old people are mean

this morning an old man yelled at me in public.

i had to wait for three buses this morning, because they were all so packed. finally, i get on and there's a seat close to the driver. i had a big duffel bc im leaving from the office for the airport tonight, and i sat down so i didnt end up blocking the pathway with my giant bag. well, it's hillary's birthday (hello, new reader!) so we were chatting (quietly) during most of the ride. when i got on the bus, it wasnt too packed, but by the time we made it to the financial district, it was pretty busy. once or twice, i thought about standing to let someone else sit, but no one old really came on, and it was pretty much impossible to move with my duffel by my feet.

so anyway, i get off the phone, and by this time the bus has started to clear up a bit. there was a man standing near me, with a backback and some photo equipment, and he was prob in his early 40's. across from me was an elderly black gentleman and surrounding us on the seats were girls who were all about my age. all of a sudden, this old guy is like, "cant you read?!?" and proceeds to yell at me and say that i should have gotten up for the guy with the backpack, and i was rude and doing something illegal. i was like, excuse me, but i always get up for people, and i would have this morning, but it was really packed and i had a big bag. he was a real asshole and basically yelled back, telling me i was lying and just doing what i wanted. it was ridiculous. he basically singled me out among a group of young people to yell at me for something i wasnt really guilty of.

on the upside, everyone else thought he was a cranky old ass. the man with the cameras was like, im sorry, i didnt even know i was a senior! dont even worry about it.... and then this girl i always see got off and said the same thing. i mean, the dude was like 40 and the bus was packed when he got on - he was young, and there was no real way to move and he was pretty surprised when this old guy yelled at me. i was really annoyed but decided it was better to be very nice than snooty. when i got off the bus, the old man was like, have a nice day, and i made sure to say it back very sweetly. asshole.

one of the girls i ride with a lot says this sort of thing happens all the time. god, i love when old people lecture you in public places.

this is the second time it's happened in the recent past, too! i feel like im a really considerate person, and it's sort of disheartening when ppl are unnecessarily mean to you.

i was at o'hare in mid march, on my way out here, and a similar incident occured in the women's restroom. i was waiting for a stall, and one opened, and when i went in, my first thought was, ew, what's with all this paper? that girl who just walked out didnt flush. i didnt call her out on it though (yeah, it's uncool, but im not going to make a big stink), and just flushed it myself. but the toilet was crappy (the pun!), and the seat cover wouldnt flush all the way, so i realized it wasnt actually her fault. i proceed to go pee, flush, and have the same thing happen to me - the seat cover didnt go down. there wasnt much i could do, and i didnt want to clog the darn thing, so i just opened the stall and walked out.

this older black woman was at the front of the line, and started to walk in after me, when i hear "aw now come on!! young lady, you're disgusting, cant you flush?"

the bathroom was pretty full, and everyone heard, so i was really embarrased. i walked back, and was like, ma'am, i did flush! the toilet isnt working well and doesnt flush any more that that! i walked back into the stall, hit the lever, and reiterated that that was as far as it would go. she realized her mistakem and only then did she apologize - and was actually nice about it. still, i was super embarassed - i couldnt believe she'd actually called me out on that.

seriously, all you cranky old people out there who get off on yelling at minors: not everyone a third your age is a hooligan. some of us are nice people who do their best to be considerate of others, including strangers. age is no excuse for being mean.