I really really dislike going in public...around other humans!

First...fender benders lets talk about them. In the event of minor fender benders in which neither party is injured and both vehicles are drivable to a degree that will not significantly damage the car any further on a road where parking lots or shoulders are nearby...PLEASE FOR THE SAKE OF THE REST OF US move your car out of the way then settle your exchange of info. There is absolutely no need to sit there blocking the road and/or begging for the attention of any bored police nearby, especially no need to get those guys involved unless of course someone is injured then by all means. The police are not going to conduct a CSI reenactment for your cracked bumper, they may issue a ticket and that is about it. More importantly you are clogging up traffic and for that you suck!!

Secondly...Standing in line is not hard, we have been conditioned to do it since grade school. Standing in single file lines is what we as civilized humans do in all our sheepish glory. I go to the pharmacy today to pick up my scripts. There are two distinct lines separated by one of those rope things like at banks WITH A SIGN indicating which side is for pick up and which side is for drop off. There is an elderly woman and one other person behind her on the drop off side and there is a gentleman off to the left of the divider about 10 feet away leaning on a pillar. I walk up to the side of the sign for pick up and I am the only person in that line. The gentleman at the counter surveys the lines then looks directly at me and says next so I walk up to the counter.

The gentleman who was leaning on the pillar to the side walks up and in a rather dramatic fashion says:

"sir excuse me sir you just cut this lady in line she was here first"

Me: "Uhh there are two lines, one for pick up and one for drop off and this guy looked right at me when he said next"

angry guy then directs his attention at the pharmacist at the window

Angry guy: "Did you see that?" He cut all these people in line "

Window guy: "Sir there are two lines one for drop off and one for pick up I am handling pick ups"

Angry guy: "Pfft well I was in the pick up line"

Me: "No you were not, you were standing over here in the shadows nobody even knew you were in line"

Window guy: "You were standing over there sir"

Angry guy keeps trying to talk to me while I conduct my business with the cashier so I cross my right arm across my body and display my hand just above the shoulder palm facing him...

Angry guy: " Pfft I'm not worried about you"

I turn look him in the eyes and say "I'm not worried about you either"

Window guy like a professional ends it by apologizing to angry guy and saying "I'm sorry sir I will be right with you after I finish with this customer"

Window guy and I share eye contact and a brief smirk.

I dislike going in public and dealing with people.

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

It is important, when out and about, to remember the difference between people, and gormless knuckle draggers. Gormless knuckle draggers will do the wrong thing, at the wrong time, all the time, without fail. People, however, tend to simply get on with things, and although they all have the capacity to fail, they intend success.

If you are bumping into more knuckle draggers than people, then all I can give is my commiserations, and a reminder that not everyone has callouses where their fingers meet their hands.

You're correct and I agree with you. However, you are espousing a western, particularly British/American, point of view of what lines ought to be like. We know the proper way to "queue." But if you go nearly anywhere else in the world you will discover that's not how the average culture treats "lines." It's a free for all. Ever driven on an Egyptian freeway? How about Greece or Turkey? Let's just say you better let a local drive you, and further, the Germans are polite, slow, and respectful in comparison.

But I do agree with you completely,. We would get along great in a line.

Now, about those crazy California drivers....

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix
I avoid it at ALL cost. Sorry you had to venture out

I feel your pain.

Humans are the absolute worst.

originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

It is important, when out and about, to remember the difference between people, and gormless knuckle draggers. Gormless knuckle draggers will do the wrong thing, at the wrong time, all the time, without fail. People, however, tend to simply get on with things, and although they all have the capacity to fail, they intend success.

If you are bumping into more knuckle draggers than people, then all I can give is my commiserations, and a reminder that not everyone has callouses where their fingers meet their hands.

I agree.

Though, as the saying goes "when it rains, it pours."

Sometimes the # just piles up all at once, and that can make a lot of people feel fed up! Believe me, i know!

As someone who tries to avoid most public situations at all costs, I feel you!
(And if I may - a brilliant and relevant quote from Roy of The IT Crowd)

I seem to notice things that others don't. I rarely venture out. I bought an exotic sportscar and never thought that I would have to small talk with so many people so I only go to gas stations late at night. I am a recluse. I live on the dang beach, 20 steps from it and will drive 15 minutes to a less crowded or secluded beach up the road. I love people but sometimes aaaargh !

