Banter

Noun: banter bantur

1. Light teasing repartee

Verb: banter

1. Be silly or tease one another

Call it what you may, I find myself getting tired of it sometimes, even dreading it.

Case in point, I go early for my classes so that I might have time to sit down and have dinner. I’m usually the earliest one at the coffee shop since I work so close by. And as I wait for my food to arrive I find myself hoping against hope that none of my fellow trainees will join me. They always do.

I’d much rather sit alone with my thoughts and or let my mind wander off into the great unknown if I so please. But I find myself interrupted, which could be all right under certain circumstances except that the ‘conversation’ always involves a lot of teasing, ribbing, smart aleck comments and I find myself obliged to respond in kind or even defend myself sometimes. If it happened once in a while, it’d be refreshing even invigorating perhaps, but after one too many times (even though I can more than hold my own) I just get fed-up and find myself longing for privacy or some kind of meaningful conversation. Unfortunately I have to grin and good-naturedly bear it, because if I am moody or silent or calm and reflective, that draws even more attention.

Perhaps I am getting more and more anti-social: having less of a stomach for frivolity. I used to hold it (banter) in quite high regard actually, having some talent for it, but now it just seems…empty. Sure it’s good for a few laughs and it does break the ice. But how many times do you need to break the ice before you can go beyond it? I suppose if it never gets past that, then it’s time to walk away.