So we were at Aldi today (it's Wednesday, see?) and this older man stopped pushing his cart as he neared us. No big deal, this happens sometimes. Small store, 2 small children; sometimes people stop to talk to them (or about them). The first thing out of this guy's mouth is, "Did you do her hair?" in response to Serena's ponytail (yes, I'm getting so big and actually presenting my little girl in a somewhat girl-like fashion!!! Who knew I could do it??). I said that I did and waited for some sort of typical response, such as, "cute" or "good for you" or even, "why bother?" but he just sort of stared and then asked me how old she is. I said "18 months" and he said, "how much?" Um, OK. "18 months," I said again. He just stood there, continuing to stare at my daughter to the point where I actually got a little nervous. I mean, most people are really nice, but there are scary perverts out there and though I didn't want to make a scene, I was trying to imagine how quickly my adrenaline-pumped self could push that shopping cart out of the store if I had to.
Well, not wanting to miss out on a conversation with someone at Aldi, Micah pipes up from the back of the cart, "I'm 4!"
OK, stop right there. Pretend you are the other guy (only pretend that you're NOT staring oddly at a small girl, you're just you – decent, well-meaning, produce-purchasing you, interacting with a mom and her 2 kids). How do you respond to the little boy who wants to be noticed? Let's brainstorm some possible responses, shall we? A) "Oh, wow – 4! That's great!" B) "What a big boy!" C) "Well I'm 52 years old now, but what I liked most about being 4 is that when you go to the doctor, you get a sticker, not a prostate exam!" Any of those would have been acceptable, right? (Although I'm not sure I'm quite ready to explain to Micah that he won't be able to go to his same pediatrician when he's 52…)
But this guy chose option D), which was to look up at Micah as if he hadn't even noticed him before and say, in all sincerity, with not a hint of humor, "I don't care about that." Micah and I took our turns to stare now. I kept waiting for the guy to say, "I'm just kidding buddy! I'm glad to hear that you're 4 – you certainly have better manners than I do…" but the closest thing I got was a little look that lasted half a second that said, basically, "perhaps that was a bit harsh, but who cares??" and then we parted ways. As soon as I got out of earshot, and didn't care too much if I wasn't entirely out yet, I leaned down to Micah and said, "I care!"
What's the deal with that?
that’s weird.
I care too! That is odd, and mean. Some people enjoy not feeling the need to filter out things as they get older, but that’s just odd…and mean. And weird. Can I use any other descriptive words? Nope.