“It’s A Handrail, Not Your Personal Leaning Post”
by Judd WileyJune 6th, 2008, 10:46 am
Today I was bitched out by some angry female government worker on the DC Metro.
I usually don’t ride the Metro, but today I had to. As usual, I was standing. I almost never sit down on the Metro, and when I do, I almost always wind up having to give up my seat to some elderly person anyway.
My car was pretty full as it was morning rush hour, and I was positioned in such a way that my back was flush against one of the metal poles. The doors opened at Clarendon station, and about 15 people jammed onto my car. A young, short, overweight woman with a piggly-wiggly face squeezed in between me and the wall. I felt her hand grab onto the post behind my back, and I shifted my weight to accommodate her.
Then: “It’s a handrail, not your personal leaning post.”
I looked down, and saw the woman was shaking her head angrily while reading her newspaper. She wasn’t looking at me, so I didn’t know if she was addressing me.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
No answer. Just a loud sigh, and more angry shaking of the head. I noticed that she was wearing some kind of government worker badge, the kind you see all over the DC Metro Area. I looked around me. The man to my immediate right caught my eye and laughed.
Then from Piggly Wiggly: “(exasperated sigh) … Seriously!”
Still looking at her newspaper. No eye contact.
It was the no eye contact that did it. I decided, right then and there, to make this woman’s morning commute a living hell. I positioned my body so that my right side was pressed flush against the metal pole, and then extended my arm straight down and grabbed the pole alongside my leg. In other words, I hogged the entire pole. Since Piggly Wiggly was 5 inches shorter than me, she had to stand on her tip-toes to grab onto the pole above my shoulder.
Then I purposely invaded her space by leaning forward into her morning newspaper to the point where my chest was about 1 inch from her face. Every time the Metro jolted back and forth (as it frequently does), I made sure that I jostled her newspaper so that she couldn’t read it. I also stared directly into her face and put a big, happy, crap-eating grin on my face, in case she ever decided to look me directly in the eye.
More exasperated sighs, shaking of the head, and indecipherable mutterings.
We rode this way for 8 more stops – Piggly Wiggly standing on her tiptoes, reaching above me to grasp the pole, my chest pressed up against her face, her space completely invaded.
This is what happens when you’re not polite, and refuse to look me in the eye.
I probably ruined her day – maybe ever her entire week. She’s probably sitting in her cubicle, say, at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, or maybe the Internal Revenue Service … right now … cursing my existence, and wishing hell and damnation upon all the mean men who ride the Metro.
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Posted in Government Workers, Subways, Uncategorized Rage |
I find your deviant behavior demeaning, childish, boorish, and incredibly rude.
Was her behavior ridiculous? Yes, but you sound like an intemperate child the way you were bound and determined to ‘make her pay’ for ‘not looking (you) in the eye”. Grow up.
Wow, you really sound like a bit of a sociopath, Judd. Or maybe you were sick and missed class during the days in kindergarten when they were teaching how to share.
I don’t have much choice but to ride a subway to work every day and I really find it frustrating when a person on a crowded train is leaning on the vertical pole, hogging up the whole thing.
The funny thing is that I sometimes find myself doing the exact same thing, leaning on the pole. When someone sort of jostles me to get to their hand in or on the rare occasion actually asks me to move over, I say sorry and step aside. I can’t imagine why you couldn’t see fit to do the same.
Wow, you really sound like a bit of a sociopath, Judd. Or maybe you were sick and missed class during the days in kindergarten when they were teaching how to share.
I don’t have much choice but to ride a subway to work every day and I really find it frustrating when a person on a crowded train is leaning on the vertical pole, hogging up the whole thing. Granted, I don’t make a big deal of it. I just squeeze my hand in and grab some pole. The person always realizes what they were doing and moves aside.
The funny thing is that I sometimes find myself doing the exact same thing, leaning on the pole. When someone sort of jostles me to get to their hand in or on the rare occasion actually asks me to move over, I say sorry and step aside. I can’t imagine why you couldn’t see fit to do the same.
sorry for the double post. bad net connection.
There was no way I could have moved. There were too many people on the Metro. Plus I did try my best to accommodate her. From my post:
I felt her hand grab onto the post behind my back, and I shifted my weight to accommodate her.
Yeah, you shifted your weight to accommodate her and then you acted like an intemperate child. How about some civility in our society. You talk about Commuter Outrage? How about act like an adult with some manners?
Child.
Screw this.
I’m with Judd on this one.
Snarky-assed bitch could have politely said excuse me, instead of making a snide comment (while being too cowardly to actually look at him, while she was doing it)
We don’t agree on much, Judd, but on this one, you’re spot on.
Rude, bitchy people suck.
Paul - You said, “Rude, bitchy people suck.”
Well, that about sums up this blog and its authors.
Paul C,
There’s hope for you, my friend. Soon you’ll be protesting carpool lanes and congestion pricing …
Mike,
So original! I like that.
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Mike | June 7th, 2008, 2:01 pm
Paul - You said, “Rude, bitchy people suck.”
Well, that about sums up this blog and its authors.
*********************
No doubt that Judd & Lewis are the sorta jackholes that buzz cyclists, and pedestrians, just because they mistaken horsepower with glandular vitality…
But two wrongs don’t make a right… and lil’ miss habdrail police sounds like a prime example of BLEEP.
What is “buzzing cyclists”? I’ve never heard of that. You mean driving really close in order to scare them? That’s awful, and Derk and I never do that. In fact, Derk rides his bike quite a bit on the main road.
What I find mildly annoying, however, is when cyclists ride in the center of the car lane as if they’re a regular car, and then make a left hand turn in the middle of busy traffic. It seems too dangerous.
Judd,
i love this post and it is a prime example of how so many people behave in a crowded train or bus, which is rudely. whatever happened to saying, “excuse me.” is it too much effort to say those simple words? saying “excuse me” is kind of like a smile. it takes less muscles and effort to smile than it is to frown. if you say, “excuse me”, you’ll find yourself getting into less confrontation with the opposing person.
i love the piggly wiggly name. i use that at times but i like roll-y poll-y when describing a short roundish woman who looks like she can roll down the street as opposed to using her stumps for legs to weeble wobble to her destination.
and i have to agree, if you’re going to be making comments, you should have the balls to say it to the person’s face and defend your stance! she was a cowardly manitee. otherwise, keep you mouth shut and deal with it.
i’m a little surprised she didn’t use her badge to muscle you off the pole.
and what the hell was she doing reading the paper on a crowded train?!