There are many beasts in the backwoods that come out to play from time to time. One, according to medical doctor Brian Kaplan is, The invalidator; a put-down artist, who delights in dismissing another in public. According to Kaplan, author of Almost Happy, when a person is put- down by an invalidator they experience something akin to being mugged. Kaplan paints a scenario of a person at a social gathering, everything is going fine, when out of the blue someone says somethi

“McGee!” he yelled, digging his fingers into my girdle pads, jerking me backwards. “I said, line up off the right shoulder of the tackle. Can’t you hear?” My heart pounded. My mouth dried up. From behind me there were nervous chuckles from my fellow players. It was afternoon, late August, humidity 90 percent in mid Missouri. Across the field in the new swimming pool, Donovan’s Mellow Yellow blasted from a speaker. It was sophomore football and in these times in my town, high