Here is what helps me. A few weeks in costa rica or Nicaragua in a nice secluded place or somewhere beautiful like Moab Utah. Last hiking trip we went to Sedona, beautiful place but crowded trails and I told my friend not to even make eye contact with people because almost every person had a "im cooler than life" comment. Also on that trip we were in canyonlands , we followed the rock piles to the top of a hill and got screamed at by a crazy woman who had rented the rock, I got her good though don't worry. I guess even the most remote secluded places have those sorry humans as well.

a reply to: TrueBrit

*Ahem*

I am a knuckle-dragging troglodyte who is very respectful and considerate.

I despise crowded areas because I invariably come into contact with people who seem to think that they can just bump into me.I have absolutely no idea why.I can only assume they think they have right of way.

I just stop and force them to walk around me.I look at their heads because they never look me in the eye.

I have the advantage.Six feet tall,sixteen stone and wider than a shed door.😃

I've always felt that it's just arrogance. There are people out there that value their time more than anyone else's. They believe they are entitled and that everyone should treat them like royalty, especially if they are a 'paying customer'.

Don't let the douchebags get you down. There are good people out there, and then there are some that don't have faintest idea what 'mindful' means. I think for these people life is a struggle, at every turn there is confrontation and perhaps a sub-conscience yearning for peace which they will almost never attain.

I despise the human race, or at least the vast majority. I don't like people, it's as simple as that.

But I think ATS does a great job of showing us that there still are good people out there that will treat you with the respect and kindness, and for that I will be forever grateful.

a reply to: Ericthedoubter

Now Ericthedoubter, it is impossible for you to be both a troglodyte, and be six feet tall. Cave dwelling is a pastime ill suited to one of your mighty stature, since low hanging stalactites can cause significant injury to the skull. It's a pursuit best taken up by those under five foot five inches, for this exact reason.

And as long as you are respectful and considerate, it is impossible for you to be a genuine knuckle dragger. They are simply mutually exclusive situations in which to find oneself!

a reply to: TrueBrit

Curiously,six feet is small here in N.Germany.Both my daughters are as tall as me(15+13) and some kids at their school are6'6".Which is weird.

I want to be a knuckle-dragger,though.A nice one.
A blip in the statistic.

Going back to the OP,the older people here tend to push in,the younger ones are usually patient.Why pensioners seem to have so little time is an unsolvable mystery.

a reply to: Ericthedoubter

It is possible, that the older generation seem in such a rush, because they know that they only have a limited reserve of physical energy with which to get through the day, and bustle through it all because they know they cannot spend too much time on their feet in one go, as they may have before they began to experience dilapidation of their mortal frame.

Pain can be a distraction and a motivator all at once.

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

Some of the worst times I've ever had were out in public dealing with other people.

There's no better feeling then getting home at the end of a day of work and thinking about how I don't have to deal with anyone anymore.

a reply to: RainbowPhoenix

People.. what a bunch of bastards.
(it crowd reference)

one angry dude and a line gave you a bad taste that makes you not want to go out? seriously? first world problem? you should really open your eyes to what some people have to deal with around the world.. people are just so soft these days.

My favorite Nikola Tesla quote: "Anti-social behavior is a trait of intelligence in a world full of conformists". It seems that the more people I run across, the nastier they behave. And that's after you've helped them with something. I enjoy seclusion and quiet, especially out in nature. It's where you find Zen.

I've been to other parts of world and yep people are *icks there too. I tend to focus on MY first world problems because well that's where I live and my problems are just that mine. I help out a friend here and there though because they have made it into my inner circle enough for me to care about them. ATS does have quite a few of the good bunch here which I attribute to a higher intellect and general sense of awareness with this crowd, still some nasty ones out there though.

a reply to: reddragon2015

P.S. I imagine you letting out a Pfft while reading my post

I long ago adopted Sartre's famous "Hell is other people" mantra, but for entirely different reasons than Sartre explained it. I couldn't give a flip less about acceptance, justification, or judgement of others, I take it literally... My personal hell is any degree of crowds, gatherings, or masses of people.