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Area man Rod Stevenson told reporters he often feels a little bit awkward around women and men.
“Sometimes I get flustered when I’m talking to a woman or to anyone else at all,” said Stevenson, who suddenly blurts out embarrassing non-sequiturs and drops his voice when approached by a woman he is attracted to, or a woman he is not attracted to, or a person of any gender identification whatsoever.
Stevenson said that although he feels confident and extroverted most of the time, he drops his confidence the second he begins talking to someone like a cute girl in his office, or members of his family, or a man delivering him a package, or a worker at a deli counter.
Stevenson blames his discomfort on a lack of experience, having grown up not talking to many women or men.
“I know deep down talking to women or men shouldn’t be so different from not talking to anybody,” Stevenson said, “but then literally any other human being approaches me, and I don’t know what to say.”
“I get ahead of myself in the conversation,” he added. “I just can’t stop picturing myself dating her or being friends with him or finding out what time it is.”
