Why Didn't I Go To School In Georgia?

One of the many questions I was asked in a recent conversation was why I did not attend college in Georgia. Strange right? This conversation has to be one of the stranger ones I have had in country. I was waiting for the bus last week with a woman from my community and her sister. The sister is from El Salvador but lives in Athens, Georgia. She is a legal US resident, (I find I don't meet too many people who are legal residents, so it is always a surprise when I do.) visiting El Salvador because her brother died a few weeks ago. She has lived in Athens for 28 years. She does not speak very good English, so our conversation was in Spanish. I will now give you our dialogue (in English) for your reading pleasure. We will call her Rosa.

(Conversation started as soon as the sisters came up to the bus stop.)
Rosa: Who are you here visiting?
Me: No one, I live here.
R: But why are are you HERE?
Me: I am waiting for the bus to go to the pueblo to buy groceries....
R: OK but you're not visiting any one?
Me: No, I work here, and am living in in this town (Her sister confirms this)
R: But WHY would you EVER want to live in El Salvador? You actually LIKE it here??
Me: I do like it here, and work brought me here. But yes I do like it.
R: I prefer the US. It's much better. Who do you work for?
Me: Peace Corps, it is a government organization that works in development
R: I have never heard of it, but you must make a lot of money. How much do you make?
Me: I actually don't make that much, just enough for housing and food
R: Ok but how much do you make? (she was very persistent on this question, and I was very persistent in not answering it.)
Me: Enough to live on. (This went on and on, she just did not want to drop it.)
R: Where do you live in the community.
Me: (I tell her)
R: Do you live with your husband?
Me: I don't have a husband, I live alone.
R: YOU LIVE ALONE? (She looks at her sister) SHE LIVES ALONE?! (She looks back at me) YOU LIVE ALONE?!
(Side note: people think it is really scary to live alone, and no one can ever believe that I do.)
R: Well I have a nephew you can marry, so don't worry about living alone and not being married yet.
Me: I wasn't, and no thank you.
R: Oh is it because you have a boy friend or because you don't like latin men?
Me: No, I have no problem with latin men, I just don't think I want to marry your nephew.
R: That's fine, we will find you someone.
Me: .......
R: So are you still in school?
Me: No, I graduated.
R: Which school in Georgia did you go to?
Me: (Confused) Um, I did not go to school in Georgia, I went to school in Massachusetts.
R: But why? All of the best schools in the country are in Georgia. Are you not smart enough to go to one of them?
Me: (Unsure of how to respond as I can see she will not be convinced that there are other good schools in the country.)
R: No matter. Have you ever lived in Georgia?
Me: No, but I have family in Atlanta.
R: Oh that's nice, Athens is better. Great colleges there too.
Me: Ok....
R: So you really live alone??

The conversation went on like this for 30 min, as the bus was late. I am pretty used to people being forward with their inquires here, but she was the most forward. And possibly the most amusing. Her shock at just about everything I said was so genuine as was her insistence that she was always right. She is here until mid January, I can only hope there will be more of this to come.