emily p. freeman

Creating space for your soul to breathe so you can discern your next right thing.

Let’s Share What We Learned in April

It’s the end of the month, and that means it’s time to share what we’ve learned! Remember, this is a place to share all kinds of learning, both the silly and the serious. I lean toward sharing the silly since I tend to share the serious every other day. But any and all learning is welcome.

What We Learned - Chatting at the Sky

Here are six things I learned in April in no particular order:

1. You know how my super power is looking at someone and knowing who their imaginary parents are? (see: Joy plus Scarlett equals Shakira from last month). Well here’s another one. If an angel and a hipster had babies, they would be Lennon and Maisy Stella. 

First, look at them.

sisters

Second, listen to them.

(Here’s a video for proof):

2. I took the Enneagram – the long version, not the free one – and learned I am a four wing three. Also learned Meyers-Briggs INFJs (me) often test as 4 wing 3s, so that was interesting. I have more thoughts and grievances about this, but not for today.

3. Sharpie Gel Highlighters. If you haven’t used them yet, they are like highlighting with magic florescent butter. Amazing.

4. Trying something new isn’t nearly as terrifying when you do it with others. I’ve learned a lot launching Hope*ologie this month, but that is probably the biggest takeaway so far.

5. The sitcom laugh track is a game changer. To laugh track or not to laugh track? Growing up all the shows had the laugh track, but now they don’t. When I go back and watch the old shows, I’m all, Those people are so annoying with all their laughing and carrying on. And then I learn that this laugh track issue is hotly debated.

Even though Friends taped in front of a live audience most of the time, I’m pretty sure they filled in with a laugh track. Here’s a clip from Friends without any laughing at all: creepy or compelling? (video below)

6. And then I found this soundboard where you can make your own audience sounds and played for far too long.


Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Okay, totally forgot you were an INFJ, me too! Also, the laugh track-less clip is just weird. Joey Tribbiani and laugh tracks go together like mac and cheese in my opinion. Speaking of Friends, I’m watching from the very beginning, every episode, in order! I’ve never done it before, aren’t you proud? I just started this week because I totally don’t have finals next week or anything…;)

    Thanks for hosting! 🙂

    Reply

  2. I am also an INFJ! I’ve met quite a few lately, actually – there are more of us than I thought! I have taken various free Enneagram tests and gotten different results, so I’m not sure what I am.

    Thank you so much for hosting this link-up; it’s my favorite blog day of the month!

    Reply

  3. Same Enneagram. 4 with a 3 wing. I am not even surprised at this point. : ) My favorite Enneagram book is the Richard Riso one. I also have the Richard Rohr one which is a Christian perspective of the Enneagram. It was fine but I still go back to the Riso one all the time. It’s pretty much a reference book by this point.

    Also, Friends without the laugh track? I’m surprised but it is actually kind of creepy. It’s like an audio ghost-town or something…like tumbleweeds might come rolling across the screen at any moment.

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  4. Just have to say I love your description of the gel highlighters. Makes me want to try them. Or eat them.

    And it totally makes sense that your an INFJ. I’m an ENFP… And really it’s the NF that makes me connect to your writing. Love it. 🙂 because even if we ENFP’s talk way too much, we do much of our emotional processing in quiet (believe it or not) and I think we think a lot alike. And that makes me :).

    And what I learned this month? That I still don’t like saying goodbye to people and moving to other continents, even if it’s back to people I hated saying goodbye to last time. And I’m sure goodbyes won’t exist in heaven. They just won’t. Here’s to May… 🙂 May it be.

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  6. Okay, Friends w/out laugh track = super creepy!

    What I learned in April:

    1) My beagle Keira understands conversational language way more than I gave her credit for previously. I think I’ll employ her to help with my research.

    2) Writing a dissertation is not the hardest part of its creation – instead it’s getting passed the formatting enforcer in the graduate school.

    3) Moving is A LOT of work. (Okay, I knew that one already, but was reminded again as we gear up to leave NC.)

    4) Life events are bittersweet when your mom isn’t here to share them with you.

    5) A local theater has $5 ticket Tuesday with $2 soda, popcorn and candy. In your best camel voice now say ‘it’s movie day!’. 🙂

    Blessings to you all! May your eyes see the truths that your heart and soul know to be true.

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  9. I’m kind of fascinated by how quiet and SLOW that scene from “Friends” seemed without the laugh track or background music. So odd to realize how much we’re probably influenced by things like that.

    As an INFJ myself, I’m curious what your grievance is with testing as a 4-3w. I always test as a 5-4w, which is apparently rare for both INFJs and women (most Fives are male NTs). Sometimes I think I’d like to be a 4-5w instead and less of a weirdo. Ha. 🙂

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  11. i love the enneagram so much! it was a game changer for me. i’m a 2 w/ 3 wing. i took a whole class in seminary called spirituality & personality and we mostly used the enneagram – i geek out about this stuff majorly.

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  12. The absence of the laugh track wasn’t quite as weird as I thought it would be, but I still didn’t like it.

    I have this theory about certain types of humor – movies like Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre, etc., that the funnier it is to the first person you watch it with, the funnier it will be to you, especially at first.

