 Donna
Gets it Right ----
9 - 9 -04
Excuse Me,
Ms. SUV-lady
I’ve noticed, and not just recently,
that hardly anyone says “excuse
me” anymore. Why is that?
On any crowded Saturday at the grocery
store, I’ll notice someone who
wants to get past someone else. I watch
them stand there, shift their hips,
roll their eyes, sigh loudly or do
the really
annoying fake cough. Finally the person
blocking the aisle will turn around
and say “Oh, sorry did you want
to get by?”
Even my husband doesn’t want
to say it. He looks at me and whispers “I’ll
let you say it.” Let me?
Do I have some magical way of making
someone
move? I mean, I don’t mind saying
it. I ALWAYS say it. For reasons unknown
to me, my Mom is the same way as Ted.
She’ll
stand behind someone forever, waiting
for them to move. I always have to
whisper
to
her, "Mom, say 'excuse me'."
I guess the worst of all is the person
who says it, rudely, and still bullies
their way past, practically knocking
you over before you can get out of
the way. It infuriates me. Why is
it so hard to say excuse me?
My 3 year old can make a 400 lb. man
move by just using those 2 little words.
Even though his “excuse me” starts
with “BEEP, BEEP”, it still
works.
I think it’s just plain common
courtesy. It seems though that people
these days have no idea what common
courtesy means. If we break it down,
common means "general, belonging
to or shared by all". (Translation:
we’re
all supposed to know about it). Courtesy
means "a polite or considerate
act".
Hmm, I think I’m on to something
here. It’s the courtesy part
that’s the kicker. Some people
just weren’t taught to be courteous.
Courtesy is more than just saying “please” and “thank
you”. It’s letting someone
go ahead of you in line when you have
a basket full and they only have 2
items. It’s leaving a room when
you need to talk on your cell phone.
Just like the definition says, it’s
an act.
The one place I wish I could say excuse
me is in traffic. When I’m all
the way in the right hand lane and
need to quickly get into the left hand
lane, being able to say excuse me would
be advantageous. As it is, I have to
use the blinker, and then wave my arm
furiously to let someone know that
I need to get over, NOW!
This very thing happened to me recently.
After Tropical Storm Gaston ravaged
the Richmond area and left so many
without power, I stopped to get my
ex Mother-in-law some hot water so
she could have her tea. I needed to
get 2 lanes over to get to a 7-11 store.
I blinkered, checked my rearview mirror
and saw an SUV coming, but had plenty
of room to go. As I started into her
lane, she sped up, trying to cut me
off. I waved my arm, but she kept coming.
So I put on the brakes and tried to
get back into my lane but was still
a little bit in her lane. She swung
around me, practically came to a stop
and started to chastise me (cuss me
out), through her closed window. My
kids were in the car so my censor was
on. I mouthed back to her “thank
you so much, blah blah blah!” which
she obviously didn’t appreciate.
So now she really gets angry and starts
pointing at me furiously………with
her cell phone.
So people please, do as Bill and Ted
say, “Be excellent to each other”……
Until Next Time…..
Donna
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