Conversation is like being punched in the stomach

Dear esteemed readers,

Conversation is like being punched in the stomach by a really small person who hasn't worked out in years, hasn't eaten for days, is being lightly restrained, and doesn't really want to punch you that badly(if he was punching you in the head and not the stomach). It makes you a tiny bit tired.

In the State's this has no real effect. Conversations last for 30 minutes to two hours on the long end. In Spain though, it seems like common practice to talk for a loooong time. My host family for example will hang out and watch TV, chatting on and off, from the time I get home (2:00) to the time I go to sleep (10:00) with 4-5 day-per-week consistency.

It isn't something that we're forced to consider too often, but after about four hours of unbroken conversation, we get really, really tired. Throw in a foreign language requirement, and then talk for six hours instead, and living in Spain suddenly becomes a drastically new experience.

The verdict is pending on whether or not this is a good thing. At the least I won't often be the one awkwardly twiddling my fingers and making some half-truth about homework after an hour of chatting when I get back to the states.

Wishing you an emotionally and mentally relaxed afternoon/ evening depending on location and time of reading,
Tim

P.S. Homework - Go talk to someone for five hours.