The Soapbox Archives:
If you bump someone in traffic (i.e., it was your fault), at least get *out* of the car and see if anyone got hurt and if you did any damage, no matter how slight the bump was. At least *pretend* you were sorry, even if there was no damage. You've already messed up someone else's day; there's no point in rubbing it in and encouraging them to be upset.
Don't just open your door and ask someone if they're okay with your seatbelt still fastened.
Likewise, with bumping your car door into someone else's car. If that car's owner is standing right there, own up to the mistake and say you're sorry. That's avoids any excuse for a confrontation and any bad feelings.
And sometimes the dance organizer has to substitute another band. I understand that. And sometimes they neglect to tell me that they changed the band. I can understand that too.
What I don't understand is their failure to own up to it. If they change the band and don't tell me about it, I can't possibly make a correction to my website. And I am *extremely* offended when they blame me and this website for the error.
Want a surefire way to meet jerks? Have a yard sale.
I've see a lot of selfish and self-centered people in my life but usually I see them one at a time. When you have a yard sale, people come out from under the nearest rock to see what swindle they could get away with.
There was one guy who kept telling my friend that she was charging too much for one item, but she kept holding firm. He kept telling her the item wasn't worth that much and that the whole point of a yard sale was to not have to carry things back into the house. He made a mistake of pulling out a loupe to look at the inscription on the bottom of an old metal water pitcher and we knew he could read the writing that said the item was made around 1836. At that point we knew he was trying to get the item for a steal so he could make a huge profit selling it. He left unsatisfied and she was later able to sell all the items he wanted for more than she was willing to settle to the dealer.
And then there were the people who blocked my shared driveway because they were too busy to park at an open spot or even the ones who parked on the wrong side of the street. I wish there was a cop around to give a ticket to all the people who parked at the hydrant next door.
On the other hand, no one tried to steal anything this time so I should count my blessings.