Wednesday, April 06, 2005

among the ground rules for dealing with me

Okay, so: If you try to proselytize me into your recent enchantment with "internal family systems theory," in which our psychology is supposed to be comprised of a set of complicated familial-like relationships among different aspects of the self--that is, our inner lives as massive-messy-family-reunion, only without any potato salad and taking place entirely in our heads--then you forfeit the right to be surprised if, for a period of at least six months and perhaps as long as a decade, our conversations are punctuated by my asking, apropos of nothing, "Who's your internal daddy?" or by my saying, "Wow, sounds like your internal crazy aunt in the basement is at it again." I'm sorry: it's like I've got this smartmouthed surly adolescent slouched on the sofa behind my cerebellum, and he just won't behave.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jeremy, is this post directed at me? That book I gave you was about family systems theory but I don't remember anything about INTERNAL family systems theory...hmmm... And I'm sure not trying to sell you on any theory. Hell, part of the reason I went into research instead of therapy was because the prof who taught my two undergrad therapy classes (in which we read that book) basically told me, "EGP, you would make the worst therapist EVER." Which is true. I belong to the "Put up or shut up" school of therapy. Which doesn't exactly exist as a formal discipline.

Frankly, I'd rather hear from the smartmouthed surly adolescent. It would be more fun that hearing from The Professor. And it would be like hearing from, oh, 90% of my friends. But then you'd have to deal with it if my own inner surly adolescent responded with great insolence.

--EGP

jeremy said...

Um, no, there is a big difference between family systems theory and this thing called internal family system theory. See, the former has to do with your family, the latter has to do with your head.

The Professor is that part of my internal family system that brings home the salary that supports the other parts. Apologies if he ends up being a little stodgy.

tina said...

Now that you mention it, I'm kind of worried that my internal crochety old grampa is going to teach my 1:30 class.

Anonymous said...

The Donut Man Depart'th

T'is now time to bid'th thee all adieu
n'er more our friendship to renew
alas and at last! the Lonely Donut Man is through
-LDM

Au revoir! I suppose I should quote something from Sartre or Heidegger, or even Joan Stambaugh for that matter. I deeply regret not being able to reveal my true identity to you. To do so would kill LDM, the persona of creativity representing the creative binge I have been on ever since viewing those bacon pictures Jeremy posted so long ago. There is no rational explanation for this. Something snapped in my head when I saw that bacon. LDM lives I tell you, he lives! The bacon pics also spwaned Helpful In New Hampshire, the Massabi Ranger and the feral children advocate. I have a number of minor literay publications, under a pseudonym of course, and I need to compile, edit and seek publication of the 'real' poems and short stories written while on this binge.

Would it really matter if I told you I am from Kentucky and work in the Human Services profession? What if I said I have multiple degrees and speak 3 languages and have the companionship of a wonderful woman? What if I said I was a UW Grand student? LDM was always there for you with his sweet grease of authenticity. I never once failed you. No matter what you have accomplished in your lives since the posting of the bacon pictures, the madness of predictability and existential malaise has always lurked. For brief periods of time, LDM made the madness real.

I suspect Jeremy is the only consistent reader of my verse, having editorial duties such as he has. Verily shall I send him an email to satisfy any curiosity he may have about me. It is fitting that I quote from a cookbook diary of Sartre. "I want to create an omelet that expresses the meaninglessness of existence, but instead they taste like cheese. I look at them in the plate, but they don't look back." So it is for any reader of LDM. I cannot stand accused of mauvoise foi, bad faith.

Brady said...

So, basically, internal family systems theory is an updated version of "Herman's Head"? Sheeesh.

Andrea said...

I have been waiting for the revelation of LDM's true identity for weeks and now this??!!

Anonymous said...

Sorry, Brady, but when I first read your comment, I thought you had written about infernal family systems theory. Freudian slip?