How to Lose a Public Conversation Filter

It is part of human nature to unintentionally turn an ear to an interesting conversation that happens near you in a public space. Some may call it "eavesdropping" but I call it inspiration! I used to love sitting in a coffee shop, cafe, wherever, with a pen and notebook and imagine the context of a story I was accidentally listening to nearby. Sometimes it was intriguing. Sometimes it really was not. But usually it was fun to people watch and listen.

However, I totally forgot about the "Public Conversation Filter" (this is a Becca-created word by the way, do not use it in any academic way). The PCF is something built into our DNA. Or maybe it is built by society. Regardless of how it wormed its way into our brains, the PCF is there. It does weird things to us when we are conversing in public:

It causes us to speak in lower volumes.

It causes people to omit certain facts depending on the company.

It causes us to put our Name Coder to use - especially if you are in a location where the people around you may know everyone you know. Some fellow Crandallites have benefited from this, some have also suffered because they forgot to connect the Name Coder to their PCF. Instead of calling him Joey, probably should call him Mr. Anonymous.

The PCF also causes us to avoid certain topics. It causes us not to laugh at things that we shouldn't laugh at in case those around you may raise eyebrows at you.

Want to rid yourself of your Public Conversation Filter? Tired of subconsciously thinking before you speak in public places? Tired of being a product of the society-bred PCF? Tired of accidentally overhearing people's life stories?

I have found the solution: Move to a place where you think no one speaks your language.


After moving to Rimouski, I quickly became used to speaking with no reservation in coffee shops, restaurants, stores, on the street. We'd talk about anything and everything. Things that you normally wouldn't ramble on about in a place full of Anglophones. We don't change our volumes. We laugh hysterically. We make strange noises, imitations, gestures, and simply don't care because we are just the crazy English people in the corner. My PCF became non-existent. I have also become an expert at blocking out all conversation around me and focusing on my book, conversation, task, or whatever. Not because I can't understand a word - no, if I really concentrate and try hard, I can understand the main ideas. But that's the thing, I have to REALLY concentrate.

However, we were in Quebec City last week. People speak some English there. Most people know enough to really follow a conversation. There are also a lot more tourists - English tourists. Or just Anglos living in Quebec. We quickly came to the realization that for the past two months we have assumed that because most Rimouskians only speak French, they don't understand English. In reality, this is not true; but once you get a taste of the freedom of conversing without reservations it is hard to go back.

So, I may have to charge up the PCF a little more. Just a little though because it's not nearly as fun to run the Public Conversation Filter at full power.

I'm just going to go on convincing myself that I sound like I'm speaking in an alien tongue.