I will stare at you.

Yup, it's true. I have hearing loss, but I do not use sign language and I do not have cochlear implants. I sound funny, and I stare at you when you talk to me! No really, I do! If you are a professor, or a pastor, or a lecturer, I guarantee you my eyes will not come off of your face while you are speaking. Freaky, I know! And because I usually sit in the front, that's even more unnerving! It's not because I think you're funny-looking or anything...although I might but that's not the primary reason why I stare at you!. It's because I lipread! Yes, I lipread to communicate. You can say that my eyes work double time because they do my seeing but also my hearing for me too. So, with this in mind, when you talk to me or to a deaf person who lipreads, please keep your hands or your book, or your sandwich (and swallow first if you would!) away from your mouth so I/we can have an intelligent conversation with you -- and not observe the whole scientific process of masticating food. Believe me, with lips partially or fully blocked, the phrase "a breakdown in communication" offers a whole new meaning!