"Stupid is as stupid does, Ma'am."

I like meeting new people but I have to prepare myself.  Generally, I don’t care for strangers and will avoid large groups of people where I know no one.  I watch people do stupid things all the time and I just don’t understand how they make it through a whole day and live to tell about it.  On the other hand, it would be interesting to find out what goes on in that moment when someone looks at me and draws all sorts of conclusions.  It’s probably not all that different.

When I know I have a ton of errands to run, I’ll psych myself out:  “Dear God: grant me the serenity to accept that people are ignorant, the courage to uphold the law when I'm hostile, & the wisdom to realize that murder is illegal.”  I swear, people go about their normal everyday lives, getting on my nerves and never realizing just how close to death they actually were today.  On the other hand, I've been told to "kill ‘em with kindness"…. Surely there has to be something that will work faster than that?  I think grocery shopping is where much of my frustration comes from.  Why are the technologically challenged drawn, like a moth to a flame, toward the self-check-out lanes at the grocery store?

OK, I’m not nearly as murderous as all that, but people have become so selfish and inconsiderate.  For example, when you’re with someone and they’re on the phone and they say "uh huh", then you know the other person just said, "are they standing right next to you?"  It’s universal – like saying, “I never got your text!” when we all know they totally got that text.

The most difficult thing in the world to me is to know how to do something and to watch someone else doing it wrong....without commenting.  Oh, but you should hear what goes on in my head!  And when I’m mad at someone and I rehearse an entire conversation with them in my head, why can they not simply follow the script I’ve outlined? 

 

I am not a patient person.  Never have been.  For example, if you say to me, "No, and here's why..." you can be absolutely certain that I stopped listening after the "no" part.  And I hate it when someone offers to make themself perfectly clear, yet I can still see and hear them.  Huh.  I wish that actually worked.    

I do wish people would be kinder and more patient with one another – more gracious, tolerant and forgiving.  After all, saying “I forgive you” is the kindest way to tell someone: “I still think it’s your fault.”