Getting the OOOGies
Something happened yesterday that gave me the ooogies. I am sure you know that feeling when you are just there and there is nothing really wrong with the situation, just the fact you have the hair on your neck stand up, or the chill run slowly up your back and sides. That situation where you don't really care what is going on, or what causes it, you just don't like it and want out.
Yesterday, I almost missed the usual train home yesterday afternoon. In fact, I was the last of our crew to board. When I arrived on board, I began searching for a seat on the second level which our crew has pretty much taken over. There was one stranger in our seating area that lowered the seating selection and our crew (as popular as we have become) has grown to capacity plus. The left side of the car was full. The right side of the car was full except for one seat being available all the way against the back wall with Naked Man.
It is at that point I have to think to myself...shoot me now. Now to best describe Naked Man, he stands about 6 feet 3 inches and weighs about 375 pounds white man with a tattered comb-over. His voice is always loud and will often holler about his maid and certain acts of nakedness that really, everyone on the train would rather not imagine. He inherited his name from his own preferences. You see, Naked Man belongs to a nudist colony (shudder).
I make my way through the web of legs and bags to the back seat and sit there, hugging the steel bar as far away as possible on the two seater bench. But it is not his height, weight or otherwise that ooogies everyone (and I mean everyone) out; it is not even the knowledge of the nudist colony. It is his laugh.
I laugh. I open my mouth widely and laugh with my gut. If I am laughing to hard, I will even snort. I admit, my laugh is odd (goes with the territory) but Naked Man's laugh sends chills up my spine like knowing a corpse is about to reach up and touch you on the back of your neck. He has one of those low, deep stuttered humming laughs. You half expect him to drop his head and look at you with his eyes up and think of you naked (shudder) while moaning.
He is not the first person to cause this type of reaction to me. The first I can remember was a female co-worker when I was working in DC. She was really messed up in the head. She would hit on everyone in the building and had such low self-esteem, she was taking books on tape courses to improve herself (I am a good person, people will like me). Seriously, this girl was so messed up, she made her own birthday cake and brought it to work so everyone would celebrate.
There were so many complaints about her, that they had to fire her. I would bet THAT helped her self-esteem.
This brings me to my point (as I almost always have one). There are times when you are in a situation that you feel like you are covered in ants in a wooden crate buried in a pit of snakes. Grit your teeth, smile and get through it. You may find the ants are meant to kill the snakes.
Drawing a conclusion about a person because of the way they laugh is short-sighted. What if, that same guy just won the biggest lottery? You know from his actions he is generous. He has previously purchased enough alcohol to pass around on the train. He is loyal and sits with the crew regularly (thus the name). So, even if he gives me the ooogies, I still want to know more about him. Maybe HE has a blog. You can't judge a book by it's cover.
Did you know...
It only takes seven seconds to make a first impression. Just over 50% of a first impression is based on appearance (wardrobe, hair/makeup, body language, and our facial expressions). 40% of our first impressions are based on voice and speech quality. About 5% is based on what we say.
Yesterday, I almost missed the usual train home yesterday afternoon. In fact, I was the last of our crew to board. When I arrived on board, I began searching for a seat on the second level which our crew has pretty much taken over. There was one stranger in our seating area that lowered the seating selection and our crew (as popular as we have become) has grown to capacity plus. The left side of the car was full. The right side of the car was full except for one seat being available all the way against the back wall with Naked Man.
It is at that point I have to think to myself...shoot me now. Now to best describe Naked Man, he stands about 6 feet 3 inches and weighs about 375 pounds white man with a tattered comb-over. His voice is always loud and will often holler about his maid and certain acts of nakedness that really, everyone on the train would rather not imagine. He inherited his name from his own preferences. You see, Naked Man belongs to a nudist colony (shudder).
I make my way through the web of legs and bags to the back seat and sit there, hugging the steel bar as far away as possible on the two seater bench. But it is not his height, weight or otherwise that ooogies everyone (and I mean everyone) out; it is not even the knowledge of the nudist colony. It is his laugh.
I laugh. I open my mouth widely and laugh with my gut. If I am laughing to hard, I will even snort. I admit, my laugh is odd (goes with the territory) but Naked Man's laugh sends chills up my spine like knowing a corpse is about to reach up and touch you on the back of your neck. He has one of those low, deep stuttered humming laughs. You half expect him to drop his head and look at you with his eyes up and think of you naked (shudder) while moaning.
He is not the first person to cause this type of reaction to me. The first I can remember was a female co-worker when I was working in DC. She was really messed up in the head. She would hit on everyone in the building and had such low self-esteem, she was taking books on tape courses to improve herself (I am a good person, people will like me). Seriously, this girl was so messed up, she made her own birthday cake and brought it to work so everyone would celebrate.
There were so many complaints about her, that they had to fire her. I would bet THAT helped her self-esteem.
This brings me to my point (as I almost always have one). There are times when you are in a situation that you feel like you are covered in ants in a wooden crate buried in a pit of snakes. Grit your teeth, smile and get through it. You may find the ants are meant to kill the snakes.
Drawing a conclusion about a person because of the way they laugh is short-sighted. What if, that same guy just won the biggest lottery? You know from his actions he is generous. He has previously purchased enough alcohol to pass around on the train. He is loyal and sits with the crew regularly (thus the name). So, even if he gives me the ooogies, I still want to know more about him. Maybe HE has a blog. You can't judge a book by it's cover.
Did you know...
It only takes seven seconds to make a first impression. Just over 50% of a first impression is based on appearance (wardrobe, hair/makeup, body language, and our facial expressions). 40% of our first impressions are based on voice and speech quality. About 5% is based on what we say.
Comments
Funny how strong first impressions can be, and how long they last, isn't it? My husband and I disliked each other (very strongly) the first time we met. It took months for us to even become friends, just because of our initial reactions to each other.
I wonder if Naked Man rides the train with his clothings on... *lol*