Dept. of Petty Affairs — The Closed-Eye Protocol
There’s a trope in anime.
Characters who walk around with their eyes closed— smiling, calm, relaxed.
People think they’re:
- harmless
- easygoing
- maybe a little sleepy
But that’s not what it is.
It’s control.
At work, I started doing the same thing.
Gremlin? Contained.
Voice? Normal.
Tone? Flat.
Someone asks:
“You good?” “You alright?”
Me:
“Yup.”
Meanwhile my face is stuck somewhere between:
- RBF
- and “don’t test the system today.”
And the funny part?
Nothing is wrong.
I’m not mad. I’m not spiraling. I’m not crashing out.
I’m just…
not performing.
Same way those characters don’t animate every emotion.
They don’t need to.
Because when they do change?
That’s when it matters.
I still do my job. Still move clean. Still handle everything.
Just without the extra:
- reactions
- explanations
- emotional labor
🧠 Closed eyes doesn’t mean blind.
It means:
“I see everything. I just don’t need to react to all of it.”
🦝 Gremlin Status:
Present.
Contained.
Smiling.
Not opening its eyes unless necessary.
🎥 Exhibit A — Why this even exists: