While it is more than safe to wager that human beings are becoming stupider on an alarming basis, I would argue it’s equally safe to wager that we are becoming nastier and nastier, in a general sense, at an equally alarming rate. Just about each and every time I leave my house and venture out into a public setting, I witness or encounter someone being an absolute dick, and I know I am not alone in this observation.
A few days ago, my mom and I went grocery shopping together. This element of the experience was a little nostalgic, because I always used to accompany my mom when she went for groceries when I was a kid. The pleasure of our outing was quickly halted, however, when it came time to check out.
The cashier we dealt with was rather miserable, but I wouldn’t say they were rude by any means. My mom and I both had a lot of groceries in our separate carts, and by the time we had both unloaded everything onto the belt, there wasn’t much room for anything else, let alone another person’s groceries. Our cashier was attempting to signal the person in line behind me to communicate to them to go to a different and less busy till, but this person behind me was listening to music, so the cashier’s efforts went unnoticed. I almost had to yell to get this person’s attention behind me, and when I did, I explained that the cashier was trying to tell them something. In a very visible outbreak of irritation, this person removed their headphones to hear what the cashier was saying, only to respond with “and what would you like me to do about it?” in an incredible bitchy and snarky tone.
It took all of my restraint not to ask her who shit in her Cheerios that morning.
First of all, take off your headphones. You’re grocery shopping, not going for a run.
Second, don’t be a fucking bitch for absolutely no reason, let alone when someone is trying to help you out and save time.
Being kind costs nothing, people.
Photo by Noah Buscher on Unsplash
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