Orientation for introverts. I don't like new situations. It takes me a little while to get comfortable, to relax, to engage. I'm fine once I've adjusted, but right at the beginning I'm quiet, timid, careful. Which makes orientations and stuff of that nature not the most fun. I don't like going around in a circle and talking about myself. Too much pressure right away. Concern about the first impressions. I don't like "interviewing" a partner and introducing him or her to the rest of the group. I like people, I really do, but I feel like I do better when I can get to know them at a natural pace, and not through a name game. So, with that endless setup for the (hopefully) funny stuff to come, here's my ideas for activities for "orientation for introverts."

1. Write your name on a nametag and stick it on your shirt. Walk around and look at everyone else's nametags.

2. Sit in a circle and try not to make eye contact with anyone.

3. Pull blades of grass out of the ground and make a small grass pile.

4. Try to stick the blades of grass back in the ground.

5. Tear little sticky pieces off the sides of your nametag.

6. Nap.

7. Whisper superficial conversation to the person next to you. "It's sunny out." "Yes, it is." "They say rain later." "Oh."

8. Go to the bathroom.

9. Lock yourself in the stall and cry.

10. Splash some water on your face and force yourself to rejoin the group.

11. Linger on the fringes of the clump of people.

12. Stare at the ground.

13. Pick some more grass.

14. Fidget.

15. Write out another nametag to replace the one you've accidentally ripped off and folded until it became all crumbly and disintegrated.

16. Wander for a bit.

17. Play with your fingers.

18. Ask if you can go home.