Ostrich.

So...people frequently confuse being introverted with being shy.  I'm certainly not shy.  Or quiet.  Or timid.  But I am an introvert.  I need alone time to recharge my batteries.  I generally prefer to be one on one with people.  I hate dealing with large crowds.  Any conversations that involve more than 3 people at once and I just sort of shut down.  I'm still absorbing most of what's being said, but I usually don't add to the conversation at all.  People that don't know me well assume I'm tired, or not feeling well, or just being pissy.  And I usually just let that assumption go, because it's way easier to tell people that I'm physically exhausted than mentally and emotionally exhausted from dealing with the situation I'm currently in.  One of my sisters who knows me well calls it ostrich time...she knows that if I just disappear for a few days and stick my head in the sand that it's nothing personal. It doesn't mean I'm mad at her or that I don't want to spend time with her... I just need it to be able to function.  So if you run into me out socially (that would be a minor miracle) and I'm sitting alone in a corner not speaking, don't take offense.

G