I can't help listening.

I like to listen to the conversations going on around me when I'm out in public. It's not that I'm trying to eavesdrop. Well, not exactly.  I definitely don't do it with any malicious intent. It's just a habit I got into back when I was younger, and dreaming of becoming a writer. I listen to the conversations around me in order to get material for stories, and to learn other rhythms and cadences of speech so that the stories will have a true voice. I no longer intentionally listen, but I can't help 'overhearing on purpose.'  Some of the snippets of conversation can be very entertaining. I thought I would share a few comments out of my recent collection.

Overheard at the coffee shop:

"I'm not a lawyer, but I've watched them on TV and this is what I would advise you to do..."

Overheard while I was shopping:

"I'd be a very relaxed person, if I wasn't so stressed from work."

While standing in line in a restaurant, I overhead the following. It was probably memorable enough on it's own, since I can't believe that anyone would be so bad-mannered as to do this much less admit it in public. But it was said by a young man, probably in his early 20's, who was obviously trying to impress a couple of girls he had just met.

"Yeah, you might not want to go into the girls room. The men's room was full, so I snuck into the girls. And I figured that as long as I was there, I might as well pee on the seat. Yep, I pee'd all over the seat. Just shook my junk around and around. It's a mess. I wish I coulda seen the face on the woman waiting to get in after me."