I was in the library on Thursday, before coming home for Thanksgiving break on Friday. It’s quite possible that I may have been working on an assignment for philosophy, or for any number of other classes. However that may be, I distinctly remember that I was attempting to study.

On my left was a little Kenyan dude named Vincent, who was sitting there with his perky little dreadlocks sticking out all over the place as he worked feverishly on his computer, a look of focused concentration on his face. With him was a decidedly not-Kenyan friend, a little blonde-haired blue-eyed kid named Ian who was supposed to be assiduously taking notes and learning a great deal about the mysterious world of higher mathematics from the enlightened Vincent.

We were all studying, in some sense or another (ok, ok, Ian may have been merely pretending). But occasionally, one or the other of us would lean over into the other’s cubicle and make a joke, a smart comment, or a helpful suggestion. We all had class at 3:35, however, and thus as that fateful hour drew nearer, we all began shuffling stuff into our bookbags to leave.

Ian had been making jabs at Vincent for no particular reason during this packing process, and as we were pushing back our chairs to leave, he attempted to get me to take his side by nodding in my direction and then saying to Vincent, “Dude, she hates your guts!”

I decided that perhaps Ian was in need of some instruction regarding appropriate social interaction, and thus, in order to take advantage of this teachable moment, leaned over to explain to him that there is a difference between an attack on a behavior and an attack on a person.

Vincent, however, was not in the mood for teachable moments. Slamming one fist on the desk in front of him, he bounced slightly out of his chair, black dreadlocks bobbing as he said with great conviction, “That’s right! You preach it, sistah, and I will collect the offerings after!”

Needless to say…that was the end of any serious point in the conversation. But I left feeling richer…because I am SO going to use that line somewhere in the next month. Maybe on someone I barely know to give them the impression I’m Pentecostal…