Conversation

Discussions in my office are at times mundane and other days lively crazy things - a winding stream of thoughts tumbling over and around each other. This being the south, politics and religion are not considered "polite" conversation so every day is a guessing game as to what the general topic might be. Today, interestingly enough, it was famous people with good and bad cosmetic surgery. It's just so funny to see these well-dressed highly-educated men getting all worked up over whether or not Demi Moore has had "work" done. We also meandered into a discussion on blood types and it's weird how many people don't actually know what their blood type is! Doesn't that seem like something you would want to know in advance of an emergency??? I think these conversations can be great equalizers though - they put lawyers and support staff on the same level and we end up learning interesting tidbits that make us all seem a bit more human...less like worker bees.

It's really not much of a secret that I'm a talker (oh hush up!) but I also think I'm a good listener...an active listener. I'm always frustrated by people who don't make those appropriate "I'm listening" noises like "uh huh" and "really"...you know the type. They just stand there staring while you talk and pretty soon you start to feel like you're just one huge run-on sentence...get embarrassed and clam up. I like people who nod along, murmur quiet agreement (and yes, sometimes disagreement) or say "mmm hmm" at the right times. They make it easier to get to the point.

I have this coworker who is a born storyteller. She can weave the greatest tales out of a simple trip to the grocery store. She doesn't get emotional and wave her hands all around (uh...no...that' me) but she has a way of just drawing you into her conversation until pretty soon there's this little crowd gathered around nodding along to some story about frozen waffles like it was some great secret. Now that's a gift!