Thursday, April 20, 2006

Extemporania

I learned in a class several years ago that it's a function of extroversion to think as you speak...and I am definitely an extrovert. Case in point:

I had a lovely dinner Monday night with a friend of mine. We went for a walk afterwards to enjoy the night sky and the ducks on the water. We explored a lot of topics, and wound up talking about 9/11. (I think it's become a contemporary to "where were you when Kennedy was shot?"...a way to place ourselves in the world in relation to others...to connect with people.) We shared our stories of "that day" and discussed our views on the aftermath...the politics of it...what it might mean for the future.

Part of our discussion was about the differing rhetoric styles of the President and Guiliani as the events were unfolding. I pointed out that from my perspective, Guiliani had a much more empathetic delivery that day. I remember being so very impressed with not only what he said (which may well have been the work of a talented speechwriter), but the way he said it. Up until Monday night, that what/how distinction had been the sum total of my thoughts on the matter...

...interestingly, what also came out of my mouth on Monday was something like "You know, it felt like Guiliani was talking to his people...New Yorker to New Yorker...and I think on that day, maybe we were all New Yorkers."

I have no idea if this was an original thought or not (probably not), but it was certainly the first time it had really occurred to me...and it made me laugh. No...not because of the thought itself was funny, but because every now and then I catch myself saying something with complete conviction that I've never really considered until the moment I say it out loud.

No wonder people think I'm weird.

Oh wait...did I just say that?

4 comments:

MonkeyMom said...

Actually, I was in high school for that one...we were having a snow day...I was going on a double date with Anthony Brown, Lisa Burris and Damon Butts....

I feel double-generational!

towwas said...

That was Challenger. I was in 5th grade. I don't like swapping stories about where I was on 9/11...it's as if it trivializes it. It didn't happen to me. (Ok, the fact that I still can't think about it for too long without crying suggests that it actually did happen to me, in a way, so I may need to reconsider my position. But ANyway.)

I think by writing. Can you tell?

MonkeyMom said...

Didn't she say Challenger? Oh...no, she said Columbia... heh. Clearly I don't think while I read... :D

Cheryl said...

Ooh, I had one of those moments today. I was talking to Mr. Mister and I had this brilliant self-insight, and then I was like, "wow, I didn't know that until I said it just now." I was impressed with myself, but unfortunately after eight years of marriage Mr. Mister isn't so easy to impress.