So, I’m on my way to Minnesota riding the Megabus for the first time. I had low expectations, but so far I am surprisingly pleased.
I think I’ve mastered the window stare. You know, when you can see someone’s reflection in the window thereby giving you a prime people watching cover? And then if they see you, they won’t be able to tell if you’re watching them or just staring out the window in pensive thought.
Anyway, all the passengers are way more friendly and way less sketchy than I thought. We stopped on the UW campus and picked up like 15 students. I’ve exchanged a few words with a couple of passengers, but nothing close to sustained conversation.
However, a few rows in front of me is a boy who is a freshman in college and a sweet woman I’m guessing in her late sixties. They have been in conversation since the moment they sat down. This boy has this extraordinary ability to converse. To be able to converse with a total stranger from an entirely different generation for five straight hours is amazing. Not to mention being able to carry a conversation and ALSO not be crazy narcissistic.
About three hours into the trip they exchanged names.
And then phone numbers.
It’s funny how different observing this is than how it would be if this woman was around his age. But she’s not. She’s a sweet lady with all her kids grown up and moved away. She’s not a 19 year old girl he wants to ask on a date.
I think the fact that they exchanged phone numbers is the cutest thing of all.
But I don’t think I could do this. I don’t think I could make connections with all these different people I meet on public transportation knowing that I’d never see them again. I can’t handle that. I hold on to too much. I let everyone I connect with take a little piece of me, and I don’t forget about them.
Do you ever think about that? How that certain people you see/talk to/observe you will never run into again? I think about this too often. It’s such a depressing thought. Luckily, as it is with much of the human memory, it’s usually fleeting.
I think he’s caught me watching them in the window.
Does anyone watch PanAm? Let's talk about it. :]
Oh! Links - One for cheap clothes and one for cheap coffee. What's better?!
Conversations with people from a different generation are always the ones I find to be the most fulfilling. Oh, the things you will learn, from both the young and the old. =]
ReplyDeleteI totally mastered the whole staring out the window thing during my years of school bus riding. Such a useful skill.
ReplyDeleteI'm jealous of people who can just strike up conversations with total strangers. I sometimes find it hard just to strike up conversations with people I already know.
That's awesome. The other day, someone told me about how their friend accidentally texted a wrong number and ended up having a great conversation with a 60-something grandma. They became Facebook friends and apparently had a pretty awesome game or two of Words with Friends.
ReplyDeleteLife is crazy. :)
Oh my gosh. That is so cute. I couldn't handle the cuteness if I was there. I could never hold a conversation like that ever. I even have problems talking to people I semi-know. My problem is this "WHAT AM I GOING TO SAY NEXT? I NEED TO THINK OF SOMETHING REALLY FAST OTHERWISE THERE WILL BE AN AWKWARD SILENCE AHHHHHHH" Yes. That is my problem. Oh problems of mine: You are so tiny in comparison of other people's problems.
ReplyDeleteI miss you!
Also there is a Twilight ad on your blog and it's really funny.
ReplyDelete