The Case for Talking to Strangers

Kids, talk to strangers. I know, you've been told not to talk to strangers. We all were told that. When we were 5. But now we are all grown up. And as grown ups, I say we should be talking to strangers.

To me, talking to strangers has been like following the white rabbit to whatever adventures awaited me. Here are some recent examples.

While traveling back from the UK last year, I had a 5 1/2 hour layover in Amsterdam. I had never been to the Netherlands before and I wasn't about to sit in the airport when a famous city was just a 20 minute train ride away.

Making sure that I waited for the train on the correct platform, I asked a couple if they spoke English so that I could have them confirm the train schedule. The man's response was, "Speak E'glish? Focking-A! We are bloody E'glish!"  I spent my whole layover with this couple and had a blast.  Thanks to them I missed Anne Franks house in favor for joining them at the cloudy "coffeehouse." Definitely, I wouldn't have done that alone!

When picking up some out of town guests from a DC bar last summer, I started talking to a man who calls himself "The Hussy Cowboy." Yes, he's gay. Hussy Cowboy is his stage name as he sings and performs on the side. After talking to him that night, he invited me to his video release party at JR's in Dupont Circle. I went to the bar and didn't know if it was OK to laugh at this video which premiered that night. Is it a parody or serious?  You watch and decide for yourself:

Last December, I was standing around downstairs at the Wonderland Ballroom when a guy asked me where to find the stairs to the dance floor. Noticing his accent, I asked him where he was from. That lead to me dancing with him and his friend and going to another bar with them after dancing. His friend lives here in DC. She and I get along so well that we regularly see each other.  Seeing her regularly landed me on a weekly Friday-outing email list. This group does everything from happy hours, to dancing, to watching art house films. How fun to have a group of people to do this with!

This spring, I've gone out with a few people that I met on twitter. It's been fun to meet these strangers in person after a few fun exchanges online. Since their personality comes through on twitter, I already knew we would hit if off. Each time, I've had a fabulous time and enjoyed good conversation. Meeting someone new like this feels like online dating. You approach the stranger/acquaintance and awkwardly ask, "Are you ....?" Hahaha, how many times have I looked like a lesbian on a blind date?

So you see, boys and girls, talking to strangers broadens your circle of friends, exposes you to new experiences, and just gets you out of your bubble. The moral of this story is to "Do as I say and do as I do."