Two friends engaged in a relaxed conversation. Sharing thoughts on various topics, while enjoying a morning meal, or any meal for that matter, tends to span every border of which I am aware.
Similar style of dress and physical mannerism seems to point to commonality reaching beyond that of simple coworker relation; yet taking cultural differences into account, I will not pretend to fully understand this dynamic before me.
Subject A, I am assuming the older of the two men, though not necessarily apparent from physical features, was leading the conversation. Not knowing the language, I can only guess statements from Subject A followed with respondent laughter from Subject B is an indication dominant conversationalist.
Dining was finished, friend arrived, conversation continued out the door.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Observations 1 revisited
Observations 1
Subject A is eating with, and talking to, subject B. Both male subjects are speaking Korean. Sitting in high, bar-style, chairs at the tall tables in the University of Utah's Union building cafeteria, neither subject’s feet reach the floor. Both are using their right hands for utensils. Both are wearing black-rimmed, wire-framed glasses.
Subject A.
Sitting cross-legged; ball of left foot placed on the crossbar of the chair, toe pointed down. Right leg, approximately one half-way down the calf, is placed on the left thigh, just behind the left knee. Occasionally, the right foot shakes. His back is straight, pivoting from the hips, he leans slightly forward with both elbows on the table.
Eating from a Tupperware-style container, he grips his plastic fork at the farthest end of the handle, so the end disappears within his grasp. His head drops, to almost parallel with the floor, each time he goes to load his fork for another bite.
A quiet voice, barely audible from 7 feet away. Hand gestures are subtle and smooth while talking and eating. Smile fades in and out with changing conversation.
Subject B.
Sitting with both feet on the table’s crossbar, periodically shaking both feet. Both legs are flat on the chair in relatively similar positions. Back straight, vertical or against the back of the chair.
Eating from Styrofoam container, he grips his chopsticks approximately 4/5 the up toward the end, leaving about 1” visible behind his hand. Head drops slightly, mostly eye movement, to load his chopsticks for another bite.
A bit more audible than Subject A, but still too quiet to hear tone and voice inflection. He has a permanent half-smile the entire conversation and most remarks are in response to Subject A’s lead remarks. Very few hand gestures, occasionally sitting on his hands.
Observation lasted approximately 35 minutes. A third man came and joined them (his back to observer) briefly. Subjects A and B promptly gathered their belongings and they left together. Soft, inaudible conversation continued as they left the building.
Post on - The Lost Boy
http://whatismatt.com/
This is a site about things in Bangkok; tips, tidbits, news, odds & ends.
I enjoyed his style for outlining dentists in Bangkok. However, he left many items open pertaining to the news articles he included.
This is a site about things in Bangkok; tips, tidbits, news, odds & ends.
I enjoyed his style for outlining dentists in Bangkok. However, he left many items open pertaining to the news articles he included.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Observations 1
Subject A is eating with, and talking to, subject B. Both male subjects are speaking Korean. Sitting in high, bar-style, chairs at the tall tables in the Union cafeteria, neither subject’s feet reach the floor. Both are using their right hands for utensils. Both are wearing black-rimmed, wire-framed glasses.
Subject A.
Sitting cross-legged; ball of left foot placed on the crossbar of the chair, toe pointed down. Right leg, approximately one half-way down the calf, is placed on the left thigh, just behind the left knee. Occasionally, the right foot shakes. His back is straight, pivoting from the hips, he leans slightly forward with both elbows on the table.
Eating from a Tupperware-style container, he grips his plastic fork at the farthest end of the handle, so the end disappears within his grasp. His head drops, to almost parallel with the floor, each time he goes to load his fork for another bite.
A quiet voice, barely audible from 7 feet away. Hand gestures are subtle and smooth while talking and eating. Smile fades in and out with changing conversation.
Subject B.
Sitting with both feet on the table’s crossbar, periodically shaking both feet. Both legs are flat on the chair in relatively similar positions. Back straight, vertical or against the back of the chair.
Eating from Styrofoam container, he grips his chopsticks approximately 4/5 the up toward the end, leaving about 1” visible behind his hand. Head drops slightly, mostly eye movement, to load his chopsticks for another bite.
A bit more audible than Subject A, but still too quiet to hear tone and voice inflection. He has a permanent half-smile the entire conversation and most remarks are in response to Subject A’s lead remarks. Very few hand gestures, occasionally sitting on his hands.
Subject A.
Sitting cross-legged; ball of left foot placed on the crossbar of the chair, toe pointed down. Right leg, approximately one half-way down the calf, is placed on the left thigh, just behind the left knee. Occasionally, the right foot shakes. His back is straight, pivoting from the hips, he leans slightly forward with both elbows on the table.
