Eavesdropping

I will be the first to admit - I'm a terrible eavesdropper.  (Or would I be a GOOD eavesdropper because I do it all the time?)

I find it particularly fascinating to listen to other people in restaurants.  Over the years I (and the people with me) have witness many a bad date.  And it's pretty funny - though painful in a way. 

The other night David and I were eating out at our favorite local Mexican restaurant.  You know the kind - good food, kind of cheesy decor, not a ton of effort spent on ambiance.....   Anyway - they have these booths set up in the back half of the restuarantl, and they are separated by that inexpensive lattice fencing that you can buy at your local hardware store.  You can kind of see through it - and you can definitely HEAR through it, but it gives a modest sense of privacy.  (Not really, but I'm sticking with that story.)

The couple on the other side of the lattice were obviously on a date.  And it appeared to be a fairly new relationship - I would almost venture to say it was a first date.  (And for those of you who have been on a few of those, you can possibly remember how awkward they could be.....)    I could sort of see the woman through the lattice, but not the guy.  She was relatively young - late 20's maybe.  And it made me cringe more than once listening to them.  At one point they were talking about geting married (not to each other necessarily, but lots of 'what if's.) and they were talking about last names.   She said to him "Would you ever take the woman's last name if you got married?"  and he said "Yeah, if I had boobs.".   It made me laugh.   

The worst part about eavesdropping is trying to remember what people say so that I can tell David later.  They said a whole bunch of other funny/awkward things, but that's really the only one I could remember.  

It's sort of the fault of restaurants.  They put tables so close together it's hard NOT to listen to other people.  It's not that I don't enjoy talking to David, but we don't talk constantly (especailly when we're eating) and I can't help but listen. 

David reminded me of a time that we were eating up in the city with the kids at one of our favorite Thai restaurants.  We were sitting next to a couple who were OBVIOUSLY on a first date.  The kids were probably in their late teens.  It was so uncomfortable sitting next to this couple - the kids still remember that evening.  This couple was so obviously not comfortable with each other.  It reminded me of every horrible set up date that I had when I was younger.  It's a wonder that I ever actually found someone to marry!!  Friends were always setting me up with some guy who would be 'perfect' for me and never was.  Not even close. 

When we were in Italy I found if very strange and refreshing to eat out.  There were people all around us talking up a storm when we were eating in Pisa the first night.  And I couldn't understand a WORD that anyone was saying!!  It was quite bizarre.  I was sort of eavesdropping, because I could listen to other people, but I had no idea what any of the conversations were like.  Ut's almost more fun.  You can sort of make up stories aobut what people are saying and what their relationships are.