    And that’s what was missing from the Friends clip, I think. Without all those other pretend people laughing, it just wasn’t as funny.

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  13. I kind of despise laugh tracks now, they seem so strange to me. However, I did feel uncertain when watching Friends… am I supposed to be laughing now? I think the laugh track encouraged me to know what was supposed to be funny as opposed to me deciding what was laugh-worthy.

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  15. While abroad I can’t do another link up but I did learn this month. And it’s actually today that I realize several things:
    1. Rebuke thoughts that are not of the Lord. I have a constant presence of weird thoughts, of thoughts of bad things that will happen to me. I started sharing them with my husband and he said: “Honey, those thoughts are not good, you can’t feed them, you need to rebuke them.” And it sounds maybe simple but I have this going on none stop. Now I try to be more conscious of it when it happens and I say: “These are not my Father’s thoughts, I rebuke them in Jesus name.” It’s a good lesson to learn that this really does make a difference.
    2. We are in Burkina Faso right now for missions and it’s my job to do photography and videography for the non profit. I was so fearful, not feeling good enough or equipped enough. Often this insecurity and fear numbs me completely causing great distress. God is so faithful during this trip. I have learned He has given me talent to use. It’s going real well and I think I might have some awesome footage.
    3. My husband grew up as a missionaries kid. He became one himself. And now that we are married I became one, kind of. I am here in Burkina on a trip like this with my husband for the first time and God is talking to my heart. God is stirring me to be on board completely, knowing everything I have, everything I am is from Him. I am learning God is stirring my heart to giving my life to Him through serving Him incompletely, focusing on the needs in the world: emotional needs and any need abroad. That is a huge gain and learning about my place on this earth.

    Thanks for letting me share!

    Reply

  17. OK, at first the Friends clip w/o laughter was creepy. But then I started to watch it like I watch Modern Family or The Office. Then it seemed less creepy. The problem is with the pauses. They are pausing for laughter. If they just kept talking, it wouldn’t seem so awkward.

    Now that I think of it, that’s why I feel like Modern Family moves so quickly. It’s because they don’t pause for laughter.

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  20. I have been trying to find time to email you back all month about the Enneagram. Clearly I have not been tending my inbox as well as I should. I still think it’s worth exploring your other type results, unless you already ruled those out. I’m an INFJ and Four (although Five is my more dominant wing) and yes it’s a common result but there are other possible combinations. I’m curious to hear your thoughts!

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  21. Emily! So funny, I self diagnosed myself 4 wing 3..not surprising why I can so relate to you so much. Enneagram has been everywhere this month.

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  22. I can’t write about what I learned in April. Yet. Maybe never.

    But I did want to comment on your Briggs-Myer personality designation.

    Imagine being odd man out, might-as-well-be-alien-or speak-another-language for better than sixty years. Then, out of the blue, one day, you discover you are INTJ, which represents 1-2% of the population. You say, “Whoa! Well, that explains it!”

    And because you have been around long enough to know that, while it isn’t justification or even validation, there is a measure of comfort discovering that there is actually a slot, for once in your life, that you can say you fit in. A category. There is a rationale that your Spock logic can relate to.

    And then you look back at all the times you felt you were screaming in space because what was obvious to you, crystal clear, gave back nothing but the sound of crickets.

    And, while you are relieved to know that you now have something to blame some things on, you feel weepy with gratitude that God pushed you to hone your strengths and overcome your weaknesses anyway. You are so very glad you gave it all to Him, and He guided you through it all.

    More importantly, you realize that you didn’t even have to know you are INTJ to make peace with yourself, to admit your failings and also stand by your I-cannot-unknow-what-I-know even when no one else understands.

    The better revelation is realizing it wasn’t necessary to find out the string of letters that typifies you, but finding out was like receiving a gift that had been misplaced and delivered late. All the more significant.

    For Him,
    Meema

    Reply

  24. Love this post. And your description of the gel highlighters is THE BEST! (I’m obsessed with them–I just ordered a new pack from Amazon.) I also love Lennon & Maisy – their music is my favorite on ‘Nashville’. 🙂

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  25. LOL at “magic fluorescent butter”! I looooooove Sharpie pens, so I will have to hunt for the highlighters and then find a reason to use them 🙂

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  26. I’m so delighted to join in on the fun here. 🙂 The video of those two girls singing… AMAZING. And Friends…very creepy without laughing. Blessings to you. Thanks for hosting us.

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  27. I tried watching the Friends clip but I can’t get over #3… how did I not know these existed? (and there was no fake laughing to pull me out of my Must. Run. to the Store. Right. This. Moment. thoughts?)

    So, obviously – I have to go now.

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  29. What is the Enneagram? Because I recently discovered I’m an ISFJ (which is scary, because I already feel like you’re me and in my head when I read GftGG :]) and now I feel that I need to take that as well. Ha.

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  30. Okay, that music video was wonderful!! I just loved it. I am a personality test junkie and I have never heard of the enneagram. you can believe that I will be checking that out. And I loved the someone else pointed out that us ENFPs have the NF in common and can relate to the NF writer… and need to sort out our emotions alone…good point. I’ve had a lot of emotion lately and have felt much more ‘I’ than usual…

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