An open letter to my fellow citizens:
To the mom in the car loop who INSISTS that she (and she alone) can park her car in the DRIVING LANE of the loop, thus making EVERYONE wait as she blocks traffic. Because, apparently, she and her child are so special that the rest of us should ALL WAIT. Honestly, woman. If you need to supervise your kid that closely; park, get your butt out of the car, and walk them to the line. ARGH!
To the man who gave me the evil eye at the grocery store. Yes, Toddlers have meltdowns. In the most inconvenient places. Like the dairy section. I wish I had a nanny, too. Instead of huffing USELESSLY maybe you could help me out by grabbing that gallon of milk I am struggling to get while I keep my kid from launching herself out of the cart? Be a pal?
To that teen who is SMOKING while she DRIVES and TEXTS! Girlfriend, I am a big fan of multitasking, but for crying out loud–pick ONE (I advise against the smoking, it makes you look icky–just as a helpful tip). You are freaking us all out as you weave.
Oh, and speaking of smoking–to that gross man who flicked his cigarette butt out the window–why? You think the rest of us want to pick it up? ‘Cause you are so much more special then us? Ever heard of a brush fire? As if you sharing your carcinogenic smoke with my children were not bad enough…
To the lady at the post office–yeah, thanks for holding the door for me. Nope, you opted to sprint ahead of me, rushing to get your little package sent off. Did it make you feel better to beat me in the door? I hope the victory was sour all day long–it’s not hard to win when your opponent is herding small children and balancing a few large packages. Good for you, sweetie.
To the women who INSIST on talking on their cell phones in every public bathroom I’m in (which is alot of them, with 3 little girls). HONESTLY–ya can’t wait a few minutes? Do you REALLY think people want to talk to you that badly? Or hear all those flushing and other sounds? Jeepers, get some perspective. Even if the information was that important–what are you going to do about it for the next 2-3 minutes? Let the call go to voicemail, for heaven’s sake. And wash your hands. Ick.
And finally, to the people who bring their small children to adult movies. Your kids DO NOT need to see the movie. It is scaring them. You are mean and TOTALLY selfish to subject your little kids to such frightening things. GET A SITTER! or WAIT for it to come out on DVD.
Sincerely,
Someone who has to live on this small planet with you
Whew. Well. I feel better.
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{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Whew!!! I feel better too. Thanks for this. :)
Glad to help! Blogging is cheap therapy. Oh, and only a few more days left to deal with that darn drop-off mom….grr…
:)
What doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger (repeat)
Great post! What happened to empathy? I quess it’s “old school”.
Hey lucky knitter!
I hope that people just forget (or don’t realize) how inconsiderate they are being. I *hope* that people aren’t that self-centered, that they are just busy and not paying attention.
I would be very sad if it turns out that they really are that disinterested in being kind to their fellow humans….
Thanks for popping by!
Parents ARE selfish and self-centered these days, and it’s rubbing off on the kids.
Absent Dads?
Lazy Moms?
Lack of caring about God and Jesus?
I think it’s what you get when you teach/preach Darwinian Evolution, etc.
And worst of all …
people who put their poopy diapers in parking lots. DisGUSTing. Do they think that the poop fairy will pick it up? Why can’t they just schlep the damn things to the trash can like the rest of us?
Nice post! I felt like I got to vent a little bit through you there. Thanks!!
(Thanks for your nice comment too on my MHM guest post.)
From a fellow CO venting mama-
:)
I enjoyed reading yer post! Hmmm…I am thinking of which examples of discourtesy annoy me most. As a non-driver, I travel on buses a LOT, and bus etiquette is something one attempts not to fall foul of. I do tend to leave my handbag on the empty seat next to me for as long as possible…but I do remove it if anyone really does loook like having to stand. I always leap up and give my seat to an elderly person, or mum and child. However…there have been times when people would not move from the wheelchair/buggy zone when I attepted to sit there with my developmentally disabled son. Interestingly, it has always been older people who have refused to move. Luckily, wheelchairs have priority, but the bus driver has had to enforce this, on a couple of occasions.
I think Jason had an interesting thought — is it because we have been subtly influenced to think of ourselves first? That the idea of selfish genes has morphed and blended into a more selfish society?
Jason–maybe evolution will knock the selfish people out of the gene pool, but I think it will only get worse.
Dr. bob raises an interesting point. I would think someone somewhere is doing research on this. Does the parent who cuts in line get more resources, thus reinforcing the behavior as well as providing (on some level) more for their family? Giving them an edge somehow?
Dr. bob–You are so right on the disgusting diaper! Argh! I hope those people step in one that somebody else has left. Ick.
Hey cole mine! Thanks for dropping by! :)
Rowan–so sorry to hear of your bus woes. :(
There is a considerable amount of courtesy required in driving, but I think public transportation requires more.
I wonder why the older population doesn’t respond as readily? People tend to zone out on buses/trains here…they seem to wrap themselves up in a little chrysalis of sorts and can ignore an astonishing amount of what goes on around them.