tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-244319182024-03-14T02:16:32.220-04:00Overheard In PortlandThese are real conversations that have been overheard in and around Portland, Maine. If you'd like to contribute to the blog, please email liz.woodbury (at) gmail.com with the details.Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.comBlogger753125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-57241571251421681952023-07-04T08:37:00.000-04:002023-07-04T08:37:06.346-04:00It's Lobster Roll Season<p><b>Tourist 1: </b>"Hey, look at that food truck!"</p><p><b>Tourist 2: </b>"Probably hot dogs."</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by BEW near the Bite Into Maine food truck at Fort Williams)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-26290579425623206232023-05-03T08:32:00.001-04:002023-05-03T08:32:27.730-04:00So Much Cheese<p><b>A boy of about 11, gazing in wonder upon the specialty cheese counter:</b> "It’s so much cheese…I think I would puke."</p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by JL at Whole Foods)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-85724193228416943912023-01-03T16:43:00.001-05:002023-01-03T16:43:20.145-05:00Happy New Era<p><b>Woman on phone via AirPods: </b>"I mean, it's the end of an era, and we're just, like, <i>in </i>it."</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard at Whole Foods)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-22632043540180696202022-08-31T16:47:00.001-04:002022-08-31T16:47:55.764-04:0050 Nifty United States<p><b>Person One</b>: "Y'know what? Virginia's kind of a shithole."</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Person Two:</b> "Dude. Virginia <i>sucks.</i>"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by AJL at the Yosaku sushi bar)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-87659581048209942742022-06-30T08:30:00.001-04:002022-06-30T08:30:35.429-04:00Free Advice<p><b>Walking woman, talking on cell phone: </b>"Yeah, I have these two deadlines coming up, and I just need to work harder."</p><p><b>Apparently unhoused gentleman, sitting on bench: </b>"You need to work <i>smarter</i>, not harder!"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by JAT in Evergreen Cemetery)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-4052689725563689332021-10-29T07:01:00.003-04:002021-10-29T09:30:16.712-04:00A Maine adventure<p><b>Woman with French accent: </b>"This store is full of things I've never seen in the U.S. before...or <i>anywhere</i>!"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by ZWH in Renys)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-66275263669068632212021-10-26T09:52:00.002-04:002021-10-26T09:52:23.226-04:00Boys and girls<p><b>Man</b>: "What's that boy group that doesn't like girls?"</p><p><b>Woman </b>(laughing): "Wait, do you mean <i>incels</i>?"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by MEW on Brighton Avenue)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-9260041792934971542021-10-11T07:00:00.003-04:002021-10-11T07:20:43.194-04:00Those were the days<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-exN-bi7bYok/YWQd_1tTb4I/AAAAAAAAKwE/anw225Gi14YRSYF0j_P4hzuFvHdl55C7QCNcBGAsYHQ/s4032/IMG_9484.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-exN-bi7bYok/YWQd_1tTb4I/AAAAAAAAKwE/anw225Gi14YRSYF0j_P4hzuFvHdl55C7QCNcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/IMG_9484.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><b>Voice of a duck boat tour guide, to passengers: </b>"And believe it or not, ten years ago this whole area was just rubble!"</p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by ZH on Thames Street) </p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-58597202903382020092021-09-27T07:00:00.001-04:002021-09-27T07:00:00.181-04:00Fingers crossed<p><b>Bartender, watching server load a huge number of drinks on a tray: </b>"You...taking all of those?"</p><p><b>Server: </b>"I'm taking everything. Hopefully, what happened last time won't happen again."</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by MW at Yosaku)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-26154319675825377792021-09-22T07:00:00.001-04:002021-09-22T07:00:00.214-04:00Who, me?<p><b>Man answering a phone call on speaker while his car is stopped at a light and his window is rolled down, cheerfully: </b>"Hi there!"</p><p><b>Voice on phone: </b>"Fucking asshole!"</p><p><b>Man: </b>"Who, me?"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by JTW on Cumberland Avenue)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-23416192538428708162021-09-21T07:00:00.001-04:002021-09-21T07:00:00.251-04:00Get the waffle fries<p>S<b>erver, to outdoor diner: </b>"Do you want regular fries with that? Or waffle fries?"</p><p><b>Diner: </b>"Regular, I guess."</p><p><b>Server: </b>"Hmm."</p><p><b>Diner: </b>"Oh, should I get waffle fries instead?"</p><p><b>Server: </b>"Well. We are in <i>Portland</i>."</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by AW at Mellen Street Market)</p><p><br /></p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-50646003035728026772021-09-20T13:42:00.000-04:002021-09-20T13:42:17.922-04:00Portlandia Redux<p><b>Young woman behind the hardware store counter, to man wearing Sleater-Kinney t-shirt:</b> "Isn't that the band Carrie Brownstein is in?"</p><p><b>Man: </b>"Yes, it is."</p><p><b>Young woman: </b>"They've been around since the nineties, right?"<br /></p><p><b>Other shopper: </b>"Yes, the nineties are big."</p><p><b>Young woman: </b>"I know. I see kids wearing Friends shirts. I guess the dream of the nineties is alive in Portland."</p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by JR at Maine Hardware)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-41099292388771047602021-07-29T08:45:00.000-04:002021-07-29T08:45:10.943-04:00The Frontal Lobe<p><b>One teenage girl to another:</b> "Yeah, you know the frontal lobe? It's the part of the brain that has to do with things like NOT KISSING RANDOM WAITRESSES."