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rysmiel and I talked about is differing axiom sets, and how and whether it's possible to communicate across those gaps. Part of the problem is that, often, one or more parties to the attempted communication don't realize the gap exists.
papersky had been thinking and writing about the benefits of peace and civilization. A lot of it is little things that add up, like the stranger on the Metro who made zorinth a toy out of a discarded transfer. I thanked him and praised it in (my poor) French, and everyoine smiled. It's going to the grocery store: digging out a couple of coins for an exact $4 when the cashier doesn't want to change a twenty and asks if I have anything smaller; a child's bicycle just sitting at the end of the road, because it's safe there; and a quick "Bonjour" to strangers I passed coming home with the milk. All those small things help create and maintain a culture that can afford a glorious extravagance like the geodesic dome, and that has time for potters to concern themselves with getting the glaze effects just right. The Montreal city flag quarters the rose, thistle, shamrock, and fleur-de-lys.
All proper cities have Metros, because when you get to a certain size that's the Right Way to do transport at this tech level. The details of how a subway system works vary, of course: the fare structure, whether there are express trains, the design of the cars, how many languages the signs are in. does it run all night? But it's a subway, and it gets me around, and I'm comfortable there.
We gossiped some, of course. No major news, just comparing perspectives on people. (And no, I'm not going to put any of it here.)
The pleasures of adult company--not age as such, but a certain sort of matter-of-fact approach, one that, among other virtues, comprehends that Rysmiel and I are both snuggly sort of people and that this doesn't mean more than friendship [1], and doesn't see that affection as a threat.
Vocabulary in assorted languages: melitsana (a.k.a. aubergine or eggplant, depending where you live) and the passe compose, which I wasn't sure of until Papersky gave me an example. (It was part of Zorinth's French homework.)
I think I made up for unthinkingly addressing a museum guard in English by, on the way home, doing a bit of handwaving and translation on the train. Amtrak, bless their pointy souls, assigned someone to the Montreal–New York train who speaks no French at all. They also decided to seat passengers in different cars depending on our destinations. (I don't know why--this isn't one of the odd trains that gets taken apart at New Haven.) So here's someone collecting tickets and telling the Francophone couple behind me that they have to move to the next car. They said something in French, which made it clear that they hadn't understood a word he said. He repeated himself. No comprehension. They continued confused, and he went on, looking irritated. I got by on gestures, goodwill, and the fortunate fact that the French for "next" ("prochain") was fresh in my brain from all those Metro announcements.
I got Rysmiel to explain why Trinity College Dublin bars its students and graduates from the code duello. (Not a big deal, just something I was wondering about.)
Talking politics and history on the bus, and having a stranger ask, as we were getting off, what the moral of the story was. I wasn't sure it had one, other than "pay attention", and I hadn't realized we had an audience. (Papersky and I were discussing our respective grandparents and their experiences with the Nazis.) I like, though, that he was willing to ask.
[1] "More than friendship". Friendship is a large and important thing, and not one that gets enough attention or consideration.
rysmiel and I talked about is differing axiom sets, and how and whether it's possible to communicate across those gaps. Part of the problem is that, often, one or more parties to the attempted communication don't realize the gap exists.papersky had been thinking and writing about the benefits of peace and civilization. A lot of it is little things that add up, like the stranger on the Metro who made zorinth a toy out of a discarded transfer. I thanked him and praised it in (my poor) French, and everyoine smiled. It's going to the grocery store: digging out a couple of coins for an exact $4 when the cashier doesn't want to change a twenty and asks if I have anything smaller; a child's bicycle just sitting at the end of the road, because it's safe there; and a quick "Bonjour" to strangers I passed coming home with the milk. All those small things help create and maintain a culture that can afford a glorious extravagance like the geodesic dome, and that has time for potters to concern themselves with getting the glaze effects just right. The Montreal city flag quarters the rose, thistle, shamrock, and fleur-de-lys.All proper cities have Metros, because when you get to a certain size that's the Right Way to do transport at this tech level. The details of how a subway system works vary, of course: the fare structure, whether there are express trains, the design of the cars, how many languages the signs are in. does it run all night? But it's a subway, and it gets me around, and I'm comfortable there.
We gossiped some, of course. No major news, just comparing perspectives on people. (And no, I'm not going to put any of it here.)
The pleasures of adult company--not age as such, but a certain sort of matter-of-fact approach, one that, among other virtues, comprehends that Rysmiel and I are both snuggly sort of people and that this doesn't mean more than friendship [1], and doesn't see that affection as a threat.
Vocabulary in assorted languages: melitsana (a.k.a. aubergine or eggplant, depending where you live) and the passe compose, which I wasn't sure of until Papersky gave me an example. (It was part of Zorinth's French homework.)
I think I made up for unthinkingly addressing a museum guard in English by, on the way home, doing a bit of handwaving and translation on the train. Amtrak, bless their pointy souls, assigned someone to the Montreal–New York train who speaks no French at all. They also decided to seat passengers in different cars depending on our destinations. (I don't know why--this isn't one of the odd trains that gets taken apart at New Haven.) So here's someone collecting tickets and telling the Francophone couple behind me that they have to move to the next car. They said something in French, which made it clear that they hadn't understood a word he said. He repeated himself. No comprehension. They continued confused, and he went on, looking irritated. I got by on gestures, goodwill, and the fortunate fact that the French for "next" ("prochain") was fresh in my brain from all those Metro announcements.
I got Rysmiel to explain why Trinity College Dublin bars its students and graduates from the code duello. (Not a big deal, just something I was wondering about.)
Talking politics and history on the bus, and having a stranger ask, as we were getting off, what the moral of the story was. I wasn't sure it had one, other than "pay attention", and I hadn't realized we had an audience. (Papersky and I were discussing our respective grandparents and their experiences with the Nazis.) I like, though, that he was willing to ask.
[1] "More than friendship". Friendship is a large and important thing, and not one that gets enough attention or consideration.