Put the phone down!

For this assignment, I decided that I wanted to talk to someone that I see everyday, but haven't said much more than 'hello' to.  I work for the College Election Poll Worker Initiative in the SUB so I see a lot of people everyday.  I decided that I wanted to talk with one of the janitors that comes in to our office everyday to empty the recycling and trash.  Usually, I just keep busy with my work and say hi, but leave it at that.
When the janitor came into our office, I immediately turned around and said hello and asked how her day was going.  She seemed surprised that I struck up a conversation, which is understandable considering this is the first time it's happened all semester.  Her name is Judy and she has been working for Kutztown for almost 15 years.  She talked about her adventures as she worked in many different buildings on campus, but the SUB has been her favorite so far.  She said she enjoys working around and with students and that she also enjoys the other female janitors that she works with.
As our conversation progressed, she asked me about my major, where I'm from, what I want to do with my life, etc.  And since I can't help but bring up politics in almost every conversation, we began discussing some stories about the Occupy Wall Street movement.
Judy and I ended up talking for almost a half-hour.  Our conversation stayed positive and it seemed that we both enjoyed each others company.  Since our interaction, Judy and I usually engage in some kind of conversation daily. Overall, I really enjoyed this assignment!

As a tour guide, I talk to people I've never met, face to face, almost everyday. It's different with families in Admissions though.  There are certain topics, issues, questions that can be expected to be discussed with families.  When talking to someone with no kinds of constraints, the conversation becomes wide open.  I also was able to relate some class lectures to the process as well.  As I was talking with Judy, I can remember smiling and nodding in agreement with most things she said.  I didn't disagree with what she was saying, but the nodding and smiling is considered a social norm of showing interest.  I wouldn't want her to think I wasn't interested in what she was saying (even if I wasn't..) because that would be disrespectful and rude.  When we talk with people face to face, we tend to avoid conflict more so than we would if the conversation was moved to computer mediated communication.  Although it's something we may learn in class, it's very interesting when we observe ourselves in these situations.  Again, this was a very interesting and fun assignment.