i:. in (.m s sii wks
Some tongues just never tire
You have to \yonder about peo
ple who talk all the time. I’m
not talking about anyone spe
cific—except myself, perhaps. How
can some people talk so damn much?
What makes them tick?
What does it look like inside their
head? Maybe it’s like a bunch of news
papers fluttering around, 1 ike in scenes
from “Citizen Kane.” Or maybe it’s
1 ike rows and rows of televisions spon
taneously monitoring hundreds of sta
tions.
Some people seem to have a re
sponse for everything. They seem to
make speeches for the sake of making
them. They speak in long run-on sen
tences. Sometimes they’re extremely
accurate. Other times not.
It really doesn’t matter to them,
though. They’re just talking for the
sake of talking.
Imagine this: You tell a friend you’d
like to lose weight. Before you know
it, you’re on the receiving end of a
lecture about exercise physiology and
nutrition.
Maybe you really just wanted them
to tell you that you were a beautiful
person and didn’t need to lose weight.
You’re thinking, “Hey! What about
me?” But they just keep right on talk
ing. They’re so busy talking, they
don’t even notice you. Sure, what
they’re saying is sometimes useful,
but it’s always annoying.
Perhaps you’ve experienced this
scenario: You’re driving through town
with a friend, listening to the radio,
just enjoying the music, thankful for
some commercial-free time, then,
POW!
You’re suddenly deluged with a
litany of facts about the band, the
song, its history and maybe even the
name of the guy on the bongo drums.
Keep down the chatter. No amount
of trivia beats a good song. Geez!
There seem to be at least two kinds
of talkers. There are “nonstop talkers”
who freely associate with whatever
In 1991,1 resolved to listen
more. It made perfect sense.
Listen more, learn more. Know
more, be more. Talk more!
they happen to be thinking about,
looking at or listening to at that mo
ment. And there are “hunter talkers,”
who wait quietly until you least expect
it and then pounce on you. Hunters
have a mission. To say the least, they
want to reform you or educate you.
When either type catches you, there’s
no getting away.
I’ve worked at talking less myself.
My 1990 New Year’s resolution was
to simply talk less. In 1991,1 resolved
to listen more. It made perfect sense.
Listen more, learn more. Know more,
be more. Talk more!
Just kidding.
Recently I had dinner with friends,
one of whom, Benny, is also a talker.
I know he’s a talker because when he’s
around, I shut up a lot. I’ll try and
describe Benny in action.
Benny is polite and friendly. He’s
hilarious, but his stories are about
everyday topics.
He can give discourses on a myriad
of topics, but once he’s chosen one, he
attacks it with vigor and doesn ’ t let off
until he’s thoroughly explored every
angle.
But he does it so easily, you never
realize he’s talking you to death until
you’re halfway in the grave.
Benny’s stories aren’t particularly
enlightening, but they’re funny.
The night we had dinner, I looked
around the table when Benny was in
the middle of a 10-minute discourse
about baseball. Everyone seemed to be
enjoying it. I figured they were re
lieved that I wasn’t talking for a
change.
Benny gives talkers a good name.
And a good rest. When Benny is
around, other talkers like me can take
a break. They can rest their jaws,
apply some Chap Stick and maybe get
a glass of water if they need one.
Talking too much appears to have
harmful effects for some people. We
have all met individuals who talk so
much and so fast, they seem to have
forgotten to take the time to breathe.
So their milc-a-minute speech is punc
tuated with gasps.
Sometimes talkers get caught in
the act. It’s rare, but it happens.
Some time ago a co-worker warned
me about talking too much. He had
observed me talking to a small group
of fellow employees.
Privately he told me I spoke too
freely. He said I “should be careful”
about how I talked around “white
folks.” He said I might be misinter
preted.
I said “Hey! If there are six people
in the room, there are going to be six
versions anyway. So why not capital
ize on that?”
I can’t control how others interpret
my words, but I figure anything that
makes people think can’t hurt.
Sometimes you have to say all you
know. Even if it means you talk too
much.
Shaaks is a graduate itudent and a Daily
Nebraikaa coluuialit.
.11 UI \l\ I I I /1* \ I UK K
It’s a happy holiday
maybe
If the weather continued to get
worse through the night
Wednesday, there is a good
chance no one will be reading this
today. UNL administrators will have
canceled class and everyone will still
be in bed.
Right.
Judging from the blizzards the ad
ministration has expected students to
weather in the past, this column will
instead be read by students sitting in
class only wishing they had the day to
do whatever they wanted. Happy va
cation — almost.
