Watchful eye

(This post was actually written on Saturday night but before I could post it or even schedule it for posting the rather dodgy internet connection at faire gave out on me. I was a little annoyed by this as I am trying to do a thing here with the whole NaBloPoMo nonsense. I don't think anyone will hold it against me that my laptop has a bad relationship with the wireless at faire. I wrote this on Saturday and it is the intent that counts.)

I am a people watcher. I always have been. I really just enjoy sitting back in a quiet corner and watching people. I find it fascinating and really calming in a way.

I watch people and I study them and in my head I write stories about them. If I see a stranger in a store or the airport or in the car next to me in traffic it takes no time at all for my mind to begin to create stories for them. Who they are, what kind of life they lead, where they are going, and anything else my over active imagination can come up with.

Rarely does my brain come up with a boring scenario. These people in my mind always lead interesting lives, if not outright exciting lives. I know it probably isn't true. I know most likely their lives are nowhere near as exciting as I make them. It amuses me though to create these lives for these people. I sometimes wonder if they would like the lives I have given them.

I also have discovered that you can learn a lot by just sitting quietly in a corner. People say and do the most interesting things. You can discover a lot about a person just by watching them over a period of time. I think that may sound a little creepy, but it really isn't meant to be.

It isn't just what people say, it is how they actually behave. How they hold their drink, play with their jewelery, eat their food, pick at peeling paint, watch others, all tell me things about them. You can learn so much more by not talking and simply observing.

I have a friend who once told me that he was certain I knew everyone's secrets from years of quiet observation. He noted that he would never want to cross me because of this and then poured me another pina colada.

I wouldn't say that he was wrong, and I wouldn't say that he was right either. I do know some secrets but more precisely I know people more than they think I do. I have subtle insight into my friends that might surprise even them.

All in all I don't think it is a bad thing. I think more people would be amazed at what they could find if they simply sat back and quietly watched the world go by. You would be really surprised what you have been missing.