Member-only story
Learning to Talk With Strangers One Bird at a Time
How an arsenal of trivial facts can become a superpower
I’ve always been a curious person, and for whatever reason, my brain has always been sticky. When I was a teen, my friends and many adults would tease me about all my useless knowledge as I demolished them at trivia games.
I was especially good with pop culture and history.
I never bought into the idea of “useless” knowledge. Every fact I learned could connect to other facts and unlock more of the world for me. When I was younger, knowledge for knowledge’s sake felt like a worthy endeavor.
But now, at just past fifty, I see knowledge differently.
On an afternoon walk some time ago, my favorite downtown pond was full of stunning birds. There was a majestic great blue heron and a variety of ducks.
I whipped out my phone and took a slew of reference photos for later comics. In the middle of one of my circuits around the pond, I was stopped in mid-haiku composition by a woman with a question. I had seen her and her friend across the pond admiring the heron.
