ENCOUNTERS OF THE NORMAL KIND

A friend who reads the blog said that I have "Strange Encounters of the Third Kind" but she DOES believe all of the "strange encounters" which lead to blog articles are accurate, because she's been with me on several occasions and has witnessed what she considers "strange" encounters. She said she never has anything interesting happen to her. In our discussion I told her that I was really interested in people and I am very observant and I like interaction. She said that she would never interject herself in a situation as I do and that she guessed she wasn't THAT interested or observant.

I told her I thought my encounters were of "the normal kind"!

Today, in Kroger, in Chillicothe, we were close to the meat department and there was a display of pasta sauce nearby. Two women and a teenager passed by and the teenager knocked a jar from the display and it shattered, splattering sauce on the floor. I saw one of the women shrug and I asked, "Are you going to report that?" That woman asked, "What'd you say?" I answered, "I merely asked if you were going to report this." The other woman came closer and said, "This ain't none of your business." I said, "Yes, it IS as it's a safety hazard." The other woman said, "We was gonna say somethin' when we got up front." I said, "That's OK, I'll just tell them here at the meat department." The woman came toward me and said, "I told ya that it wadn't any of your f---in' business." I went to the meat department and rang the bell. One of the women came closer and said, "F--- you!" I clapped my hands over my ears and exclaimed, "Oh, did you learn that from your mother?" The woman said "I didn't learn nuthin' like that from my mother!" I said, "ANYTHING, you obviously didn't learn ANYTHING from your mother!"

I guess correcting her grammar was not the wisest course of action! The woman THEN suggested that I perform a sexual act which was clearly outside of my gender role and hers! I answered, "I couldn't possibly do that as I am not anatomically equipped!"

A meat department employee came to the counter and I said, "There's a broken jar of pasta sauce on the floor; I thought that you would like to know!" One of the women said to the meat department employee, "We was gone up front to tell 'em and she stuck her nose in and caused all this ruckus."

I said, "There's no ruckus, just a concerned citizen doing her duty!" I turned and strode away, with a wave and said, "Bye, now!"

Gerald just shook his head in disbelief. In the car, I said, "I probably shouldn't have said anything." He answered, "DUH, you think?"

After Kroger, we went to Olive Garden for dinner and it was supposed to be a 25-minute wait. There were at least 20 people in the queue waiting to be seated. I always have a need to be entertained and if that's not possible, then I will entertain! There were four young women sitting together and I asked, "Excuse me, ladies, how long did they tell you it would be?" They said 25 minutes. I said, "In that case, I need your help; will you be a jury of my peers?" Gerald piped up and said, "Take my side!" I presented the case of the "Shattered Pasta Sauce" and asked if they thought I acted appropriately. Gerald told them once again, "Take my side!" The first one said that she was pretty mouthy so she would probably have said something. The second said it would have depended on her mood that day. The third said she was pretty mouthy so she would have spoken up also. The fourth said she was pretty quiet so she wouldn't have said anything. The first one said, "That's why she needs to be with us all the time!" The ladies received their page but thanked me for "entertaining" them while we waited!

When I got home and told the story about the shattered glass, Les asked, "How many times do I have to mention the word GUN to you?"

I swore right then and there that I had indeed learned my lesson and would behave myself in the future!