</p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by KB on Willard Beach)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-64795313394420467542020-08-27T06:30:00.001-04:002020-08-27T06:30:12.658-04:00Not a Kid's Drink<p><b>Kid 1</b>: "Have you ever had a Red Bull?"</p><p><b>Kid 2: </b>"What kind of kid do you think I am?!"</p><p><b>Kid 1:</b> "So you haven't had one?"</p><p><b>Kid 2:</b> "No! It's not a kid's drink!"</p><p><b>Kid 1:</b> "You mean it's like alcohol?"</p><p><b>Kid 2:</b> "No! It's an energy drink? But it's not a kid's drink!"</p><p><b>Kid 1:</b> "My friend who's in fifth — going into sixth — grade LEGIT had one."</p><p><b>Kid 2:</b> "YO! What the hell's wrong with him?!"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>(Overheard by ZWH and IWH at Pine Point Beach)</p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-35293431004212835292020-08-11T10:55:00.002-04:002020-08-11T10:55:55.013-04:00Senior Hours<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Older woman, upon seeing the Senior Hours sign outside Trader Joe's</b>: "<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;">Senior hours <i>8am to 9 am?!</i> I ain't getting up at 8am, I'm retired!"</span></span></p>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-11769201652606885672020-05-28T06:00:00.000-04:002020-05-28T06:00:08.066-04:00From Away<b>Neighbor: </b>"We're sitting on the back porch on a sixty degree day. We must be real Mainers!"<br />
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(Overheard by JR on Frances Street)<br />
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<b><br /></b>Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-49640608831396703242020-05-26T06:00:00.000-04:002020-05-25T16:04:15.531-04:00Kids Teach Kant<b>Kid 1</b>: "Do you want to play trucks?"<br />
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<b>Kid 2: </b>"Mom said we were supposed to help by cleaning the paintbrushes."<br />
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<b>Kid 1: </b>"That's what we're <i>supposed</i> to do. I am asking what you <i>want</i> to do."<br />
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(Overheard by JR on Frances Street)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-60434002648197462922020-03-23T09:43:00.001-04:002020-03-23T09:43:21.612-04:00THEY PROMISED<b>Girl, about six years old, to her dad: </b>"If there isn't going to be any more school, they should at least give our art projects back. (Yelling) THEY PROMISED US THEY'D GIVE THEM BACK!!"<br />
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(Overheard by ER from more than six feet away, on a trail in Portland)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-73009751773799320722020-03-10T06:00:00.000-04:002020-03-10T06:00:00.875-04:00Every. Single. Time.<b>Middle aged man to other middle aged man, breaking long silence:</b> "Do you ever look at your last load of laundry and think, 'Maybe I'll just throw this out'?"<br />
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(Overheard by SH at Tony's Donuts)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-88093879866437344422020-03-09T06:00:00.000-04:002020-03-09T06:00:01.895-04:00Someone's Idea of Fun<b>Second-grader:</b> "Corona is a fun word!"<br />
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(Overheard by AR in an elementary school classroom outside of Portland)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-56765060707985608202020-03-06T11:06:00.000-05:002020-03-06T11:06:00.442-05:00Pisces Season<b>Person to friend:</b> "He's a Pisces? Everyone's a Pisces! That used to be my thing!"<br />
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(Overheard by AJL in a Congress Street bar)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-13204228953122681582019-09-30T09:27:00.002-04:002019-09-30T09:36:35.297-04:00It's Decorative Gourd Season<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BiJweAxM6eo/XZIEpAyssQI/AAAAAAAAJzY/sZYOA7bYe68sqAJjRdylOSqrjJ2L8_PowCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Fall-Foods-Gourds-640x360.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BiJweAxM6eo/XZIEpAyssQI/AAAAAAAAJzY/sZYOA7bYe68sqAJjRdylOSqrjJ2L8_PowCNcBGAsYHQ/s400/Fall-Foods-Gourds-640x360.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>Mom to teenage daughter: </b>"Oh, wait, did you want to get a funky gourd?"<br />
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<b>Daughter</b>: "Nope."<br />
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(Overheard at the farmer's market in Deering Oaks)<br />
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<br />Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-54671727196476722782019-09-23T10:58:00.002-04:002019-09-23T10:58:53.801-04:00At the Fair<b>Middle-aged woman, watching an 8 or 9 year old boy swinging a mallet at the strength tester: "</b>I could totally kick that guy's ass."<br />
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(Overheard at the Common Ground Fair)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-52555784024995210262019-09-11T06:00:00.000-04:002019-09-11T06:00:07.271-04:00What Doesn't Kill You Only Makes Vacation Better<b>Woman to man: </b>"That is what people <i>do</i> when they're on vacation. They <i>see</i> stuff and <i>do</i> things. So go back to the hotel, take some aspirin, put some ice on it, lie down for a bit. Then you can go out later."<br />
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(Overheard by JR in the Old Port)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24431918.post-25624820510394889102019-09-04T11:32:00.000-04:002019-09-04T11:32:09.308-04:00It's the Law<b>Male tourist:</b> "A whole lotta Subarus in Portland..."<br />
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<b>Female tourist</b>: "Really high per-capita rate."<br />
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<b>Male tourist</b>: "Yeah, I think the rule is two Subarus per person here."<br />
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(Overheard by EWW in the Old Port)Liz Woodburyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04750827253619397973noreply@blogger.com0