Concerns on Home School South Carolina

I grew up in a nearby suburb of Washington DC. I went to college at Virginia Tech, and for a couple of years I roomed with a guy who I was in my high school graduating class. He was pretty level-headed, but the pressure of studies will make you do some odd things to cope. Looking back, I realize he watched a lot of ‘Andy Griffith’ and his half of conversations carried a theme of innocence. For example, if people died in an earthquake, he grieved over the children’s deaths because they hadn’t done anything wrong. I didn’t pay much attention to what he was saying; at least he wasn’t talking about thermodynamics.

Fast forward 15 years. I move back to northern Virginia, then Chicago. He got a job in Aiken, South Carolina and seldom ventures further than Atlanta. He came to visit me for a few days, and it was a very odd visit.

We decided to go downtown. He wanted to drive, but I explained that parking is a real hassle and the subway was much more convenient. In pleading his case, he claimed parking is never a problem in downtown Atlanta. I pointed out that we weren’t going to downtown Atlanta; we were going to downtown Chicago, and each city’s rules are different. He could not understand that.

He offered me an Atlanta Braves t-shirt, which, he explained, I should wear proudly because they had won a World Series after many years of trying. I noted my apartment was three blocks from Wrigley Field, home of the Cubs who haven’t won a World Series since 1906. He seemed genuinely surprised that fans from other teams can go for decades — or lifetimes — and not see a championship.

Once at a bar, he became very antsy and stopped talking. It was clear he wanted to leave, so we did. When I asked what triggered his anxiety, he said he felt ‘overwhelmed by the situation’. Once out of the bar, he was very talkative, seemingly for hours. I think the bar had a few people standing, normal in Chicago, but maybe not for Aiken.

I’m sure there were other examples of his naivete, but those are the ones that struck me.

I know there are people who never stray far from home, so they can secure their title as ‘legend of the tri-county area’. But this guy has been to DC many times as a kid, yet seems not to have grown for his experiences.

When I visit someplace new, I wander about and try to take things in for what they are: Food, culture, customs, people, and so on. I don’t judge; I figure there’s a good reason why the people do what the do, so I do my best to fit in. I believe my travel has made me more aware of what other people think.

In contrast, I think he views everything through the prism of Aiken or Atlanta. If it doesn’t fit, he shuts down. I have never met anyone who so resistant to his surroundings. He was never in physical danger, I made sure of that. But maybe his psyche was in grave danger: What he was seeing didn’t fit with his paradigm.

We’ve barely spoken since. No mutual friends have had contact, so I guess he’s now a cul-de-sac. I wish him well but since he hasn’t responded to my FB friend request, I’ve probably contacted him for the last time. Incidentally, I think he’s bi-polar: his mood swings can be drastic and sudden.

Now that I’ve come off the couch, here’s my question to all you psychologists, real or armchair: What’s with this guy’ Is it unusual for someone to become more naive and less in his 30′s and 40′s’ Or is it me who is unaware of a somewhat common trait in people’

Thanks in advance for your thoughts!