I sat lazily outside in the backyard of some of my favorite friends last Sunday, chatting and enjoying the afternoon.
At one point in the afternoon, a girl several years younger than our circle of friends sat next to me and joined the light conversation. Unbeknownst to her, she really had no chance at breaking into the group, but was blissfully unaware (in that happy, teenage naive way) that she had intruded. It wasn't that she wasn't welcome to sit with us; more that we all would have rather been left to sit and reminisce without the burden of having to explain ourselves and our past antics to such a newcomer/temporary fixture. So I made polite conversation with her while the rest of the friends were a little more silent than they would have been were it just "the group."
The conversation went somewhat abridgedly like this:
Her:Where do you work/what do you do/oh really/that sounds cool/
Me: you're a recent finance grad/no I don't know of any job openings at my company/yes I travel a lot/yes I'm going on a trip quite soon/Istanbul/
Then from my left came a sly statement: "Not Constantinople."
I laughed. The girl to my right, remember she is several years younger, said "Huh?"
"Istanbul used to be called Constantinople in the time of the Romans." I explained.
"Oh!" Came the over exuberant and jovial reply from my right, while from my left we heard "Now it's Istanbul."
"Not Constantinople." I returned, snickering silently at the inside joke.
Again from the left: "Why they changed it, I can't say."
To the right: ... (A look of questioning; beginning to understand she was clearly missing something)
Me: "People just liked it better that way." I shrugged and laughed with my co-conspirator on the left.
Ah the days of high school and They Might Be Giants...
But seriously, something is wrong if someone only five years younger than me has never heard that song.
My childhood friends. All growed up.
At one point in the afternoon, a girl several years younger than our circle of friends sat next to me and joined the light conversation. Unbeknownst to her, she really had no chance at breaking into the group, but was blissfully unaware (in that happy, teenage naive way) that she had intruded. It wasn't that she wasn't welcome to sit with us; more that we all would have rather been left to sit and reminisce without the burden of having to explain ourselves and our past antics to such a newcomer/temporary fixture. So I made polite conversation with her while the rest of the friends were a little more silent than they would have been were it just "the group."
The conversation went somewhat abridgedly like this:
Her:Where do you work/what do you do/oh really/that sounds cool/
Me: you're a recent finance grad/no I don't know of any job openings at my company/yes I travel a lot/yes I'm going on a trip quite soon/Istanbul/
Then from my left came a sly statement: "Not Constantinople."
I laughed. The girl to my right, remember she is several years younger, said "Huh?"
"Istanbul used to be called Constantinople in the time of the Romans." I explained.
"Oh!" Came the over exuberant and jovial reply from my right, while from my left we heard "Now it's Istanbul."
"Not Constantinople." I returned, snickering silently at the inside joke.
Again from the left: "Why they changed it, I can't say."
To the right: ... (A look of questioning; beginning to understand she was clearly missing something)
Me: "People just liked it better that way." I shrugged and laughed with my co-conspirator on the left.
Ah the days of high school and They Might Be Giants...
But seriously, something is wrong if someone only five years younger than me has never heard that song.
I'm singing it in my head right now! Ha!!
ReplyDeleteI do think there is something wrong with someone only 5 yrs younger not knowing that.
Oh, so seriously wrong if she's never heard that song!! I mean, really?! Sigh. AWEsome freakin story! That was my favesies at the Stake Dances growing up. It was mah song. Oh, I can picture this all happening, and it's legit. LOVE it!! ;)
ReplyDeleteI listened to that whole disk as I was driving home from El Paso last week. Really? Those songs are all nonsense! But I knew every word :)
ReplyDeleteLOL. So true. Silly youngster. Good times! There have been oppourtunities to hear that song besides TMBG. It was featured in Animaniacs. Little girl should know what they are ya think.
ReplyDelete