Making Small Talk
Sergei, a Russian immigrant, is waiting in line at the INS. The line is very long, and itās moving very slowly. Peter, an American standing in front of Sergei, turns around and strikes up a conversation. Sergei is surprised by his friendliness.
| Peter | I guess we didnāt have anything else to do today, did we? |
| Sergei | What? |
| Peter | I said I guess they think that we didn āt have anything else to do today. Itās just that weāve been in this line for a very long time. It seems like we arenāt going anywhere very fast. |
| Sergei | Yeah. I know. Iāve been here since about 9:30. What about you? |
| Peter | I think, I got here just a few minutes before you did. I decided to pick up a green-card application for my wife. I shouldāve gotten it off the internet. That way I could have just stayed home. Say, where are you from? |
| Sergei | Me? Iām from Russia. |
| Peter | Oh, whereabout? |
| Sergei | I lived in Moscow for most of my life, but I moved around a little. I was in the military. |
| Peter | Interesting. Iāve never been to Russia, but Iāve always wanted to visit. It seems like such an interesting country. How long have you lived here? |
| Sergei | Iāve live in San Diego for only a few weeks, but Iāve been in the U.S. since August. |
| Peter | Well, welcom to San Diego. I guess the weather must be a bit warmer than where youāre from, huh? |
| Sergei | Yes, thatās true. Iāve gotten used to it. |
| Peter | Have you visited the zoo or Balboa Park yet? |
| Sergei | No, but I really want to go to Balboa Park. Iāve heard about all the flowers and museums that are there. |
| Clerk | Next! |
| Peter | Hey. Thatās me. Gotta go. See you around. |
| Sergei | Oh. OK. See you. |