[INTJ] INTJs in public places

[Uytuun]

It kind of reminds me of the blank state of mind I'm in when I'm doing sports and I'm really into it.

 

[Misty_Mountain_Rose]

I guess Ni's always running in the background, but a particular thing I notice about these states is they are, by and large, without thought. Satisfactorily so. I don't draw conclusions, or make too many associations. I will sometimes be prompted to recall similar environmental sensations, but I guess being in the throes of Se will sometimes ring up a little Si too.

That absence of thought is interesting. It's like the opposite of what should be going on. But for some reason, it usually feels wholly suitable. (Like meaningful recreation?) So long as it doesn't go on endlessly.

Uytuun, that is exactly what I was thinking when I read the above from Kalach. I get in this 'thoughtless' zone when I'm practicing Martial Arts. Its a kind of... instinctual redirecting of energy I guess, and usually the only time that the 'voices in my head' (hehe) go silent.

They say that your main function is the one you take for granted while the inferior functions are more 'respected' by the individual. This thread kind of makes that apparent methinks.

 

[Hendo Barbarosa]

That thoughtless zone is where I get most of my artistic inspiration from. I always figured that was just how Ni worked best...put yourself in an exercise or repetitive task that is so mind-numbingly boring (sometimes it's just watching a bad tv show, that has no room for improvement) that your Ni kicks in to compensate for your mind being understimulated. Whenever I take my morning subway commute I find that the long walks tend to do this to me...I get into work with several really good ideas, simply from the act of purely walking with nothing better to do!

Of course, I guess this would mean that I in fact have horrible Se as compared to you guys, now that I think about it. I rarely if ever just experience a moment for the sake of the moment itself...I like to connect it to other things in my head...

 

[Kalach]

That thoughtless zone is where I get most of my artistic inspiration from. I always figured that was just how Ni worked best...put yourself in an exercise or repetitive task that is so mind-numbingly boring (sometimes it's just watching a bad tv show, that has no room for improvement) that your Ni kicks in to compensate for your mind being understimulated. Whenever I take my morning subway commute I find that the long walks tend to do this to me...I get into work with several really good ideas, simply from the act of purely walking with nothing better to do!

Of course, I guess this would mean that I in fact have horrible Se as compared to you guys, now that I think about it. I rarely if ever just experience a moment for the sake of the moment itself...I like to connect it to other things in my head...

You know what, I'm pretty sure the Se's there almost all the time. It's probably especially there when an INTJ has a satisfying job.

I'm moderately sure that this thoughtless thing is a kind of Se exercise that isn't wholly what the Se's supposed to be about. That thoughtless state I guess arises when Se is privileged and treated as a thing in itself. It is however supposed to be serving the other functions. Ni/Te's made a plan, Fi feels good about it, and then Se's supposed to start jiggling along showing you where the nails are being hammered in. It's the moment to live in as the steps of the world domination unfold.

D'y'ever notice how planning is one thing, and a good thing too, but it's the moment you begin to take action that feels rightest? That's the true Se moment, I suspect. The world is engaged with.

 

[the state i am in]

The physical world... it's there! Who knew.

yes, yes, yes! i get tired of seeing logical symbols and tired grey burnt out images in my brain. the world! how complex! how much to see, smell, taste, touch, hear, etc.

I guess Ni's always running in the background, but a particular thing I notice about these states is they are, by and large, without thought. Satisfactorily so. I don't draw conclusions, or make too many associations. I will sometimes be prompted to recall similar environmental sensations, but I guess being in the throes of Se will sometimes ring up a little Si too.

That absence of thought is interesting. It's like the opposite of what should be going on. But for some reason, it usually feels wholly suitable. (Like meaningful recreation?) So long as it doesn't go on endlessly.

thought holds us hostage. we fear letting go of its grasp. we are never free. it takes enormous energy and resources. our brains a cramping muscle. stretch, relax, take a break, this is going to be an enjoyable walk thru the old neighborhood. we come back refreshed, energized, inspired. rebooted. unstuck.

You know what, I'm pretty sure the Se's there almost all the time. It's probably especially there when an INTJ has a satisfying job.

