that first horror, that original state of terror? 

The touch of another person’s hands. 

Hands that wrap us in warmth, that hold us close. 

Hands that guide us to shelter, to comfort, to food. 

Hands that hold and touch and reassure us through our very first crisis, 

and guide us into our very first shelter from pain. 

The first thing we ever learn is that the touch of someone else’s hand can ease pain and make things better. 

That’s power. 

That’s power so fundamental that most people never even realize it exists.” 

WORDS HAVE MEANING ONLY 

IF WE WORK TO GIVE IT TO THEM.

WRITE WELL.

YOU NEVER KNOW

WHO ACHES TO READ WORDS THAT

TOUCH THEIR BRUISED HEART. 

Have a great March!

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED

Yesterday, the Surgeon General tweeted:

" Seriously people - 
STOP BUYING MASKS! 

 They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus, 

but if healthcare providers can’t get them to care for sick patients, it puts them and our communities at risk."

 Really?  

Hospitals get their supplies straight from the distributors not Walmart or Home Depot! 

Besides, if masks aren't going

 to protect normal citizens, 

what good will they do the healthcare staff?

Surgical masks are worn by the infected to keep their germs to themselves.

 

N95 masks protect you from the infected.

 It is a respiratory protective device designed to achieve a very close facial fit

 and very efficient filtration 

of airborne particles. 

The 'N95' designation means that 

when subjected to careful testing, 

the respirator blocks at least 95 percent 

of very small (0.3 micron) test particles.

 The ghost of Mark Twain

wants me to let you know

that the coronavirus is .1 micron.

But the coronavirus piggybacks on water droplets

spewed out by sneezes and coughs.

And those water droplets are .3 microns.

So N95 masks provide substantial protection.

Just thought you might like to know.

THE SOCIOPATH BESIDE YOU

"His heart exists inside the dry leaves of a soul." 

- F. Scott Fitgerald ( of Hemingway)

“I could forgive you even your cruelty if it were not for your calm.” 

- G. K. Chesterton 

Psychiatrists have believed that 

psychopaths are defined by qualities of callousness, lack of emotion, and coldness.

 They lack empathy, in other words.

 They start out with barely a moral compass, or don't have one at all, 

while sociopaths tend to develop their skewed moral compass throughout childhood and adulthood.


 These predators, both male and female, haunt our everyday lives at work, at home, and in relationships. 

 This is a class of individuals who have been around forever and who are found in every culture, society and walk of life. 

Everybody has met these people, been deceived and manipulated by them, 

and forced to live with or repair the damage they have wrought. 

These often charming—but always deadly—individuals have a clinical name: psychopaths. 

Their hallmark is a stunning lack of conscience; 

their game is self-gratification at the other person's expense. 

Many spend time in prison, but many more do not. 

All take far more than they give.


QUESTIONS TO ASK ABOUT THOSE AROUND YOU

1. Do you often feel used by the person?

2. Have you often felt that he (or she, because women can be sociopaths too) doesn't care about you?

3. Does he lie and deceive you?

4. Does he tend to make contradictory statements?

5. Does he tend to take from you and not give back much?

6. Does he often appeal to pity? Does he seem to try to make you feel sorry for him?

7. Does he try to make you feel guilty?

8. Do you sometimes feel he is taking advantage of your good nature?

9. Does he seem easily bored and need constant stimulation?

10. Does he use a lot of flattery? Does he interact with you in a way that makes you feel flattered even if he says nothing overtly complimentary?

11. Does he make you feel worried? Does he do it obviously or more cleverly and sneakily?

12. Does he give you the impression you owe him?

13. Does he chronically fail to take responsibility for harming others? Does he blame everyone and everything but himself?

SURVIVAL GUIDE

1.) MIND YOUR MIND

If in describing a new friend to others, you use 

"charming" and "persuasive" and "he/she says the most outrageous things but you just can't get mad at him/her"  --

You have trouble on your hands.  Disengage quickly.


2.) UNDER THE ICING IS ONLY MORE ICING

 It is easy to get get swept up by the winning smile, the captivating body language, and the fast talk of the typical psychopath.

Step back when you feel pulled in too quickly by someone.  

Ask why that stunning person was unattached before you met them.

Perhaps there is a wake of ruined lives behind that person.


3.)  KEEP YOUR GUARD UP IN HIGH RISK SITUATIONS

The summer season is coming with lots of parties, 

meeting new people when your mind is blunted by the relaxed sunshine days on the beach, laughter and alcohol.  

Lions lurk by the water hole for a reason.

Some situations are tailor-made for psychopaths:

 singles bars, ship cruises, foreign airports, etc.

 In each case, the potential victim is lonely, looking for a good time, excitement, or companionship, 

and there will usually be someone willing to oblige, for a terrible future price. 


4.) KNOW THYSELF

  Psychopaths are skilled at detecting and ruthlessly exploiting your weak spots. 

