Sticking Out Like a Sore Thumb

Tonight was another good girls’ night out.  Nothing extravagant - just a bunch of us out for dinner and drinks.  But what struck me, as I sat and observed everyone conversing around the table, was that I couldn’t understand a bit of the conversation.  Sure, I could catch a word here and there, but I couldn’t follow the overall conversation.  The accents were just too thick and the slang too prevalent for me to be able to follow along.  It was slightly mortifying.  After eight months, my ears should be trained.  I should be able to understand Aussie.  And there I was, feeling totally lost.  To be fair, most of the time, I have no problem processing the Aussie accent.  If someone speaks directly to me, I rarely have trouble understanding.  I may get hung up on the occasional slang term, but am usually able to put it into context and keep the conversation moving.  But, apparently, when you mix alcohol with gossiping women, I’m lost.  The conversation swirled around me, leaving me unable to absorb the majority of it.  Ugh!  So there I sat, feeling like a sore thumb sticking out amongst the others.  I felt so un-hip, so very American.  I was convinced everyone could see the look of stupor on my face, or, at least, notice my dumb silence.  Thankfully, if anyone did, they were gracious enough not to call me out on it.  But this experience makes me wonder when I will begin to feel like I fit in.  When will all of this feel less foreign?  I guess, as with everything else in life, only time will tell.