Today, I met with WeiRan and his friend again. We decided to meet at the TCU bookstore for some coffee at 2:00 p.m. True to form, WeiRan and his friend appeared precisely, if not before, 2:00 p.m. His punctuality is convenient and kind. When I walked up, they were already in line getting coffee. We talked some and they kindly offered to pay for my coffee.
Once everyone received their coffee, we found a table to sit at. I situated my burdensome backpack in its own chair. Sometimes it feels like I am carrying around a 2-year-old child on my back.
"How was your spring break" became the first question asked. I found that WeiRan went back home to China; however, his parents remained oblivious to the fact for awhile. This is the second time I have sensed a lot of tension between WeiRan and his parents. His friend, Jacob, went to New Mexico. The only thing Jacob said about New Mexico is, "the girls are skinny." They soon asked where I spent my spring break. I briefly mentioned my trip to Destin and how beautiful Florida is. The conversation soon became stagnant. I turned to my old standby--the weather.
You can truly never go wrong talking about the weather. The only time you can go wrong referencing the weather is if you mentioned it in the conversation previously. I quickly blurted "it is so humid outside! I think it might rain." Operation save-the-conversation-with-weather-talk: successful. Jacob, WeiRan's friend, made an astute observation, "in China, we have four seasons. I do not think you have four seasons in Texas." I laughed. After living here for 6 months, Jacob already knows we have minor weather changes. The Texas weather talk progressed into talk about the weather in China. In Shanghai, where they are both from, the weather is hot, but it gets cold at night.
With talk of weather in China, a new conversation sparked: where to visit in China. They described Beijing as a great tourist place as well as the "Alley," a small town historical district (I think that is what they were describing). Jacob made a sly joke in chinese. WeiRan blushed slightly and then Jacob spilled the beans (payback?), "Couples go to the Alley, like WeiRan and his girlfriend." While WeiRan found this somewhat personal and embarrassing, I found it wonderful. Jacob did not know it, but he just gave me a conversation jackpot. As a female, keeping a conversation going about people's relationships is an art I have perfected. When am I not listening to relationship stories or problems? I could keep this conversation going for as long as necessary. No more awkward silences!
I started with the basic queries, "Where does she live?" Beijing. "How long have you been dating?" 2 years. WeiRan did not gush, but he seemed to enjoy conversing about it. He mentioned Skype as the easiest way to communicate and how he wants to go to San Francisco to be near her next year. She will be attending UC San Diego next year. Finally, my state geography knowledge came in handy. I explained to him how far San Francisco is from San Diego and drew him a little map. I jested that he should frame it, but I do not think he understood my joke.
From here, we discussed colleges. They both want to go to San Francisco for college to be near the their girlfriends/interests. Now WeiRan threw Jacob under the bus, "Jacob interested in a girl, but she will not receive him." Jacob is still determined to go to San Francisco next year to win her affections. I found this very sweet. Their commitment to relationships shocked me. Most guys I know are extremely opposite.
More small talk and quips about relationships ensued. Before I knew it, our time came to a close and I prepared to leave in order to come to this class. We agreed to meet again next Tuesday in the same place. I think the bookstore cafe workers will be recognizing all of us soon.
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