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Saturday, May 24, 2014

The Friday Rorschach: Stanley In Disguise

Stanley In Disguise, 2013, tempera paint on paper

What it is: This is one of my son's paintings. For those of you familiar with The Friday Rorschach, you might recognize the subject: Stanley, The Cat. For those of you who are unfamiliar, we had a cat named Stanley when our kids were very young. But, we needed to give him away because my daughter is horribly allergic to just about everything, including cats. We all miss Stanley, and we have a picture of him in our art studio:



It is a bit on the abstract side, but you might be able to see the relationship between this photo and my son's painting. 

What you thought it was: Absolutely no one thought this was a cat.

Most of you thought it was a minion (of Despicable Me fame) wearing a costume:




Several of you saw Mickey Mouse:


One of you combined the minion and the Mickey Mouse ideas:


And then there was this awesome pun:


Many others saw a pig:


Several of you saw a cave of sorts (both of these tweets seem rather Freudian to me):



A lot of you combined several different objects into one image. On the actual Rorschach, these types of responses are often indicative of severe brain damage or psychosis (if a person combines two objects in an unnatural way, it says something about his/her impaired perception of reality). On the Friday Rorschach, it is not problematic, though--it is a sign of creativity:




What you might have missed: No one saw the mouse sitting on a piece of cheese next to the cat. Scroll back up to the full picture at the top of this post. It will change your perception of what is taking place in the painting.




One last thought: Did you happen to see what looked like sperm cells swimming around in the background? 





It is possible that many people saw the sperm cells but chose not to incorporate them into their responses. This is a normal process when one is publicly interpreting art--we all need to make choices about what we are comfortable mentioning out loud and what we want to keep to ourselves. And, if something in a piece of art makes us uncomfortable, we often do not even see it.

(by Max Wachtel)

Friday Rorschach is a fun project designed to engage readers' creativity. To participate, follow Max on twitter. He posts the drawing every Friday morning at 10am ET/8am MT. There are no wrong answers to the Friday Rorschach, and there is no judgment, either. This should not be considered a psychological evaluation.

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Parents Gone Wild: Kids Suffer When Parents Overreact At Sporting Events

Cat parents sometimes behave badly at sporting events too.

I was on 9News this morning talking about what happens to children when parents react with overblown anger at their sporting events. Even if the child is not the target of the anger, he/she can be psychologically harmed by an angry parent.

Here is the video:

Click here to watch the video if it does not appear above.

On the 9News website, I also list what you can do to productively confront angry parents to try to help them calm down.

(by Max Wachtel)

Monday, May 12, 2014

JailBooks: PsychLaw Journal's Second Annual Summer Reading List


Last summer, I compiled a list of books that would make for good summer reading. If you were locked in jail. Here is the list.

I am now looking for a new batch of summer reads for those in less fortunate circumstances. Any suggestions you have are greatly appreciated. 

Here are the rules:

1. The book must been published in 2013/2014. Books about to be published are fine. 

2. It is fine to submit a book you have not written. If you love it and think it would make for good summer jail reading, suggest it. You don't need to send me a copy of a book you have not written yourself (although I would gladly accept books from strangers).

3. eBook-only suggestions will not be accepted. I have nothing against people who only publish their books electronically, but it is impossible to read an eBook in jail. No electronic devices allowed.

4. If you are submitting a physical book you have written for consideration and want it to be reviewed, please mail copies to Maximillian Wachtel, Ph.D., 720 S. Colorado Blvd., #610-S, Denver, CO 80246.

Physical copies of books will not be returned.

5. Send email submissions to jailbooks@cherrycreekpsychology.com.

6. It is fine to submit a book you have not written. If you love it and think it would make for good summer jail reading, suggest it. You don't need to send me a copy of a book you have not written yourself (although I would gladly accept books from strangers).

Thanks, and I can't wait to start reviewing!

(by Max Wachtel, Ph.D.)

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Video Game Addiction: A Real Problem For Some Players


Last week, 9 News aired my story on the potential problems with video game playing.

The video game industry is huge--experts estimate its annual revenues at $20 billion, which is roughly the size of the NFL, Major League Baseball, and the NHL. Combined.

For most people, it is a fun and harmless pastime. For others, it becomes an addictive problem. National surveys estimate that 1 in 20 adults and 1 in 12 children have what could be considered an unhealthy addiction to video games.

Here is my story:


Click here if the video does not appear above.

In addition to the video, I wrote a web article outlining some of the warning signs to look for to determine if you or a loved one might be engaging in problematic video game play. I also created a list of tips in case you feel like you are playing a bit too much. Click here to read the article.

And if you want to have a bit of fun, take this quiz to see how well you know your classic video games.

(by Max Wachtel)

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