Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with impressions

Show me some talented female impressionists

ashputtel — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 09:45:55 -0800

Are there any really good female impressionists out there? I don't mean drag performers or french painters. I mean women who can imitate a range of famous female voices. There's an abundance of male comedians who display their Pacinos, Cosbys, and Travoltas at the drop of a hat, but I don't know of many women who do the same.

I'd prefer to see more modern and unpredictable public figures, rather than, say, a dozen Barbra Streisands and Katherine Hepburns.

How do I stop judging people?

abdulf — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 07:24:47 -0800

How do I stop judging people and relate to them as equals? I noticed the people I really admire are those who are respected by a diverse group of people.

I suppose they have charisma. They're usually confident, polite, good listeners. They make the people they talk to feel important. They give compliments that feel sincere. However, they also have an ability to relate to people I wouldn't imagine being in their social circles.

They aren't particularly wealthy, smart, beautiful or powerful. They seem to be comfortable with everyone. It's like they talk to a complete stranger and they've known them for years. Perhaps they would be great politicians but lack the interest for that kind of work.

Anyway, I would like to be this kind of person. I think it would make for a more interesting and fulfilling life, to be able to connect better with more people.

I've been able to do this when traveling. I think it's because I was an outsider and I didn't know the rules of the society and the usual cues were not there. I talked to everyone and everyone talked to me. I was also interested in people because it was another culture.

However, back at home, in the US, I have trouble continuing this.

I know I have this issue where I judge people and that subtly works into how I relate to people. For example, I have a graduate degree, and some part of my brain ranks me as being better than someone with less education. I have friends with just a high school education but even they admit that in first impressions, I gave off a vibe that I was better than them. (see what I did there? "just" a high school education. I gotta stop!) Another example is money. I claim that money doesn't matter, but I feel like I'm more interested in the person driving a Mercedes than someone who pulls up in a Honda. At the same time, I loathe the person in the Mercedes for conspicuous consumption while admiring the Honda driver for practicality. But why can't I seem to ignore the car they drive?

I know prejudice and stereotyping helps us survive, but I'm not sure these are the kinds of prejudices that are helpful.

So I need to work on these first impressions. I find people interesting, but these judgments are causing me to give off subtle cues that make people feel less trusting or less likely to reciprocate. In other words, when I talk to someone, I'm coming to them as someone above them or someone below them.

It's hard to say what I am specifically doing to convey this. I know I'm the kind of person that has to believe in something to portray it convincingly. So what can a relatively ambitious person read, think about or do on a daily basis to eliminate or better control these judging thoughts?

How do I combat these, materialistic (for the lack of a better word), prejudices that impair my current and potential relationships?

How do I stop thinking I'm better or worse than other people so that I can get along with different people?

(note: I'm not worried about people judging me. Well I am, sorta, but there are metafilter posts on that. I'm concerned with my judgment of others)

Will not covering up this tattoo negatively impact me at my upcoming job interview?

Anonymous — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 19:17:45 -0800

I have a job interview on Wednesday for a very interesting non-profit organization involved with animal research (for good purposes). All of my suits are skirt/jacket combos. I'm very short...too short for pant suits, and no time for alterations. The skirt suits wouldn't be a problem if I didn't have a huge tattoo on my leg. In my former career in creative arts, tattoos were acceptable and even commonplace. I'm not sure if this is a big deal with the new field. Nylons look silly over the work, and tights make me look like a little girl. Plus, it's very hot out. Is showing the tattoo something I should worry about? Do you think it will be viewed negatively? Any suggestions to help make me look more professional? FYI, the work covers my shin/ankle/foot and is water, leaves and flowers. This is in California.

Muffy, let's head to the country club....

emptybowl — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:16:25 -0800

Where does the "stereotypical rich white guy" voice come from? I've been doing it for years, but have no idea how it originated. Here's a good example, someone doing an impression of Judge Whitey on Futurama.

CPM?

Paris Hilton — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 01:08:48 -0800

How much does Internet advertising cost? I'm looking to sell some stuff online by advertising on sites like metafilter (through Indiclick, I guess) fark, collagehumor, ebaumsworld, &c. I'm just wondering how much that would cost, and what kind of clickthrough I could expect to get assuming I had a totally sweet ad for something people who visit those sites would be likely to buy. _{(of course I wouldn't actually advertize on ebaums since they are plagerists, but you get the idea)}

Also, do you have any ideas for content sites that would be good to advertize on?

Cincinnati

airguitar — Tue, 15 Feb 2005 02:21:37 -0800

When you think of Cincinnati, what do you think? A friend of mine is visiting for a couple days. I didn't grow up here, but I'm here at the moment. So I said I'd give her the tour, but I'm not sure what to miss/not miss. There's a river. There's the ghetto. There's some malls. There's lots of chili parlors. There's gambling in Indiana. There's a deer farm somewhere on the west side. And midget town, I forgot about that. I figure we'll get something to eat and just drive around while the sun is up. What I'm asking is, having never been here, what's the quick impression you have of this town and what would you expect/not expect to find here? Or, less generally, what if anything, do you imagine you would like to see/do if you were here? I have some ideas, but comparison with a random sample will help.