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How To Even…Deal with People at Thanksgiving
By Michael Gushue & CL Bledsoe
Thanksgiving is a time to get together with people you’ve successfully avoided the rest of the year, so you can share in awkwardness and probably argue. It’s a beautiful thing. It can also be challenging because, though we know you’re not afraid to go back to prison, that doesn’t mean you’re ready to any time soon. So, let’s break down the types of people you’re likely to have to deal with and talk about some strategies for dealing with them.
People Who Make You Wish You Were Dead
There are many types of people who fall into this category. You may work for one, be in a relationship with one, or even be one (sorry). But let’s focus on the ones who show up at Thanksgiving and deal with the other ones in therapy (or your revenge fantasy fan fiction).
Social Climber: This type shows up dressed to impress. They’re on their phone the whole time, casually name-dropping and referencing pop culture. And if you try to engage, they will act like you farted in the Vatican. “Oh, you’ve been watching BingeSluts? I watched that last week…” The thing about the social climber is that they somehow make you want to impress them, but you never can. See, to be impressed, you have to be able to feel something — joy, envy, something, anything. The Social Climber is completely dead…