Your best defense is 

to understand what these spots are, and to be extremely wary of anyone who zeroes in on them.


5.) ONLY ONE REMEDY

There's only one solution for dealing with a sociopath: 

Get him or her completely out of your life for good. 

Enjoy your life

but mind your surroundings 

and those around you.
 “Some werewolves are hairy on the inside.”
―Stephen King, Danse Macabre

COVID-19 May Destroy the New Silk Road - Globalism

“Why listen to me?

 I can only predict 

epidemics and plagues.”
― Larry Kramer

The medieval Silk Road brought a wealth of goods, spices, and new ideas from China and Central Asia to Europe. 

In 1346, the trade also likely carried the deadly bubonic plague 

that killed as many as half of all Europeans within 7 years, in what is known as the Black Death. 

Globalism has been touted as the new Silk Road.  

But a world without borders is also one without barriers to disease pathogens.

China dragged its diplomatic feet in speaking of the severity of Covid-19.

About 5 million people left Wuhan, China, before the lockdown, the city's mayor said.

Some by air to get back to their homes in other countries.

Of course, China has been lying.  But using their figures, of the 25,000 cases that have been resolved ...

10% have died.

China provides the U.S. with 95% of its antibiotics, in fact most of our drug industry depends on China.

Surgical masks, too. 

"Basically we've outsourced our entire industry to China," retired Brig. Gen. John Adams told NBC News.

 "That is a strategic vulnerability."

You think?

 
"If China shuts the door on exports of medicines and their key ingredients and raw material, 

U.S. hospitals and military hospitals and clinics would cease to function within months, if not days,"  

said Rosemary Gibson, author of a book on the subject, "China Rx."

"The U.S. faces a shortage of 150 drugs."

- Axios

China has locked down more than 140 millions of people, closing hundreds of businesses nation wide.

We will soon learn the folly of American companies outsourcing manufacturing to China 

to have their goods assembled, or completely built overseas, at incredibly low costs.

According to the Daily Mail 8 hours ago:

 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-8037835/Coronavirus-rapidly-fitting-Disease-X-category-World-Health-Organization-expert-warns.html

• Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq became the latest countries to record cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus 
• Italy confirmed its seventh virus death in Europe's first major outbreak, with 11 towns in lockdown to contain the spread of the infection
• South Korea now has the largest number of cases outside of mainland China, with 830 patients known to have caught the virus
• Iranian officials denied a cover-up after a lawmaker claimed 50 people have died from the infection in the city of Qom alone
• But the UK's official position for Italy, South Korea or Iran has not changed, with the coronavirus threat to the British public still being 'low'  
• 
   
• Why hasn't the WHO rushed to declare Covid-19 a pandemic?

 Have you heard of its Private-Public partnerships?

In the beginning, the WHO was supposed to receive funds only from the governments of United Nations members,

But a few years ago, in order to swell its coffers WHO set up what it calls a “private partnership” 

that allows it to receive financial support from private industries.

 But which industries you ask?

Why the pharmaceutical companies of course!

 

 https://www.globalresearch.ca/politics-corruption-who/5702045

 The bank JP Morgan on Wall Street estimated that, 

thanks mainly to the pandemic alert issued by the WHO in 2009,

the pharmaceutical giants, who also finance the work of the ESWI run by Albert Osterhaus, were set to make $7.5-$10 billion profit.

Could the fact that there is as yet no vaccine for Covid-19 have any bearing why the WHO is slow to declare a pandemic?

But Don't Panic.

When could we ever believe world governments or world institutions?

Believe that they are governed by self-interest and greed, and you will not be far from the truth.

Be prepared:

FOOD -

Store a 2 week supply of food and water in your home.

MEDICINE -

Check your regular prescription and over the counter drugs to be ready.

KEEP SAFE -

Wash your hands frequently.

Avoid touching your face and lips.

No handshakes or hugs. 

Asymptomatic people can still infect you: keep 6 feet apart from folks as much as possible.

Have a supply of n95 masks, dust masks, as they can filter out most harmful particulate matter. 

Stock up on toilet paper ... or used corn cobs. Ouch!

Remember COSTA MESA -

  A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order late Friday 

to halt the transportation of up to 50 people infected with a new virus from China to a Southern California city for quarantine 

who has tested positive for the new coronavirus to Costa Mesa, a city of 110,000 in the heart of Orange County.

You see, anyone who has tested positive for the virus cannot stay at the base 

and must be sent either to the hospital or if they're not sick enough, isolated until the infection has cleared.

It would have been to Fairview. 

Fairview is a 109-acre campus that was once home to about 2,000 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. 

It’s now nearly empty as the state has moved residents into community homes and other living situations.

A state lawmaker whose district includes Costa Mesa said he feared the virus could travel through the facility's air vents.

You think?  

Ask the passengers of the Diamond Princess about those deadly air vents.

50? 

 I thought the U.S. government said there were only 15 infected in America?

REMEMBER

FOX MULDER

Trust your common sense

and your instincts.