The Politics of Personal Rudeness.
Ok, I'm already thinking I've scraped bottom with this idea- but that said, I will still muddle on for a bit, regardless.
So I've been thinking about those times it becomes imperative to be rude, be cruel to be kind, something like that. Now, I'm not so dumb as to think I actually wrote the book on personal politeness, or anything... but I can guarantee that when I intentionally do something rude, it's to make a damn point. Because let's face it. Sometimes being polite just doesn't get the point across.
My annoying neighbor, "Roland"?
Dude actually stopped me the other night on my way in to tell me (not ask me, mind you-- which would have been quite inappropriate enough) to come rub his back, maybe rub some oil into his back- because apparently it hurt from some minor surfing accident.
Now, I don't know about you- maybe you're a lot more physically outgoing than I.. but I tell ya... I felt pretty skeeved out by this whole idea. Especially by the cheezy votive candles I suppose he had lit to create a pleasing "backrub mood". I'm leaving out a lot of details in the interest of my own personal nausea, but suffice to say that I felt very uncomfortable with this whole idea. But when I POLITELY let him know I felt very uncomfortable with this whole idea... he then whipped off his shirt, as though the mere sight of his stupid naked chest would render me powerless over my own decisions.
Now that's when I crossed from uncomfortable to plain pissed off.
And THAT's when it came time to get rude.
I don't like being put in situations where this is necessary-- but rudeness begets rudeness, and his whole approach was well beyond rude, not to mention insultingly amateurish for the intended result.
Incidentally: at the time this occurred, I was also struggling with my purse, my laptop bag, keys, mail, and a 50-lb. bag of cat food. A naked, oily chest is a dime a dozen in this town... but having the decency to have maybe helped carry the bag? Would have been a much smarter approach... though admittedly, still wouldn't have worked.
posted by Anonyme. @ 11:35 AM
2 Comments:
I don't know if you would have wanted him to help you carry your bag. An oily chest is already digusting outside your apartment, imagine how disguting it would be inside carrying one of your bags.
More rudeness: Will it never end? Tonight we went to see Munich. The theatre was packed and there were only two seats together toward the back, where I prefer to sit. The guy on one side said, One of them is taken. We walked up and down the aisle a few times but there were no other seats except in the first row, which is practically under the screen. We went back up the aisle. The two seats were still empty. The guy said, You can't sit here. I said, YOU can't save seats for people who AREN'T here. He said, Fuck off, and STUCK HIS TONGUE OUT AT ME. I said, You're a creep. We went down to the first row and took the two seats under the screen. It was so uncomfortable we almost walked out, but it's hard to leave a Spielberg movie. On my other side was a guy with a foot long salami sandwich and two large cokes, one of which he spilled, several cookies wrapped in crackly paper and a crunchy apple. I think he was wearing a colostomy bag. It took him most of the nearly three-hour movie to eat all this stuff, which made him belch repeatedly. I kept my hands over my nose and mouth the whole time. Rude, I know, but still...
Aside from that, Mrs. Lincoln, the show was great. Everything Spielberg does is amazing. And I need a private screening room.
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