Eavesdropping on the tram at Heathrow

Yesterday we had to take a tram across Heathrow (twice). During one of those trips, the one to take us to the correct gate, there were a lot of young-ish British guys just jabbering away. From the tone, ease, and topic of conversation it was apparent they knew each other.

And it was easy to deduce they were not on a business trip, nor headed to a funeral. They were obviously excited and had been looking forward to this trip with the guys. Later on, while on the plane, I noticed they all had matching t-shirts. When getting off the plane I could see the shirts – fashioned after reservoir dogs and a movie billing they were in celelbration of some guy, Panky maybe, and his stag party.

Anyway, back to the tram. There were tons of accents going on, there were more of us in there than rice in a burrito, and every grouping was talking at once. These guys though, they overpowered every one else. And something was bugging me

They sounded like the best friend in Sean of the Dead, Nick something or other….can’t remember it right now. British, yet from the wrong side of town sort of thing. They didn’t look like it at all, but the accent was not at all soothing. And then they started talking about girls – loud. And I was starting to get uncomfortable, hoping that neither Coral or I would be seated next to them (we weren’t seated together for that leg of the flight, but behind each other and finally on a window).

Then I realized I was wrong. Yes, they were talking about girls, and yes the accent was not the upper crust kind of thing, but instead of being rude it was, well....

One guy had been talking about a girl and how she’d become a “mental” and was obsessed, how that’s her life. He was going on and on, about how she was totally engaged with these kids, and her life was so different. How he was grateful he wasn’t driven there and was shocked she went that direction. And then he went on about how she was affecting all these kids and having such a tremendous impact, and what an incredible “mental” she was, and how she just devoted her life to it, and was so loved for it…and on and on with all these complintary attributes of the crazy lady, when it became clear he wasn’t talking about his nutty friend but his good friend, whom he greatly admired, and her chosen path as a mentor.

And yes, Coral was seated next to one of them. But only for a short time, after take off the guy got up and took an empty seat near his friends – they were really up for the party weekend and were all drinking by nine on Thursday morning.