I'm moderately sure that this thoughtless thing is a kind of Se exercise that isn't wholly what the Se's supposed to be about. That thoughtless state I guess arises when Se is privileged and treated as a thing in itself. It is however supposed to be serving the other functions. Ni/Te's made a plan, Fi feels good about it, and then Se's supposed to start jiggling along showing you where the nails are being hammered in. It's the moment to live in as the steps of the world domination unfold.

i just feel like Ni dom hogs all the perceiving bandwidth. Se is a boon for us. we are present, grounded, in our bodies and sensitive all the way to our extremities. milk and blood flowing. we feel awake, alert, attentive to the world and our place within it. abstraction and meaning become far less important than our own ability to soak up and respond to what lies before us. it feels pure like eden. meditation seems like a similarly moving practice. but i'd much rather look at stuff.

 

[01011010]

I think it must be Se.

Do you ever get fascinated by buildings? It'll happen sometimes walking home of an evening where I'll get into some kind of zone and be fascinated by seeing the lines and shapes of the buildings in the neighbourhood. It happens sometimes that I'll, basically, just look *up*. Literally, neck craned back, and look *up*, to watch the buildings from a new angle, seeing the new lines and shadows, and the highlights of lighting. It disappears if I stand still. It's seeing the shapes glide past as I keep on walking that does it for me. I have on occasion stood outside my building just looking up at it to see it back lit by the sky and faintly lit by street lighting.

It's a little bit mystical.

(Channeling Howard Roark.)

Howard Roark <3

Sometimes, you truly have to appreciate clean/elegant lines.

If I may misinterpret your OP: isnt that called voyeurism ? ;D

I like to do that. If it's consensual.

It kind of reminds me of the blank state of mind I'm in when I'm doing sports and I'm really into it.

Yes. Like meditation.

 

[Kalach]

Howard Roark <3

I keep seeing that emoticon. Had to look it up this time. I always thought it was cleavage.

 

[sculpting]

what about highways? We have lots of huge overpasses/underpasses here in texas, and I can just sit and stare at all the lines as the cross and uncross. The symmetry is so beautiful.

 

[Hendo Barbarosa]

I used to do that a lot in San Diego.

Come to think of it, most of my Se moments probably occurred while being the passenger on a road trip, I'd bet. That is definitely when I just get obsessed in drinking in the scenery that's coming at me, and absorbing it, without trying to season it with any other thoughts.

 

[plaguerat]

Do you do this too, sometimes feel compelled to put yourself in a public place and... look at stuff?

My workplace is very close to where I live, so if I do my normal introverted thing and just scoot on home after work, I find after a while I get cabin fever. It's become a sort of habit to more or less schedule time to not go home. I'll stop in a place that allows me to stand up in a relaxed fashion and just... look at stuff. People and environments.

I'm aware of a sort of meter, too. If I don't sometimes do this stop-and-stare thing, it feels like something is lacking. And when I do do the stop-and-stare, then after a while the meter is on full and I can go home satisfied.

Crowds of people are good. Built environments work too. Open spaces, like vistas down a long piece of road are soothing. Closed-in environments with walls and buildings blocking the sky are uncomfortable.

Dunno what it is. Se practice, maybe? Topping up the Ni? Loitering with intent?

People watching is one of my favorite games. Everyone else thinks its creepy and wrong when I spend my time enjoying the food court at the mall or the delicate angle ths one lady over there holds her neck, but quite enjoy it.

Granted, the more I expose myself to the suburban "culture" developing in America, the more mad at society as a whole I get. So the limited times I've been in cities or parks or whatever, I wholy enjoy my time observing things- includng the people.

I say there's nothing wrong with it, as long as you're not like breathing down someone's neck.

 

[Misty_Mountain_Rose]

What if you end up necking with someone?

 

[GargoylesLegacy]

Sometimes I like to go outside, too. Feels weird; but there is just this weird urge from time to time. And then...yes, either looking at things or just take a walk or something.

 

[527468]

Sometimes I like to go outside, too. Feels weird; but there is just this weird urge from time to time. And then...yes, either looking at things or just take a walk or something.

There is school, but the destination is inside.

A few nights ago you could have spotted me driving up and down a busy street asking louses for directions.

 

[Kalach]

I used to do that a lot in San Diego.

Come to think of it, most of my Se moments probably occurred while being the passenger on a road trip, I'd bet. That is definitely when I just get obsessed in drinking in the scenery that's coming at me, and absorbing it, without trying to season it with any other thoughts.

