Technology and my introvert nature are an ideal combination for a reclusive existence.
Since the advent of Skype, Facebook, Google, online banking, mobile phones, telework (working from home) and distance learning, being a hermit is an increasingly attractive alternative to face-to-face interaction.
Add a recently acquired coffee machine into the equation, and there’s no reasonable excuse to leave the house any more - except maybe for groceries, weekly choir sessions and the occasional social engagement.
Why go out into the world when I’ve got the world at my keyboard fingertips!

“You got gaffa tape?”
Nope.
“Newspaper?”
Err…. no.
“Go get some. You can then make a stick by rolling the newspaper and….”
Why? Can’t I just borrow a riding crop?

Capricorn:  The Mountain Goat.  Functionalities: Ambitious; success, achievement and results oriented; authority, organisation, time, status, reputation, rewards, awards, responsible and mature. 
“No wonder you’re scaring the rest of the committee,” a friend observed on my recent birthday.
“You'll be happy to know,” I assured her, “that I've spent the past decade toning down some of my more extreme Capricorn traits.”

“What! Only three hours?” my Japanese students hollered in protest.
“Surely that’s enough time,” I replied. “Why on earth would you want to spend more time at the plaza?” 
I hate shopping. The only thing I hate more is waiting around while others do their shopping.

“If my son has the opportunity to interact with young people from other cultures, he’ll learn they’re just the same as him,” said the mother.
As a result, that young boy is growing up with an open mind and acceptance of other people, so by the time he’s an adult he won’t see the sense of warfare against people he considers friends, despite their colour, race or religion.
“It’s one way of helping to end wars in future,” she said.

There’s nothing quite like the look and feel of a freshly cleaned floor.
Infinitely more satisfying, however, is the clarity that comes with having clean windows, which really do make the outside world look brighter.
Now, I’m not a big fan of housework and I can tolerate medium levels of untidiness, but deep down I really like having a clean home.

Since childhood, I’ve often wondered how I ended up in my family. 
I noticed early on that I didn’t fit in and was astonished to realise I had nothing in common with them, apart from the birth thing.
Now, I’m pretty certain I wasn’t adopted. First of all, Greeks aren’t the adopting type; and second, my relatives constantly remind me that I look like and carry not only my paternal grandmother’s name, but also her personality traits. 

“He’s a bit of a tough cookie.”
I ignored the comment and maintained the required silence.
“So what are you writing?”
I shook my head and slid along the wooden bench. I didn’t want the judge castigating me for contempt of court.