Eating from a Tupperware-style container, he grips his plastic fork at the farthest end of the handle, so the end disappears within his grasp. His head drops, to almost parallel with the floor, each time he goes to load his fork for another bite.
A quiet voice, barely audible from 7 feet away. Hand gestures are subtle and smooth while talking and eating. Smile fades in and out with changing conversation.
Subject B.
Sitting with both feet on the table’s crossbar, periodically shaking both feet. Both legs are flat on the chair in relatively similar positions. Back straight, vertical or against the back of the chair.
Eating from Styrofoam container, he grips his chopsticks approximately 4/5 the up toward the end, leaving about 1” visible behind his hand. Head drops slightly, mostly eye movement, to load his chopsticks for another bite.
A bit more audible than Subject A, but still too quiet to hear tone and voice inflection. He has a permanent half-smile the entire conversation and most remarks are in response to Subject A’s lead remarks. Very few hand gestures, occasionally sitting on his hands.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
India – 2001 April (take 2)
Day 1
Caught in a whirlwind, brain spinning, feet on the ground. Which way is up? Not sure. Landed in Calcutta and took a taxi to a guesthouse, horribly overpriced, the driver wouldn’t take me anywhere else; tired and in need of a shower, my tenacity waned. Driver disappeared into the next room to accept his share of my overpayment. Ate dinner at a roadside café. No point of reference to compare appreciation for tastes or smells, thought both were abundant. Slept easily with a full belly.
Day 2
Last shower before two days of coach class, breakfast at another roadside café. Then, jumped a bus directly to the train station. Less than twenty-four hours in country, from the safety of a bus window, saw my first fistfight. Poor man wanted nothing , but to free himself from the clutches of an irate homeless woman. Arrived at the train station with plenty of time to spare. Found the appropriate line; curious how the line was in orderly fashion up to the point where I stood. Surrounded by people, as the line progressed, so did the crowd. When I reached the teller window, approximately twenty or so people crowded in front to the window, realization dawned. The foreigner was a pigeon. With a quick swing of my duffel (weighing roughly twice anyone in the crowd) a path to the window was cleared and tickets were bought. Early afternoon, off in the distance, the Taj Mahal came and went. Water and food vendors at every station stop. Again, slept easily with a full belly.
Day 3
Though sitting on a train, this was quite a busy day. Early in the morning, the train stopped at a station like any other. Vendors made their rounds, provisions were bought. However, this time, when the vendors returned to the platform, the train remained. The water vendors scurried about their business with all the passengers to watch. Quite a remarkable system they had worked out. All the water vendors collected the empty water bottles out of the trash cans. Sorted by brand and condition, the used looking bottles were given to and old man for recycling, while the new looking bottles were divided amongst the vendors by brand. About fifteen yards away, in the middle of the platform was a statue in the middle of a large fountain. The reservoir, approximately twenty-five feet across, was just large enough for everyone to sit on the edge and refill their bottles to sell to the next train-full of unsuspecting customers. A few children emerged from the station house, wearing long strings of bottle caps; with in-tact safety rings, all bottles were returned to a saleable state. The vendors smiled and waived as the train left the station.
The remainder of the day, attention was focused on cabin-mates. A group of friends, of which I was not a part, decided it would be fun to go through my duffle. Smiling and nodding, while making direct eye contact, trying to unzip my bag for closer inspection. With one hand on my bag, direct eye contact and a smile returned, I offered a quick knuckle-tapp to the back of the offending hands. Hands retreated, words exchanged, a few minutes lapsed, and the cycle began anew. Two choices presented themselves, sit and watch unchanging landscape while pretending to be impervious to childish advances toward my belongings or find a way to alter perception toward the situation. Long after anger toward my cabin-mates resigned, the game continued. My new found friends had offered something far more interesting than landscape to pass the time. Once they realized my appreciation for their willing participation in this game, where I was having fun and they sat clutching bruised hands, they decided to find another compartment. Once again, slept with a full belly.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
India – 2001 April
Day 1
Landed in Calcutta and took a taxi to a guesthouse, horribly overpriced, the driver wouldn’t take me anywhere else; tired and in need of a shower, my tenacity waned. Driver disappeared into the next room to accept his share of my overpayment. Ate dinner at a roadside café. Slept easily with a full belly.