Yep, road trips, and travel in general. Catching planes, riding trains... when the journey's started, I'm in there, in the moment. It is a tiny bit like cruise control, but with the eyes wide open. I worry deeply about long distance travel before it's underway, but the minute I step out the door and get started, then I'm in the ride. It's a kind of relief, actually, something like a holiday, and whatever happens is what happens.


I know this is true, but even writing it just now freaks me out a little.

 

[Kalach]

Today it was overcast and wet but without heavy rain, so I decided to hop on the bike and roll around the city for an hour. Definite planned Se-excursion because work was over for the week and I'm a little ahead of my usual schedule. And needed a day out.

I got a big, big kick out of seeing the familiar streets and structures in this new light. And it's a very familiar ride too, so whether it was the change in the light or just the day, I noticed a small street I've passed a thousand times and did the "follows exciting physical impulses" thing and took the detour. It opened onto a very cool little tree-lined, low-building'd lane with people and small shops. Big fun with the clean air, the solid but luminous overcast, the wet road and the evening setting in.

Were I into such things, I guess I'd definitely try to catch what I saw in some media way. I don't though because the chill in the air, the feel of the bike, the essential, moving 270 degree field of view--they wouldn't be caught.

At one earlier point I'd stopped by the river and found I actually couldn't hold still to look out over the water. Literally had to maintain a traversing viewpoint or felt I was missing the essence. That was silly so I started riding again.

Freakishly difficult to catch that stuff. There's a constant motion to it, an immediacy that means the moment passes too.


I have some kind of thesis that Se being fourth means the top three functions have some role in this kind of outing, but I don't know what. What I do get is a definite feeling of expansion. Embiggening. I don't know why.

 

[iwakar]

RE: OP

I experience the exact same cabin fever from excessive hermitage and have to leave the bat cave once in awhile to re-acclimate to sunshine.

 

[ez78705]

I like to walk around in public places where no one will notice my existence. New York City is where I like the most.

 

[Erudur]

This was really interesting. I added some photos to my profile that captured some of those Se moments discussed in this thread. I can recall the feeling when I look at the pictures.

I think for the same reason I enjoy reality shows that focus more in the relational dynamic (as opposed to contrived competitions), esp. Beauty and the Geek. A sort of acceptable voyeurism.

 

[sunset5678]

`

sounds like me only reverse, I'm an ENTJ and like to walk around and be noticed, whether its for an interesting outfit or something intellectual I've
decided to throw into conversation, but sometimes I just like to walk ar-
ound crowded places and poke around and look at stuff, things I might
need or be able to use, I'm always finding books or other learning materials
I might need in a roundabout way when I'm not really thinking about it
and see something that reminds me of it, then it clicks in my head exactly
where to go look for it, then I find it. If it wasn't for the extravert thing
I'd wonder if I wasn't an introvert because I can be in a crowd of people
or talking in a group conversation, but I'll be off in another train of thought
day dreaming or just letting my imagination wander about this or that.
Sometimes when I read I get such a vivid picture of it I see it as vividly
as a movie complete with special effects as they're described in the books,
and some characters I find myself really relating to even though we made
different choices and our 'stories' turned out different I guess there's a
metaphor in there somewhere so sometimes I don't mind just staying home
and acting out parts of plays and things.

being an NT of any NT type can definitely be interesting, even if you fit in
socially or whatever and don't stand out you still feel like an oddball some-
times because of having to check everything out and be interested in every-
thing and never really being able to conform to one setting and other peop-
le's expectations like other people do so easily because we're just not pro-
grammed that way

ENTJ

 

[maliafee]

Se? I do the whole watching environments and people thing (loved hearing about those perfect irrigation ditches, etc.), and I'm ISFP... makes sense.

I think it must be Se.

Do you ever get fascinated by buildings? It'll happen sometimes walking home of an evening where I'll get into some kind of zone and be fascinated by seeing the lines and shapes of the buildings in the neighbourhood. It happens sometimes that I'll, basically, just look *up*. Literally, neck craned back, and look *up*, to watch the buildings from a new angle, seeing the new lines and shadows, and the highlights of lighting. It disappears if I stand still. It's seeing the shapes glide past as I keep on walking that does it for me. I have on occasion stood outside my building just looking up at it to see it back lit by the sky and faintly lit by street lighting.

It's a little bit mystical.




(Channeling Howard Roark.)