Friday, May 18, 2007

Let's snark about manners

Has anybody else noticed a distinct lack of manners in the world lately? Or is it just me?

I got chewed out yesterday by someone at work who wasn't clear in his request for what he wanted in the first place, who then wanted to yell when I provided him with an option he didn't like. Why is it easier to throw a fit than to politely ask for the changes you need made?

I thought poor manners were perhaps restricted to those entities in life we call "drivers." It's easy to get frustrated with some nameless, faceless person in the green truck who cuts you off in rush hour traffic, when the only thing that suffers is your own blood pressure and possibly the brakes on your car. But now we've taken it and made it personal, to the point that you can get snarly with anyone you want because you've got the freedom of speech and the world has taught you that You are Special and You are the Most Important Person. Yep, You are a MIP. And the world needs to know it.

A few months back, the Associated Press did a report on today's fresh crop of college students. The basic premise of the report is that today's college students have been raised to have the highest levels of self-esteem ever seen. Fantastic, right? We all feel good about ourselves. Woo-hoo! But what's it do for society as a whole when individuals feel that they're better than everybody else? Less productive team work. Less empathy for the plight of your fellow man. Shorter relationships. In short, a society of individuals who care less about helping each other than any previous generation.

I think this is directly related to bad manners. Think about it. If I'm the most important person in the world, why should I lower myself to speak with kindness to anyone? Then they might get this big head and start thinking they're more important than me, and we just can't have that, can we? Because of course you all recognize that I'm the most important person. That's what makes you my friends. Oh, sorry, what were we talking about? Oh, yeah. Manners.

Please. Thank you. How much time does it take to say these words? How much thought does it take to mean them? Manners might not be the ultimate solution that leads to world peace, but they can certainly lead to peace in our little sphere of the planet.

What do you think about manners?

Labels: asses, friends, Honey Gets Dramatic

Posted by Honey :: 9:44 AM :: 4 Comments:

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Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Crack McGraw

I listen to country music. Call it today's version of yesterday's pop. Call it the influence of the south. Call it going to college in backwoods Missouri where the top three things to do for fun were cow-tipping, 2 AM Walmart runs, and line dancing. Whatever the reason, I listen to country music. And most of the time, I like it.

Tim McGraw's newest song, Last Dollar, however, is country music's answer to the Disney tune, "It's a Small World," and I can honestly say my life would've been complete without ever having had it run through my head for ten days straight and counting. I fall asleep hearing, "One, two, three, like a bird I sing," and wake up to, "I'm so glad you're here today, cuz tomorrow I might have to go and fly away." And then the little kids chime in, and then the weird electronic verse happens, and then it repeats itself. All. Day. Long.

So I got into my car this morning to go to work, and I turned on the radio, and of course, it's playing. But then the song ended, and the DJ's, Big D and Bubba, made a big hullaballoo (this is country music, after all) about not knowing what in the world the song was about. So somebody called in and said, "Ask Big Kenny. He wrote it." Big Kenny, if you're not familiar with country music, is one half of the duo Big and Rich (Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy, anybody?). So the DJ's called Big Kenny, and I learned something today.

According to Big Kenny, he wrote the song in Vegas when he was down to his last dollar, facing eviction from his apartment and not being able to pay his electric bill. So, he wrote a song about how when you're down to nothing, you've got nothing left to lose. Pretty cool, huh?

But it didn't help get the song out of my mind. I wish I had some mental peanut butter to clear up that little subconscious hiccup.

Labels: crack, hiccups, Honey Gets Dramatic

Posted by Honey :: 8:22 AM :: 5 Comments:

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Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Farewell, Cruel World

Well, it's not looking good here in Georgia. The longer we go without rain, the more convinced I am that I'm being poisoned. Yep, that's right. Darwinism is alive and well in this grand state, and it's taking the form of pollen poisoning.

Seriously, people, I saw a guy walking around the other day hacking up a cloud of pollen. A male coworker told me he watched pollen clouds blow over a field much like dust would during a drought in the midwest. And then there was the lady I work with who went in for a lung scan and came back in tears. Seems she needs surgery to remove the trees that have sprouted in her lungs. Doc said she'll probably make it, but she shouldn't inhale pollen for at least two weeks after the surgery. She's making plans to move to the city. She'd rather die by smog.

Green is pretty, but I'm getting awful tired of it. Itchy eyes, scratchy throats, and congested sinuses are making everyone cranky. Mother Nature, if you're listening, can you please send some rain to wash away all this pollen?

Labels: Honey Gets Dramatic, Mother Nature

Posted by Honey :: 8:13 AM :: 3 Comments:

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