Friday, January 10, 2014

Small Stone: January 10, 2014


Today I received a real lesson in communication and communicating. I was on a cross-town MUNI bus. Two young men got on the bus at different stops. They did not seem to know one another. One sat in front of me, the other across the aisle from me. Both had ear buds attached to their iPhones. My assumption was that they were tuned out of the bus environment. 

The man in front of me began to move with the music, clicking his fingers, head from side to side in time with what he was hearing. The young man across the aisle tapped him on the shoulder and identified the song and the group! There was a fist bump of recognition and they had communicated. Only the rest of us were left out. My iPhone was firmly in my pocket and no ear buds attached! 

4 comments:

  1. Was the music so loud even with the ear buds that the guy across the isle could hear it? Sometimes, I start talking to someone, not realizing they have ear buds in. Often, I see people walking together listening to their phones rather than talking with each other. Even in restaurants, couples are often texting or fooling on their phones rather than sharing time together. I like my phone - but not that much!

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    1. I was sitting closest to the guy who was moving to the music and I could not hear it....I think it was all in the motion...I want to speculate that they were both listening to the same thing...maybe not. I agree about the distancing that people do with their phones...I don't and won't.

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  2. On the other hand, perhaps they were communicating with each other on a different level, as you say "in the motion" of the music they were listening to at the time. They might not have been listening to the same song, but were merely acknowledging that they were moved by what they were listening to. I feel like I was there witnessing this slice of life.

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  3. What fun! - I envy you the experience - you get marks for Noticing!

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