Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Be Nice....

I am not an advocate for Toxic Niceness, but I do think we could all be nicer. Those of us low on patience and quick on retort might need to repeat that mantra an extra time or two a day. Sometimes I get in a hurry so I try to give myself extra reminders. Someone wise told me once that people may forget what you said or what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. Amen to that.

However, sometimes I see things and think, thats just not nice. Here are a few examples from this week:

1. When you see me someone walking toward the elevator and then get within the reach of sticking their limb through the door to keep it open, and you let them....or worse, you actually stand inside and watch the doors close sharply in their face? Not nice. You, the one in the interior chamber, the button with two arrows pointing away from one another? That is the door open key. Dont make someone risk a limb. Push the button.


2. While on that subject, the woman at Nordstrom last week who didnt actually let me leave the BATHROOM STALL before trying to enter....mmmmm, YUCK. That is too close of a space for you and I to do the two man shuffle. Can you please wait patiently outside the stall until I exit? Oh, and the fact you were Chit Chat Patty on your cell phone, well, I am sure your friend question the acoustics of your story about tennis that morning when she hears you URINATING in the background. That is ill. Stop that immediately.


One time, one of my family members who shall remain anonymous, was on the phone with me as we shared a great conversation. Suddenly, I heard a faint flush noise. Ummm, I certainly hope you simply stepped on a spider and could not bear the thought of putting his body in the trash so you were forced to place him in the commode and flush it while we were on the phone. Any other reason is not nice. And if nature is calling that loudly, use your mute button.


3. Hey Mr. LeafBlower with your super turbo piece of machinery. The one that is so powerful it requires you to wear it with two straps over your shoulders and a tether belt around your midsection. Yes, you....a few days ago, when I was happily driving to work, belting out the words to an old MC Hammer song, with my windows down AND my sunroof open. Do you remember? I pulled up to the stoplight at 1oth and Techwood Drive. You were about to face off with a pile of leaves that were imported from about 100000 trees? And as you turned so deftly with your large contraption, you blew all the leaves into my car windows and the cars in front and behind me? And maybe 300 other cars? Well, that's not nice. I think I may have given you a tiny look. And I think the man in front of me, in his gleaming Jaguar might have actually shaken his fist at you. That is because you are not supposed to SPRAY leaves IN MY CAR.


4. Mean guy at the bar in our hotel in Vegas. I know its not customary for a patron to ask for hot water for tea...I realize most of your customers at 7 am are not asking for such, and more likely to be asking for an Advil, a loan, or a hooker. I appreciate the scowl you gave me as I bounced into your bar full of life and morning sunshine, however, I would love it if you just poured me the hot water and maybe did not respond as if I asked you to create the water from scratch, or carry it in a wooden pail on your back through a hundred miles of desert land, from a well, in Egypt. I like that you asked me to repeat myself. Numerous times. As if "hot water for tea" was a new cocktail involving Ambien and Tequila. You are doing the best you can with what you have, but you are not nice.


So now that is out in the open, I am going to take cookies to our mailman. Spreading NICE! Thats my goal today.


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