Can you hear me now?

I have a running list of subjects that I want to blog about and keep telling myself I'll get to eventually. There are details of trips, International friends and random observations that I want to share with my friends and family back home. Soon I will find the time to sit down and craft the stories with the perfect combination of words to create the mental images I want to convey for you all.

While I realize I should write about the above things first, something happened this moment that I felt compelled to document. I'm sitting in Starbucks attempting to write my articles for the day. Writing my articles usually consists of hours of surfing the web, gchatting and Facebooking with clusters of uninterrupted writing dispersed throughout. I was concentrating heavily on one of my very important Facebook posts when a couple girls came and sat across from me. The common courtesy before sitting across from someone on the couches in Starbucks seems to be eye contact with a quizzical nod toward the chairs and perhaps even an "ocupado?" I noticed these girls right away as they sat without extending the common courtesy. Then they started speaking English!

I was stunned by how odd it felt to hear an English conversation taking place right in front of me. I speak English with my friends down here, but I don't hear the language used around me very often. I sat here listening to them talk and thought about how awkward it was. Then I realized something interesting - yes, it was awkward listening to the English language but what was most uncomfortable was the way it was being used. These girls were speaking about Argentina and their experiences as if those around them didn't exist. They clearly assumed I couldn't understand English and felt comfortable filling the quiet atmosphere with their boisterous gossip about techno dance clubs, rude Argentines and things the US "does better." I was immediately annoyed with their ignorance and complete disregard for the ears surrounding them. I found myself irritated with the rude Americans and defensive of the country I now call home, the people I've grown to love and the language I so desperately want to learn.

Suddenly I realized something that I've probably been guilty of myself: one should always speak as if someone around you is listening (and can understand you) - if not to spare the feelings of others, then at least to spare the image of yourself...and your country!

As they were discussing the interesting fashion trends in Argentina, I gently placed my computer on the table between us and kindly asked them in my sweet southern dialect if they could watch my things while I got a coffee. A look of shock spread across their faces and embarrassment colored their cheeks as I turned and walked to the counter.