It's Christmas for Christ's Sake

Seems like everywhere I went today I was subjected to uncharitable and un-Christmasy behavior. It was most disheartening and saddening.

I took the Horace up to Petsmart to get his nails clipped and the nice girl also cleaned his ears. Everyone there was just fine. Happy, helpful, tickled pink by my unfriendly doxie-dog. It was kind of fun. I walked him around the store afterward and discouraged him from peeing on things. Things like columns and shelves. He thought about it. Very seriously, until I gave him the, "Don't even think about it, pal." It was after I left that things went downhill.

My normal way home from that area is typically over-congested with traffic. Thanks to it being the 23rd it was rendered fucking insane. Intersections that are normally a hassle were totally deadlocked by people who were in such a hurry that they blocked the entire four way intersections with their idiocy. I opted not to attempt the "short" route home as the construction there makes any driving impossible. During the "long" way, which involved driving straight until I hit Mall Rd. and pulling a left, some sort of altercation happened behind my spot between an new-ish Impala and a SUV.

There was a horn involved. I missed the actual action that prompted said horn, but it was loud and insistent and longly blown by the driver of the SUV behind said Impala. Driver of Impala threw her vehicle into PARK and hopped out to confront the driver of the SUV who wisely stayed inside her tank. The Impala driver, tall, twenties, thin with a yard of straight blonde hair was obviously yelling and gesticulating at the honk-ER in the SUV. Blonde's man-friend stayed in the Impala, looking embarrassed. Girl yelled and stomped back to her car well before we actually moved, but all I could think was:

"Dear Christ, it's Christmas! Grow up and act like an adult!" Yes, I'm aware of the inconsistencies in my thought processes. But, c'mon. When you go out into that area (where Target, Wal-Mart, Meijer, numerous restaurants, and Dick's are) in the mid-afternoon the day before Christmas Fucking Eve, you expect it to be traffic hell and you compensate for it. I'm new to this area and even I know that! The lady and kid in the minivan directly behind me exchanged some glances with me that showed I wasn't alone in my disgust. Mom was obviously horrified at the scene that took place sort-of in front of her son and son was goggling like crazy. You couldn't blame either of 'em. They were closer and could probably hear what the nutball blonde was saying. I'm sure it wasn't nice. Someone deserves coal in their stocking this year.

Second event was actually here at home. Again, I missed the actual action and only got to see the fallout. Two kids from upstairs were outside killin' time and futzin' around. They're on vacation and it was a balmy almost-50 degrees. Can't say I blame 'em for wanting to get some outside time. I took Horace out for a walk since he was crying at me and doing the wee wee dance. We hit the outside door just as these two kids go running right by, my left to my right, heading down the sidewalk. To the left and up the hill I see a truck idling and a guy standing outside of it. He's yelling the equivalent of, "You rotten kids!" in their direction and generally looking puffed up and ready to kick ass. A voice from inside the truck, the voice of reason is telling him to just calm down and let's go. He's ignoring it as he walks around the truck, apparently inspecting it for damage of some sort. I can vaguely hear the kids from their spot way down at the end of the row of buildings muttering to themselves as one says incredibly, "Did I really hit it?"

Driver of truck gets back in and I hear woman saying things like, "Nothing got hurt, everything's fine. Let's get going." Guy yells at her now, pulls up and turns around to come back and drive the parking lot, looking for his evil bad guys. All both of them. Whose ages might add up to 21. Maybe. Before he gets in the lot though, the kids are back down to our building and up the stairs, scared as hell. That guy though... He was all kinds of riled up.

Sometimes I just have to realize and accept how blessed I am. I'm married to wonderful man who would never chase down a couple of kids for what I'm pretty sure was an accident nor throw down in the middle of traffic because someone honked at him for pulling a bonehead move. I wouldn't do those things either! So that makes him lucky too.