overheard

I was sitting at an outdoor cafe having lunch. The tables were rather close together and the background music was fairly loud so it meant it was actually quite easy hearing people's conversations as they raised their voices to be heard over the music. Anyway, I was just minding my own business eating a very delicious chicken salad sandwich, hearing the voice of a man at the next table.

When I heard him talk about how his parents don't understand him and don't pay attention to him and never supported anything he does blah blah blah, I was thinking, oh must be one of the early 20 something year olds, whose conversations about not being understood abound at every cafe near the campus. But when I turned and glanced his way, it turns out he was this 40-something Asian guy with chin length hair and bold white strands standing out from his mostly black coif. I had to look again to notice the deep laugh lines around his eyes that remained even when he didn't smile, to confirm his age of 40+ (cuz maybe he really was 20 something who was graying early). It's one thing for a 20 something to talk like that, but damn, a 40 something year old guy talking like that is, well, sad.

Fortunately for me, they ate quickly, and I was left to enjoy the rest of my meal in peace. I knew I shouldn't have looked over.