"It's always on 34th street!", I exclaimed after a rather rude encounter in front of a dressing room. "Let's leave before I get knocked in the head again", I reiterated to my bud referring to an earlier altercation that had happened 7 years prior (more on this later). I was run over by rudeness coming from a young woman that may have been my age or so. Basically, I was bumped not once but twice by the momentum of her bulging purse. As she passed me without a word, I said to her back as she approached her curtained partition, "You could say excuse me please." She turned with a grimace and attitude in tone asking, "Excuse me?!" At this I repeated myself.
This young woman went on to claim that she was about to say sorry, but due to the fact that I approached her with rudeness I wouldn't be getting any apology from her at all. I just chuckled as she sauntered behind the curtain. When she was saying all this to me (with a look of awe and disdain in her face) her friend made it her business to poke her head out of her dressing cubicle to gawk at me. My friend who I was awaiting, clothed and came out she confirmed with me that I definitely was not going to get any type of salutation whatsoever from the woman as she made it her duty to dismiss me after bumping me in the first place. Of course, when I responded to the unnecessary contact (I knew she felt her bag bump against me) she was shocked and had to have a snappy come-back. I just shake my head at situations as these. Glad this one didn't escalate to the elevation of the incident-turned-altercation of 7 years prior, which is why I was so reluctant to stay in the store for long.
Where I was yesterday was the exact proximity of the events I'll explain now...
To put it in basics, the altercation ended with me getting punched in the back of my skull. I was accosted then attacked by four youngster chicks (waaaay younger than me) old enough to know that physical violence is a last resort option. However, to them I suppose I left them so astounded that their first resort was to react in this manner. Not having the prowess to get me to shut up (I do have a slick lip when provoked), I was pushed, punched and pick-pocketed all in an instance of 10 minutes. All this began when one of the four YC's bumped me as I was entering a store. Of course, I let her know that she was to say excuse me when doing this. She snickered and sauntered over to her crew. I knew they were talking about my directive as they kept looking at me through the window of the store I was inside. Thirty seconds elapse and I am confronted by a ill-tempered teen that demands to know, "How old are you?!" I ask her why she's chosen to ask me this. Her response is a matter-of-fact, "I wanna know so I can tell if I can kick your ass or not." And with those magical words I flip into verbal assault mode. This resulted in having to wait for my dad to pick me up from a precinct after making my report to the police. Three of the YC's were written up and arrested and one was sent home with a warning (her mom let me know by scowling and eye-rolling that she didn't appreciate having to come gather her unruly little girl from a police station). That's how the story goes. I'll stay shaking my head until some people get some sense of sense.
29.9.10
Girth Hurts
"Have you encountered any ignorant people today?", my sister asks me over the phone. I say with a chuckle, "No, not yet." She was referring a conversation we had earlier in the morning. I was telling her of yet another MBTD who had an issue with how I looked. This time it was from behind, at least that's what he said, between listening to me letting him know I'm old enough and him asking for my ID just to make sure. His eyes just couldn't adjust to the age that he knew in his mind made sense, based on my response to...
MBTD2: "Excuse me miss (talking to my friend), but you can not take her up there."
My Friend: "Oh?", as she turns around confused.
Me: (Interjecting for alleviation's sake) "It's ok, I can... I'm old enough", as i reach for my purse.
MBTD2: "Well, I need to see ID to be sure.
Of course, I show it and am able to keep going towards the elevator to the rooftop bar/lounge. With my friend in tow I assure her that it's okay and I'm used to it. She couldn't get her head around the fact that I was approached (she was actually on initial encounter!) in that way. I just shrugged it off... until this morning.
