Thursday, December 4, 2008

Yakety Yak

Do you know people who talk so continuously that they don't seem to breathe and never break long enough to allow somebody else to express a thought or ask a question? They seem to fill every break with "and, um, and, um". I feel like I have to raise my hand to indicate that I have something to say or comment on.
I think that's why I prefer e-mail and instant messaging with some people. There is a natural back and forth with it and you don't end up talking over each other.
Another thing is that after a full minute or more of someone talking, my mind tends to wander and I'm not listening anymore. Especially if the subject matter is boring as hell and I'm not interested in the first place. The look of utter boredom and disinterest on my face doesn't seem to register because the speaker is too wrapped up in their monologue to notice.
I find that most telephone conversations go on way too long anyway. I do enjoy talking to people one on one in person, but for some reason I don't like to "chat" on the phone very often. I use the phone as a tool to get a quick answer to a question. If I feel like talking a lot, I usually e-mail, visit in person, or I blog.

On the other end of the spectrum are the people who can't get a thought out verbally to save their lives. They "uh, ummmm, hmmmm and uhhhhhh" forever and you sit there waiting for the precious gem of their thoughts to make it into speech and by the time it does, it's usually not worth hearing. Of these people, I just have to say "SPIT IT OUT AND GET TO THE POINT!"

I think the reason I like certain TV shows and not others is a reflection of this. I can't handle watching a news show that has more than 2 people other than the monitor. The View drives me nuts because they all talk at once. Some of the news shows are like that too. I like Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow because they speak clearly and they get to the point and they don't belabor a point too long.

Chop, chop, get to the point and move on.

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