Aaaand we're back in business...I'd like to say I'm back with a vengeance but let's see whether I can keep this up first. I have been gone for over a year, during which I don't believe I have written one word about anything else but literature and superficial views on culture.
But now my blog's all pimped up and I got one year of beautiful and terrifying experiences that I can share with the wider public that is doing anything but reading my blog. But hey, I've immersed myself in the bright and shiny world of Hollywood often enough to allow the brainwashing to take effect. I'm going to believe that my sassiness and wit will be discovered by someone in power and that I'll get a column and than a book deal and so on and so forth. You gotta believe. (And if you, dear reader, are that someone, don't think I'm too arrogant, sometimes the faux confidence will just get you farther than humility, dontcha think?)
Anyway, this is supposed to be a short comment on strangers. Our behavior towards stranger is so bizarre sometimes. We have been taught to respect others' privacy, to mind others' wishes and to be polite; however, we (or I, if you prefer to take yourself out of the equation) are very quick to judge strangers and to dislike them for something small like walking to slowly when they're right in front of us or starting to count their change in front of the cashier when you've been waiting in line for fifteen minutes at the grocery store. I believe sometimes we are way passed that emotion and start to fantasize about thumping them. Hard. Especially when people are just being plain rude.
That is not very Zen. As a wise little green man said, anger leads to the dark side. Or high blood pressure. Whatever, it's not good for you. So I think there's two ways to handle this. When we are having a good day we should maybe allow ourselves - not to often, though - to tell these people to go screw themselves. I'm talking about the rude people here, not just the slow walkers, although they deserve to sometimes. Just vent your emotions and share the rudeness. I think it's relieving. On a bad day though, it might be better to choose the high road and be all Jesus like. Turn the other cheek or whatever. Give people a Buddha like smile and just think: "Hey, maybe they are just having a bad day, too." Or maybe they're idiots, but that just makes you the better person. And at the end of the day you can give yourself a pat on the shoulder for being so Jedi like.
