They say it's the first sign of madness.
Well if talking to yourself on a regular basis says something about your psyche, my husband is decidedly in the cuckoo's nest.
I hear him and disturbing though it may be, I do get it. After all I am the only person who really listens to me. And I usually answers my own questions as well.
I too have these two way conversations with myself. But mine I feel is more out of necessity than desire and certainly only ever happens when there is at least the possibility of an answer from another person.
I ask a question verily to a person standing in front of me (now with only two of us in the house it's not a huge leap to guess who that might be) and when he doesn't answer (which is often) I find myself answering myself.
I quite like it actually. That way I get the answer I want and myself and me are both satisfied.
Now I don't put answering myself into the madness category. If anything, it is quite the reverse. By answering myself I am actually being really polite and rounding off a situation in a logical and satisfactory way.
My husband however displays quite a different sort of talk and therefore falls quite distinctly into a different and decidedly questionable category.
He actually talks to himself. He mutters away, reminding himself of this and that. I can even be in the room and the conversation continues.He accompanies most of what he does with a quiet monologue.
He talks to himself when the television is on, making comments (often about the fashion choices about a certain weather announcer) and judgments (MKR brings out his worst, although he would say his best). He seems to have an opinion on many things and is quick to assess all television situations from his throne of judgement (aka recliner), feet outstretched, face flushed with fury, righteousness and indignation.
His volume will change depending on the intensity of the moment.
But what does not affect this continuous banter is the presence of another person (ie me) in the room.
I would even suggest at this point that he talks to himself more than he does to me. And that doesn't even count the time when I'm not there.
Madness? He would say with some satisfaction, that this too is complete sanity.
- Linda Muller
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