My sister's perspective was that most likely it had to do with the fact that I do not possess a large or even medium amount of body fat or 'diameter'. Since my friend is about 2-3 inches taller than me, this was the only reasonable explanation my sis could give regarding the conclusion of my age by reading me from behind, as the MBTD2 had. I'm always getting mistaken for someone's little sister/cousin/daughter when walking beside someone almost equivalent to me in verticalness. I told my sis that I refuse to make myself out of shape or even frumpy just so I'm not accosted due to my aesthetics. She's told me on more than one occasion that, "A little make up wouldn't hurt." I say to her that it doesn't seem to help much either since with make up on, I'm looked upon as a teenager who is trying too hard to seem "grown". It helps a little, but not in the way that I want it to. Some would say, "It's better than being mistaken for a 7-9 year old." Yes, but either way I have to explain myself. At least with seeming younger than a teen, the startling factor is much more and thus attention paid. if I wore the guise of a teen, I'd be looked as a juvenile with an attitude problem. We all can recall instances of 'being put back in our place' after 'coming out of our faces' as adolescents. Who would want that all over again!? Surely not me.
MBTD2: "Excuse me miss (talking to my friend), but you can not take her up there."
My Friend: "Oh?", as she turns around confused.
Me: (Interjecting for alleviation's sake) "It's ok, I can... I'm old enough", as i reach for my purse.
MBTD2: "Well, I need to see ID to be sure.
Of course, I show it and am able to keep going towards the elevator to the rooftop bar/lounge. With my friend in tow I assure her that it's okay and I'm used to it. She couldn't get her head around the fact that I was approached (she was actually on initial encounter!) in that way. I just shrugged it off... until this morning.
My sister's perspective was that most likely it had to do with the fact that I do not possess a large or even medium amount of body fat or 'diameter'. Since my friend is about 2-3 inches taller than me, this was the only reasonable explanation my sis could give regarding the conclusion of my age by reading me from behind, as the MBTD2 had. I'm always getting mistaken for someone's little sister/cousin/daughter when walking beside someone almost equivalent to me in verticalness. I told my sis that I refuse to make myself out of shape or even frumpy just so I'm not accosted due to my aesthetics. She's told me on more than one occasion that, "A little make up wouldn't hurt." I say to her that it doesn't seem to help much either since with make up on, I'm looked upon as a teenager who is trying too hard to seem "grown". It helps a little, but not in the way that I want it to. Some would say, "It's better than being mistaken for a 7-9 year old." Yes, but either way I have to explain myself. At least with seeming younger than a teen, the startling factor is much more and thus attention paid. if I wore the guise of a teen, I'd be looked as a juvenile with an attitude problem. We all can recall instances of 'being put back in our place' after 'coming out of our faces' as adolescents. Who would want that all over again!? Surely not me.
28.9.10
Train of Thought[z]
For some reason today the memory of the man behind the desk for visitors at a hospital in Brooklyn keeps popping in my head.
I had been on my way upstairs with my dad to see my uncle in the intensive care unit when all of a sudden I found my dad having to defend his decision to "let me upstairs with him" to visit. I immediately interjected with, "I'm old enough so let's leave it at that." The MBTD then decided to ask, "Well, how old are you anyway?" I replied, "Old enough to have attended and graduated college..." (I interject here to say, I don't understand why people are always trying to play me for stupid just because of my stature!) So, this MBTD then exclaims with amazement and annoyed admiration, "You should be a part of my study! I'm studying the effects of aging on different ethnic groups..." He went on into some more lack-luster specifics about this, but at this point it was too late for him to beg for mercy due to his mistake in pre-judgement. I guess I responded in the way I did, which probably wasn't too polite because I'm so sick of others attempting to speak for me out of awkwardness due to an unnecessary inquisition, especially when it comes to either one of my parents.
I had been on my way upstairs with my dad to see my uncle in the intensive care unit when all of a sudden I found my dad having to defend his decision to "let me upstairs with him" to visit. I immediately interjected with, "I'm old enough so let's leave it at that." The MBTD then decided to ask, "Well, how old are you anyway?" I replied, "Old enough to have attended and graduated college..." (I interject here to say, I don't understand why people are always trying to play me for stupid just because of my stature!) So, this MBTD then exclaims with amazement and annoyed admiration, "You should be a part of my study! I'm studying the effects of aging on different ethnic groups..." He went on into some more lack-luster specifics about this, but at this point it was too late for him to beg for mercy due to his mistake in pre-judgement. I guess I responded in the way I did, which probably wasn't too polite because I'm so sick of others attempting to speak for me out of awkwardness due to an unnecessary inquisition, especially when it comes to either one of my parents.
