#talkingwithstrangers

Fellow students and friends, Alec and Magnus have a well-established housemate arrangement. It's thrown for a loop when a kiss gone public threatens Alec's ability to stay—so Magnus suggests a foolproof solution. What's a little marriage of convenience between friends, after all?

This #lovelylady was playing #softtunes on this #thaiclassical #musicalinstrument #dulcimer #thaihammereddulcimer in the #hotellobby the night #beforeileft #royalorchidsheraton #talkingwithstrangers #photographerslife #travellifestyle #travelmakesmehappy (at Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel & Towers)

“We mustn’t speak to strangers.” this TedTalk challenges this societal norm, by presenting 7 ways to make conversation with anyone. Speaker Malavika Varadan is a radio personality on Breakfast No. 1 as broadcasted by City 101.6

What’s the first thing you look for when you board the bus? You know you do this every-time you slip your Ventra back into your coat pocket; you look for an empty seat. Preferably a seat near the end of the bus by the window (or is that just me)? Why do we do this? We, as teenagers, are very anti-social and awkward little humans that try to avoid conversations at all cost unless they are necessary or involve our friends, and I’m pretty sure adults do this as well. Of course there are times when we’ll be pretty social and won’t mind talking to a good couple strangers, but overall, no.. please…don’t talk to me. What if I were to tell you that talking with complete strangers is the most thrilling and amazing thing you could possibly do? If you actually already know this, then don’t make fun of me. I don’t socialize with people unless I feel pretty. About a good two weeks ago, I was on the bus on my way to a friend’s house with one of my bestfriends. There were two empty seats at the back of the bus right next to the window. When I saw those two empty seats, I literally charged toward them. Once we sat down, I realized that there was a guy sitting in the seat next to me. I was in a good mood, so when he spoke to me, I responded with extreme kindness. I’m extremely happy that Mike (the “stranger”) asked me if I knew how to enable the auto rotate on his smartphone because if he hasn’t then I would have never had one of the most compelling conversations on society, education, politics, and spirituality that greatly impacted my perspective on life. Long story short, talk to strangers; your best friends were once strangers.Go out and converse with the rest of the human population. Your life could possibly be changed forever. Have fun.