Day 2
Last shower before two days of coach class, breakfast at another roadside café. Then, jumped a bus directly to the train station. Less than twenty-four hours in country, from the safety of a bus window, saw my first fistfight. Arrived at the train station with plenty of time to spare. Found the appropriate line; curious how the line is in orderly fashion up to the point where I stood. Surrounded by people, as the line progressed, so did the crowd. When I reached the teller window, approximately twenty or so people crowded to the window, realization dawned. With a quick swing of my duffle, weighing roughly twice anyone in the crowd, the window was cleared and tickets were bought. Early afternoon, off in the distance, the Taj Mahal came and went. Water and food vendors at every station stop, again, slept easily with a full belly.
Day 3
Though sitting on a train, this was quite a busy day. Early in the morning, the train stopped at a station like any other. Vendors made their rounds, provisions were bought. However, this time, when the vendors returned to the platform, the train remained. The water vendors scurried about their business with all the passengers to watch. Quite a remarkable system they had worked out. All the water vendors collected the empty water bottles out of the trash cans. Sorted by brand and condition, the used looking bottles were given to and old man for recycling, while the new looking bottles were divided amongst the vendors by brand. About fifteen yards away, in the middle of the platform was a statue in the middle of a large fountain. The reservoir, approximately twenty-five feet across, was just large enough for everyone to sit on the edge and refill their bottles to sell to the next train-full of unsuspecting customers. A few children emerged from the station house, wearing long strings of bottle caps; with in-tact safety rings, all bottles were returned to a saleable state. The vendors smiled and waived as the train left the station.
The remainder of the day, attention was focused on cabin-mates. A group of friends, of which I was not a part, decided it would be fun to go through my duffle. Smiling and nodding, while making direct eye contact, trying to unzip my bag for closer inspection. With one hand on my bag, direct eye contact and a smile returned, I offered a quick knuckle-tapp to the back of the offending hands. Hands retreated, words exchanged, a few minutes lapsed, and the cycle began anew. Long after anger toward my cabin-mates resigned, the game continued. Several hours of watching flat-land desert pass by, what once presented itself as infuriating, became a game. My new found friends had offered something far more interesting to pass the time. Once they realized my appreciation for their willing participation in this game, where I was having fun and they sat clutching bruised hands, they decided to find another compartment. Once again, slept with a full belly.
Landed in Calcutta and took a taxi to a guesthouse, horribly overpriced, the driver wouldn’t take me anywhere else; tired and in need of a shower, my tenacity waned. Driver disappeared into the next room to accept his share of my overpayment. Ate dinner at a roadside café. Slept easily with a full belly.
Day 2
Last shower before two days of coach class, breakfast at another roadside café. Then, jumped a bus directly to the train station. Less than twenty-four hours in country, from the safety of a bus window, saw my first fistfight. Arrived at the train station with plenty of time to spare. Found the appropriate line; curious how the line is in orderly fashion up to the point where I stood. Surrounded by people, as the line progressed, so did the crowd. When I reached the teller window, approximately twenty or so people crowded to the window, realization dawned. With a quick swing of my duffle, weighing roughly twice anyone in the crowd, the window was cleared and tickets were bought. Early afternoon, off in the distance, the Taj Mahal came and went. Water and food vendors at every station stop, again, slept easily with a full belly.
Day 3
Though sitting on a train, this was quite a busy day. Early in the morning, the train stopped at a station like any other. Vendors made their rounds, provisions were bought. However, this time, when the vendors returned to the platform, the train remained. The water vendors scurried about their business with all the passengers to watch. Quite a remarkable system they had worked out. All the water vendors collected the empty water bottles out of the trash cans. Sorted by brand and condition, the used looking bottles were given to and old man for recycling, while the new looking bottles were divided amongst the vendors by brand. About fifteen yards away, in the middle of the platform was a statue in the middle of a large fountain. The reservoir, approximately twenty-five feet across, was just large enough for everyone to sit on the edge and refill their bottles to sell to the next train-full of unsuspecting customers. A few children emerged from the station house, wearing long strings of bottle caps; with in-tact safety rings, all bottles were returned to a saleable state. The vendors smiled and waived as the train left the station.
The remainder of the day, attention was focused on cabin-mates. A group of friends, of which I was not a part, decided it would be fun to go through my duffle. Smiling and nodding, while making direct eye contact, trying to unzip my bag for closer inspection. With one hand on my bag, direct eye contact and a smile returned, I offered a quick knuckle-tapp to the back of the offending hands. Hands retreated, words exchanged, a few minutes lapsed, and the cycle began anew. Long after anger toward my cabin-mates resigned, the game continued. Several hours of watching flat-land desert pass by, what once presented itself as infuriating, became a game. My new found friends had offered something far more interesting to pass the time. Once they realized my appreciation for their willing participation in this game, where I was having fun and they sat clutching bruised hands, they decided to find another compartment. Once again, slept with a full belly.
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