Shut Up

No, no, not you, kind reader, I am not telling you to shut up - please, I would never !  The person I'm telling to shut up is ME !

I know I talk an awful lot and that's not necessarily the issue here.  The problem I'm having, the reason I need to shut up is, well ...

Hello, My Name is Olga and I'm a Constant Interrupter.  It's been about 2 hours since I last sabotaged a conversation.

I am rarely cognizant of actually doing it.  And it's certainly not done on purpose.  It's all pretty innocent : someone says something, I get excited and then just barge right in with an anecdote or "yes me too, blah blah blah" tale of my own.  Sometimes, I do get lucky and catch myself in the act - I actually lift myself almost out of my seat to start and then deflate back to normal when I realize what I'm about to do.  It's a turnabout convulsion.  Yes, not all that elegant but a bit nicer than derailing yet another conversation. 

It's really, completely and truly not because I think whatever I'm saying is so much more important / interesting / funny than what I'm being told.  NO !  I also know that I tend to interrupt more in fun time chats than more serious ones (thank god I'm not completely insensitive), so maybe it's as simple as just getting overexcited within the beauty of conversation.  The exchange of experiences, commonalities, news, funny stories and ideas totally charges me up and I just can't stand a lull -  God forbid you stop to take a breath ! - in a conversation.  I know this doesn't make it better and I also know I really must make it stop. 

So, I vow to get better at this ! I will become more aware of myself in conversation !  I  promise to pause before interrupting - I will literally bite my tongue if I have to !  You ?  You can tap me gently on the knee.  Perhaps you'd indulge me by not stopping to breathe.  But what would really be great, what would really get me to stop this rude habit is if you just tell me to shut up. 

Yes, exactly like that :  Shut Up, Olga.