The joy of people or The tricky task of being social

At first glance I'm shy and not very sociable and among strangers I sometimes have a hard time masking my wish to just go away. It is for me incredibly hard to just start chatting to people and I depend on those who are gifted with the talent of befriending anyone and everyone. They drag me into a conversation and thanks to them I actually meet new people.
Once you get to know me I am very open and friendly, I still might think twice before opening my mouth, but I enjoy conversation and feel that any subject is a good one. I love my friends, and I really miss having them around. At times I worry about having to make new ones yet again as soon as I (or my darling husband) get a job and move to a totally new place. I'm beginning to realise though, that life tends to work out eventually and I don't think I'll end up a hermit.
While on the subject of social skills; one thing I absolutely hate is smalltalk for the sake of smalltalk! Let's say you're invited to a work/dinner function and you are thrown together with people you rarely talk to at the office and aren't required to work with either. It is now expected of you to make conversation with these people to keep a good and hearty feel of the evening... *shudders* This is definitely something I need to work at and improve!
My sister and I are alike in many ways, but this is one of the areas where she clearly grabbed the good genes and didn't leave any for me. I envy her her social ability and hope that I have at least some shred of companionable skills and in time can be trained to a full-fledged people person!

*grins*

keah