People-watching
I WOULD describe myself as a fairly affable chap, if not excessively outgoing or sociable - a fact determined by my congenital introversion (Jungian typology: INTJ) - so whilst I spend a great of time working alone my lunchtime visits to the local café always provide me with a unique opportunity to study other people's behaviour and what takes place on the adjacent tables can often be very illuminating and provide much food for thought. The modern Portuguese are not dissimilar to the modern English, at least on a purely surface level and, although I find it far easier to read the language than make sense of spoken-word, I can often construct the loose framework of a conversation by picking out a few key words and expressions and observing certain mannerisms.
A recent exercise in audio-visual eavesdropping involved four men having a discussion about a match that had taken place between Benfica and Bayern Munich, but whilst I adore football the speed of the conversation was fairly rapid and much of it eluded me, so I therefore became more interested in body language and context. Three of the men were very hesitant, seemingly afraid to express their opinions, whilst a fourth man was interjecting only occasionally. Whenever he did so, however, his three associates listened intently with an exaggerated display of respect and deference.
After I happened to leave the café around the same time and find myself walking behind the quartet in the street, I soon discovered that it wasn't his knowledge of football which had been particularly impressive, but the fact that on arriving at the forecourt of a nearby factory he began issuing instructions to his colleagues and was thus clearly their employer.
The moral of this long-winded story, if you haven't already fallen asleep, is that knowledge - whether intellectual or non-cerebral - often comes second to hierarchy. Such is the nature of what Guénon described as the reign of quantity. Similarly, allowing someone to underestimate you is at the root of all revolution.
Tune in next time for my philosophical analysis concerning how a pair of lovers entering the café with two umbrellas is an obvious indication that their relationship is on the rocks. Protecting both shoulders from the rain, in other words, having assumed more importance than the timeless romance of sharing a single brolly.
And you thought café life was all about drinking coffee...