Yesterday Monty and Kim held an open day barbecue to celebrate Monty's forthcoming retirement from paid pastoring. It was one of those things that I wanted to go to and didn't want to go to at the same time.
I went and it was delightful!
However I did find myself speaking almost entirely to men. I do have reason for this!I am very bad at small talk - hence my reluctance to go anywhere that will involve chatting, without specific purpose - but ask a man a question, I find, and that will result in at least fifteen minutes of conversation/monologue. And I am perfectly happy to sit and listen. The gentleman I am sitting next to in the picture was an exception. I did most of the talking as he was asking about Husband, as he too had had a heart operation, and we were comparing notes.
Now an image I will call Still Life, an aubergine and a fig, both from the garden/greenhouse.
4 comments:
I like your still life! Personally, I can't stand one-sided interactions with self-centred people who have no concept of reciprocal conversational norms. And yes, all too often men can be this way, although women can be conversation hogs too. As a "good listener" myself, I've had to learn the survival skill of not letting myself be exploited by such types. Alas, I'm not always successful in that.
I'm no good at small talk and can unintentionally stop a light-hearted conversation dead with an observation or question.
That wouldn’t apply to this man. I am a listener, not a talker.
I don't like the company of straight men for this reason. I duck the role of forced listener! I did say straight. I have not had the same boredom around gay men. I have various theories about this..
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