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The Bad Person Who Just Did That Horrible Thing is Having a Shittier Day Than You
Yesterday I watched a woman have a spectacular meltdown in the grocery store parking lot, during the lunch rush. The place was awash in the milk of human kindness: crazed drivers all trying to cram into the same spaces, horns honking, middle fingers flashing and tires squealing. In the midst of it, this woman sat with her signal on, waiting for a handicapped space. The car occupying it had its engine running and reverse lights on, unmoving. Presumably the person had gotten in, started the car, thrown it into reverse and then gotten distracted. Perhaps they were texting. The woman waited, backing up traffic. Horns blared.
Not that I blame everyone for being edgy. My own annual holiday meltdown has not yet occurred, although I do feel it tugging at me when I enter public spaces like grocery stores and bookshops. These normally friendly stores have taken on a buzzed, hyperventilating atmosphere. It’s like some malevolent giant came along and force-fed them a speedball of meth and candy canes. Nobody in there looks happy about it: not the customers or the cashiers, certainly not the harried staff trying to re-stock the shelves.
The clueless texter still hadn’t budged. Meanwhile, another woman came along from the other direction, decided she’d take that spot, and threw on her signal…
