Slice of Life Story Challenge March 21 -Talker On A Plane

Tonight as I moved my weary bones onto the plane to fly home from Adelaide to Melbourne, I felt a sense of great satisfaction from my week as a poet in residence. I had encountered groups of young poets and teachers who breathed life into their words, striving to further develop their poetry. The poetry of these writers was in motion. I felt tired, but it was a good feeling.

Plane delays on Friday nights are not uncommon, so when it happened I just rolled with the adjusted times. When we finally boarded, an hour later than scheduled, I was pleased to hear the pilot announce that it would be a fast flight and we would arrive in Melbourne in 51 minutes. I settled into my seat and hoped some sleep might overcome me. It didn’t.

I immediately became aware of the young woman seated directly in front of me. More accurately, I became aware of her voice. It was sharp, reedy, and agitated. It was also constant. She barely had time to draw breath. A stream of words poured from her as she pursued a very one sided conversation with the young man seated beside her. ‘I come from a very close family’ she blurted, ‘We’re not that close individually though. We show our affection for each other through anger!.’ She then poured out her disaffection for the various members of her family and their girl friends, partners and the like. The young man beside her was an enabler. He occasionally interjected with single syllable words such as, why? how? when? where? These tiny additions to the conversation, spurred the young woman on. She appeared to have no segues in her flow of words. The next subject began seamlessly from the previous one.

Being seated on the aisle, I could see her hands constantly dancing about in the air as she prattled on. Occasionally she ran her hands through her hair in the manner of one who is on edge. I watched as people nearby stole glimpses of the constant talker.

I read somewhere that females, on average speak up to 20,000 words per day, while males can only muster about 7000. This young lady surely used up her quota on the flight to Melbourne.


Unfortunately, there was traffic congestion in the skies above Melbourne and our landing was delayed by a further 25 minutes. When we finally landed the talkative passenger, stood up and almost immediately the talking ceased.  She was obviously keen to alight from the plane. Others were keener. 

Comments

  1. Linda B22 March 2014 at 10:43

    Prattle is the word, know you're happy to be home, still & perhaps quieter!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kay22 March 2014 at 10:52

    Oh my, at least she provided entertainment (even if that of an annoying sort) for the passengers around her.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jaana22 March 2014 at 11:10

    Inspiration received. I am sure you are glad to be home!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Diane Sweeney22 March 2014 at 11:26

    Your writing is so readable and your topic so easy to relate to. I fly a lot as well and came to realize that the ridiculously high price of my sound canceling headphones was well worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Diane Sweeney22 March 2014 at 11:27

    Your writing is so readable and your topic so easy to relate to. I fly a lot as well and came to realize that the ridiculously high price of my sound canceling headphones was well worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Tara22 March 2014 at 11:44

    I loved that you kept your sense of humor...and your powers of observation.

    ReplyDelete
  7. ABoyden22 March 2014 at 11:59

    This just made me laugh, (not for you) but just the vividness of your sketch here! I swear I have met that girl. . .somewhere along the way! Thanks. This was a joy to read tonight.
    http://parentingandpedagogy.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous22 March 2014 at 12:10

    It sounds like your Poet in Residence week was wonderful. I am sorry about the young woman who prattled on but you used your writer's magic to weave an interesting story.

    ReplyDelete

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