OK, so it could have been really bad. She could have been 17. (Yes, I am starting it off with this sentence on purpose.)
I went to Peet's from the office today (such a shock, I know). There weren't any tables available at first, but one opened up when I was still last in line so I went for it. It turns out that somebody else did too. I offered the table, but we ended up sharing it for a short while until she left the place.
The person I met, who seemed very nice, apparently gets her kicks by talking to interesting people (which is definitely not a bad thing to do), for which I suppose I qualify in some sense---you know, maybe in the 'He does, umm, interesting things kind of way.' She started off by asking where I went to school and I quickly found out she was a college student at USC; I had previously realized she was probably too young---that just confirmed it. I later found out she's a freshman and is 18, which goes to show that I can pretty much no longer tell the difference between, say, 18 and 21.
Now, while this person seemed very nice, there were a few notable problems.
(1) She's 18.
(2) She has never heard of Depeche Mode.
(3) She didn't realize that Caltech was 'in the area' when it was a few blocks away. (Either she was pulling my leg here or this is a sign of some form of extreme cluelessness---not that I have any right to complain about cluelessness in others, but still...)
For what it's worth, all of my parents and siblings (again phrased this way on purpose) are UCLA alums, but I'll resist the urge to include a heavy-handed cluelessness joke about USC. It's obviously hokey (although it's fun).
Among other things, she suggested that I read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (there was a movie version too, I think), although I have the nagging suspicion that it may have been a recent book she had to read for school (not that there's actually anything wrong with that either, but it's still the impression I got).
OK, so I meet very few people because I suck at it. Then when I do accidently meet somebody potentially interesting, the age thing just kills it (in my mind, anyway). Five more years (at least) would have been nice.
Anyway, this was my unusual experience for the day.
2 days ago
8 comments:
If you start taking pot shots at USC I'll have to come to its defense, at least anecdotally. I don't really know much about the school though, to be honest.
Cuckoo stuff: Well, I knew it was familiar for some reason. :)
USC: I don't actually have anything against them (aside from the turn-off of their being in a suboptimal area of town), but when you've been ingrained by 18 years of anti-USC at home from birth, sometimes things slip out. I'll let you know if I have any interesting potshots (aside from the ones I already used).
I second Kyle: the book is awesome, and the movie is really good too.
Heh. That's funny, because the one person I'm going on who I know went to USC actually grew up very close to where you did, iirc.
Regarding teh cuckoo, I've been meaning to watch it. I've also been meaning to finish the book, I started reading it many years ago and misplaced it, quickly forgetting about it as I always do.
The book is really great! Didn't see the movie though. USC is a good school I think. -jing
My high school sends a number of people to USC every year, and one of my first cousins even transferred from UCLA to USC [thereby incurring our eternal wrath :)]. Louis's brother went there as well, and I know some good researchers there, etc.
Well, let me know when you watch the movie, as it sounds like I'm really missing out here. I'll read the book too, but my queue is always very long, so I can't say when.
So you have never seen the movie? Jack Nicholson at his prime! I loved the movie and the book.
But you met a cute woman? (You know what a certain Italian would ask.) But, Mason the Unlikely, I think you're a very nice, handsome guy and great friend.
A certain Italian has much less willpower than I do as well as very different objectives.
As I mentioned, it doesn't do me any good. It's self-imposed, but it's a necessary self-imposition.
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