dr. klopek
12-31-2004, 07:33 AM
The other day on my way to work, on the bus, I sat down next to this chick in the front where the seats face the aisle. A man asked her if the bag sitting on another seat was hers. She said it was and he warned her not to forget it. She replied, "Oh, I won't forget that, it's my work clothes." The man sitting across from her asked what she did.
It was then that I noticed him, a portly man in his thirties, hugging his backpack to his chest. He had a shirt on that said "1 to 1 Tutoring Program," scrawled in a multi-colored, childish crayon. This, his appearance, body language and speech gave me the impression that he was..."handicapped."
She replied that she was a lingerie model, which, by my assessment of her features, was a lie. He began asking her questions about things like what company she worked for, she answered a few of them, clearly uninterested in the conversation.
"Have you ever jumped out of a cake?" He asked her.
"Nope."
"Would you?"
"For enough money I would." She proclaimed, annoyed.
He then proceeded to ask her exactly how much she would charge. She shot down his initial guess of "about a hundred bucks" quickly. While I was looking away from him to avoid making the classless play of bursting into laughter, I noticed that there were two other guys nearby doing the same.
"A couple hundred bucks." she stated, hoping it would end the conversation.
"Oh, I could afford that easily, I got lots of money," he said, his expression unchanged. "Well, I got a friend who does," he corrected, still squinting through his glasses, clutching his backpack.
"Oh." Came her dismissive reply.
"He flies planes...Do you have a boyfriend?"
"Yes." She said quickly, hoping this was her one out.
"I was going to ask you out on a date."
He turned to the woman next to him. "The good ones are all taken, huh?" He asked her. She agreed with pity in her voice. "Do you have a boyfriend?" He asked hopefully. She told him she was married.
I turned back toward the two guys who were containing their laughter, and lost it. Just completely dropped the ball. I stared laughing out loud. I think I even stomped on the floor a couple times. He turned and pointed at me.
"You're laughing at me." He accused. Causing me to laugh even harder.
"Naw man," I managed, "I'm not laughing."
"Yes you are," he insisted, "That's not nice."
"It's cool man, I'm not laughin." I said and turned away. He got off two stops later.
This is bad right? I mean, I had assumed he was "handicapped," yet I laughed at him. At length. I didn't want to start, but I couldn't stop. (There's another situation in which my behavior raises similar questions, but this is already too [censored] long. Maybe later.)
It was then that I noticed him, a portly man in his thirties, hugging his backpack to his chest. He had a shirt on that said "1 to 1 Tutoring Program," scrawled in a multi-colored, childish crayon. This, his appearance, body language and speech gave me the impression that he was..."handicapped."
She replied that she was a lingerie model, which, by my assessment of her features, was a lie. He began asking her questions about things like what company she worked for, she answered a few of them, clearly uninterested in the conversation.
"Have you ever jumped out of a cake?" He asked her.
"Nope."
"Would you?"
"For enough money I would." She proclaimed, annoyed.
He then proceeded to ask her exactly how much she would charge. She shot down his initial guess of "about a hundred bucks" quickly. While I was looking away from him to avoid making the classless play of bursting into laughter, I noticed that there were two other guys nearby doing the same.
"A couple hundred bucks." she stated, hoping it would end the conversation.
"Oh, I could afford that easily, I got lots of money," he said, his expression unchanged. "Well, I got a friend who does," he corrected, still squinting through his glasses, clutching his backpack.
"Oh." Came her dismissive reply.
"He flies planes...Do you have a boyfriend?"
"Yes." She said quickly, hoping this was her one out.
"I was going to ask you out on a date."
He turned to the woman next to him. "The good ones are all taken, huh?" He asked her. She agreed with pity in her voice. "Do you have a boyfriend?" He asked hopefully. She told him she was married.
I turned back toward the two guys who were containing their laughter, and lost it. Just completely dropped the ball. I stared laughing out loud. I think I even stomped on the floor a couple times. He turned and pointed at me.
"You're laughing at me." He accused. Causing me to laugh even harder.
"Naw man," I managed, "I'm not laughing."
"Yes you are," he insisted, "That's not nice."
"It's cool man, I'm not laughin." I said and turned away. He got off two stops later.
This is bad right? I mean, I had assumed he was "handicapped," yet I laughed at him. At length. I didn't want to start, but I couldn't stop. (There's another situation in which my behavior raises similar questions, but this is already too [censored] long. Maybe later.)