Lingua franca

I speak many languages: I'm fluent in female-to-female communication: the little slights, jabs and nuances that pass by my male friends. Although I've been out of the "industry" for years now, I can still pick up on techie talk - the obscure references, the almost hopeful geekiness. I'm intimately familiar with the FOB-ABCD interface (The Indianer-than-thou of "Oh, but you weren't BORN in India", and the stunned silence when I explain that I was, in fact, born in Madras.)

But how much is out there that I don't pick up on? There must be male-to-male communication that I can't parse. Maybe that's what all the sports talk is about. My incredibly stereotyped assumption, based on watching my guy friends interact with each other, has been that guys talk sports because they are uncomfortable talking about just about anything else with each other.

What passes in the interstitial zone between ages? And, how much of this is realistic? In the words of Aaliyah, "Age ain't nothin but a number." Recently, my mom claimed that people my age are always irresponsible. I pointed out that she had TWO children by my age - how irresponsible had she been? I knew I'd made my point when she laughed and changed the subject.

My need to people-watch is bubbling up to the surface. I long to observe the interactions, overhear the cellphone conversations (all the better to make up the other side, my dear.) People watching feeds my critical, "what was she thinking with those pants" side, but it also melts my heart - the elderly couple holding hands, the son holding open a door for his mom or the toddler with chocolate ice cream stains everywhere.