This goes for my friends as well... I know they feel the burn of boring eyes in their backs or fronts when we're on the train together and I'm either joking or giving advice. The "audience" is so awestruck that my friends are being so attentive that they stare and stare and stare and all the while I find myself having to keep extra cool as to not lose composure. It's usually my friends that flip the script on these frenzied fellow fare-riders. One of my besties, who still attends college, shut this 20-something-year-old woman (ALWAYS!) down after she made a comment to my bestie about the conversation she was obviously eavesdropping on while riding the 6. This chick thought I was still in HS probably and projected her thesis after inquiring to them about my age after I already got off at my stop. My bestie let her know that in fact I was not of HS age and had just graduated college. To this response, Ms. 20-something said, "Oh my! I'm sure you admire her. She carries herself so well." My bestie just looked at her like she was nuts and said, "She's my good friend. I don't look at her in any particular way because she's small. I'm used to it." And that was the end of the discourse between them. It was my bestie's stop anyway. Of course, I had a chuckle when this encounter was relayed to me over the phone.
So, as you see most days for me are either one of two extremes and never in between...
27.9.10
Mephitic Manners
"The sun must shine out my ass or something..."
Why is it that the women are always the ones to look at me weirdly?
Yes, it's going to be another knock-down, drag 'em out SCENE:
I wait in line after ordering my breakfast bagel at the cafe I frequent.
A woman waits behind me for what she guesses is a while and becomes annoyed as to why her oder hasn't been taken. She inquires about the status of my order, not to me politely. No, instead her decision is to accost the cashier clerk with attitude about this.
At the exact moment that the answer is uttered to her she hears an echo from chest level.
I turn around and she looks down at me in shock, as if I wasn't supposed to answer... Now, I could assume that she thought I was someone's child and wanted to be a 'big girl' and order for myself, thus dismissing my ability to answer the question or I could decline all that and say she was just being ignorant in general. Either way, her reaction was hilarious. She became flabbergasted at my oral aim*; her eyes were wide with wonder and shame. To give her space (and alleviate further confusion for other customers) I moved to the opposite side of the store after this encounter. On my exit the expression on her face was, "What'd you do that for?"
*Now keep in mind folks, it's way easier for my vocals to carry in the morning minutes because I rarely speak to anyone on the way to work so the frog is still on the verge of jumping. My voice must have throttled this woman into a frenzy mentally.
Why is it that the women are always the ones to look at me weirdly?
Yes, it's going to be another knock-down, drag 'em out SCENE:
I wait in line after ordering my breakfast bagel at the cafe I frequent.
A woman waits behind me for what she guesses is a while and becomes annoyed as to why her oder hasn't been taken. She inquires about the status of my order, not to me politely. No, instead her decision is to accost the cashier clerk with attitude about this.
At the exact moment that the answer is uttered to her she hears an echo from chest level.
I turn around and she looks down at me in shock, as if I wasn't supposed to answer... Now, I could assume that she thought I was someone's child and wanted to be a 'big girl' and order for myself, thus dismissing my ability to answer the question or I could decline all that and say she was just being ignorant in general. Either way, her reaction was hilarious. She became flabbergasted at my oral aim*; her eyes were wide with wonder and shame. To give her space (and alleviate further confusion for other customers) I moved to the opposite side of the store after this encounter. On my exit the expression on her face was, "What'd you do that for?"
*Now keep in mind folks, it's way easier for my vocals to carry in the morning minutes because I rarely speak to anyone on the way to work so the frog is still on the verge of jumping. My voice must have throttled this woman into a frenzy mentally.
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