Standing at the meat counter in the local supermarket.
Guy to meat counter girl: “Yeah, everything is crazy, how are you doing?”
Meat counter girl: “It’s so scary!”
Me: “Hey, at least we know exactly when it’ll hit, it’s been evenings and that’s it.”
Guy: “It’ll be quiet till tonight, till they’ve eaten and organized after Ramadam fast.”
Me: orders chicken
Guy: [in english] “Maybe I’ll just go back”
Me: [taken by surprise] politely smiles
Guy: “You’re from the States?”
Me: “Yeah. You?”
Guy: “Yeah. I dunno. What is this? I think it’s time to just go back.”
Me: “What are you nuts?!”
Guy: “What do you mean, this life isn’t normal. This isn’t normal.”
Me: “What do you mean – America is crazy! Did you hear what just happened on July 4 weekend in Chicago?!”
Guy: “No…”
Me: “There were 82 people shot! 14 died!”
Guy: “Muslims?!”
Me: “No, nothing like that! Anybody! That’s the thing! Here we know our enemy, there it could be any crazy guy off the street!”
Guy: “Yeah, but this…”
Me: “No way, you couldn’t pay me… I’d rather know who my enemy is, we can prepare… There, everything is crime, anyone can take out a gun…”
And while we agreed in the end that perhaps, if we were to leave, Australia would be a fine choice…
…I couldn’t believe, with 100% meaning everything I said, without thinking about what I was saying, I had just been that person.
Whadya got: