A while ago, I wrote about using sign language as long-range communication. I'd like to expand on that idea by asking, why not teach all kids sign language from the get go?
I think, for the most part, sign language is a seperate, exclusive mode of communication which can suppliment normal verbal communication. The idea came to me as I met this girl, who was the girlfriend of this dude (beer and then liquor will make you sicker, liquor then beer and you're in the clear) at my brother's friend's house... Uhh... Anyway, she was a teacher of some sort who used sign language, and when she would talk to me, she would just start signing. Sometimes, she would apologize and just say it was force of habit, but I thought it was totally cool. I wish I knew how to sign as I talked... So, casually looking into it, I signed up for the sign language Meetup... And that's that.
So I was in the mall... Enjoy the commercially-induced holiday spirit... And standing in a long, crowded line at Newport, waiting for my turn at the food. I hate people.
And as I was waiting on line, I wondered... Where is everybody? See, I went with a group of people... And when you go to a big mall in New Jersey, there's a food court. And there are many stations and many people on the food court.
I didn't want to call anyone. That'd be a waste of time and minutes, even though I'm not one of those weird people that counts minutes. But, all I did see was one friend of ours that was in the station over from me, within yelling distance. But there's the problem. I didn't want to yell. As much as I wanted to stomp on all the little children, I didn't want to yell. So how do I communicate with the man?
And it was then that it dawned on me... Sign language! Sign language as a silent, non-verbal way of communicating with someone, from either very close range to a semi-far range, but not too far. Now that I think about it, the distance is only governed by the resolution of the body language.
So I could have communicated with my friend there. About how I was hungry, or how I wanted to stomp on all the little children.
That's my day at the mall. Two pairs of shoes and a thought about semi-remote human interaction.