When I was in grade school, snow
days off from school were like Christ
mas. When the weather was particu
larly bad, everyone would listen to the
radio in the morning for the list of
schools that had been closed. If your
school was called in the lottery, you
had a day to forget about work.
Usually that meant your mom made
you put on arctic weather gear six
layers thick, and you ventured out into
the very blizzard that was supposed to
be keeping you home. Sledding usual
ly came in there somewhere, with
snowmen and snowball fights and all
the rest of it.
The main thins was that you woke
up expecting to nave to go through
another day of school and instead got
todo whatever you wanted. The unan
nounced vacation was better than oth
ers, because you were really supposed
to be working while you were having
fun.
How nice it would have been today,
then, if Chancellor Graham Spanier
had given us a snow day (although he
probably wouldn't have called it that).
There is a chance that he did give us
one, and 1 have been wrong through
out this column. That would not be
anything new, so I will not worry
about it.
Had Spanier been so generous, ev
eryone would have gotten to sleep in
Unlike us, little kids everywhere
will probably have the day off.
They can bundle up and enjoy
the holiday. And while they
won’t be laboring in
classrooms, they will probably
learn more from their day.
and have a day off. All of us, of course,
would have spent the time catching up
on homework and getting ready for
classes on Friday.
If we weren’t in class now, but
home instead, we could be doing just
about anything we wanted.
I would still be working at the
Daily Nebraskan, presumably to help
inform everyone there was no school,
but at least I would not have had to go
to class. I could have put off “The
Awakening” for just one more day.
If this column was as much of a
dream as a day off from school, I could
end it here. Surely that would be the
merciful thing to do for everyone in
volved.
As I can’t do that, I will have to talk
about what we might have done with
a snow day besides getting some sleep
or staying away from school.
Probably the most important thing
you can do with a free day is catch up
on those things that really matter. It
sounds sentimental and sappy to talk
about, but there are people and things
that get pushed back in our lives be
cause we are too busy or have to go to
school.
It’s easy to think that the important
things in life will be there for you
tomorrow or next week or next month.
Sometimes, however, you find they
can go away.
Snow days are a break from the
regular routine of life. You can do
things like usual, or you can make
your own rules. If school had been
canceled today, we might all have
called someone we haven’t talked to
in a while or done something impor
tant that we have been putting on.
But the weather held to UNL’s
satisfaction, so we will be saved from
that task. We can read and study and
do schoolwork instead.
Hooray.
Unlike us, little kids evenrwhere
will probably have the day oft. They
can bundle up and enjoy the holiday.
And while they won’t be laboring
in classrooms, they will probably learn
more from their day.
We could always take matters into
our own hands. If UNL didn’t cancel
school, we could all decide that was
the wrong decision and take the day
off to do more important things. That
probably wouldn’t be popular with
some professors and administrators,
but life is too short.
Fitzpatrick U a teaior political tdeace
aiajor aad the editor of the Dally Nebraikaa.
"ONE OF THE BEST FILMS OF THE DECADE."
June* Grant, SCENE AT THE MOVIES
"INTELLIGENT"
Jay Scott, THE GLOBE AND
MAIL TORONTO
"SIZZLING"
Bruce Williaraon. PLAYBOY
The lover
.A*
"PASSIONATE'
BUI Diehl. ABC RADIO
"EXOTIC”
Jay Scott, THE GLOBE AND
MAIL TORONTO
"PERFECTION"
— James Gram, SCENE AT THE
MOVIES
"BEAUTIFUL"
Gary Franklin, KCOP-TV
For more
information
Call 472-81461
or call The
UPC Events
Hotline at
472-8150.
CJ.P.C International Film Series
January 30, 1994
3,5,7 and 9 pm
Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater
Tickets: $3 UNL Students
$5 Public
Tickets available at the door.
International
Film
Series .
Sue Tidball
Award
for
Creative Humanity
This Annual award, presented to
one, two or three people (students,
faculty or staff at UNL), is in
p recognition of significant
contributions to the development
of a humane, open educationally
creative, just, and caring
community on the UNL campus.
Nominations for the award may be submitted by anyone associated with
UNL. More information, nomination forms, and guidelines are available at:
•IFC-Panhellcnic, NU 332
•Residence Hall front desks
•Most college, school and division offices
•Student Involvement office, NU 200 & ECU 300
•Culture Center, 333 N. 14th St.
•Personnel Office, Admin. 407
•Residence, building, and grounds maintenance offices
•Office of Student Affairs. Admin. 124
•Or phone Larry Doerr at 476-0355
Nominations are due February 21,1994
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