I Blame the Parents

So husband and I went to the local supermarket Friday night to pick up a bunch of stuff. It was pretty busy for almost 10 p.m. on a Friday night. Maybe there was nothing interesting going on anywhere in town. Of course there were only two cashiers open, each with a long line, so many of the shoppers were heading toward the self-checkouts.

As luck would have it we needed pasta. And the pasta aisle was right across from the self-checkouts. And the line at the self-checkouts was long. Long and bunched up. And taking up the majority of the aisle where shoppers have to pass back and forth. 

Why did we care? Well, trying to exit the pasta aisle was an elderly woman pushing a cart. There was a display of grated cheese at the end of the aisle as well, which made it difficult for us to enter while she was trying to exit. She would have had to finagle her cart sideways. So we waited for her. 

She poked her cart out of the aisle and along came a shopper at full speed. Said shopper did not slow down but kept barreling at us, so the poor woman had to stay where she was. Now, the barreling shopper could not move over because of the bunched up group of people (and by now it was a small crowd) waiting for the self-checkouts. After the barreling shopper sprinted by the poor lady inched out a bit more. Suddenly there was a stream of shoppers heading her way, and again she was stuck.

Now, granted common courtesy is pretty dead these days, but seriously folks? Not one of you eight or ten (I lost count) groups of people that kept coming down the aisle could stop for a minute to let the poor woman out? Really?

The last group of shoppers was a man dressed in a (I think it was) baseball uniform, followed by three kids, although not very closely. Two of the kids were also in (baseball?) uniforms and appeared to be between 9 and 11 years old. (I base my age estimate on their height and the height of my nephew.) The younger non-uniformed child was pushing the cart. After they passed by, I turned to my husband and said, "That was kind of rude." He said "Yup." (He's been watching a lot of Storage Wars lately.)

We waited for the lady to finally exit the aisle and moseyed down to check out the pasta that was on sale. A few minutes later someone yelled out, "Excuse me!" I turned and saw a bunch of kids I didn't know and turned back to the pasta. The "Excuse me!" was repeated louder and with an attitude, and when I turned again I realized it was the three boys I had seen earlier. Before I could say anything the tallest of the three asked me what I had said to his friend. 

I replied that I didn't say anything to his friend, I didn't even know them. The tall boy repeated himself in a nasty tone, "You said something to my friend!"

Me: "Um, no, I didn't, I think you're mistaken."

Him: "Yes you did."

Second tallest boy: "You did, I heard you."

Him: "You said something really mean to him, and rude too."

Second tallest boy: "Yeah, I heard you."

Me: "I'm sorry, but you are mistaken."

Cacophony of voices loud and not-so-borderline nasty: "You did, we heard you."

I just turned away and went back to the pasta. My husband was standing with his mouth open.

He finally spoke. "Seriously?"

I guess the next time I want to comment on the rudeness of people toward an elderly woman in a very brief sentence to my husband I need to make sure no snot-nosed little brats are within earshot. Yup, I said snot-nosed little brats. Because that is what they are. And I am sure when they grow up they'll be snot-nosed bigger brats. Truth be told I didn't blame the kids for being rude as far as the poor woman was concerned, they were raised that way. And I had no such thoughts in my head prior to their 'confrontation' with me. 

First, I have no issue with them standing up for themselves, even if there was no reason to in this case. But they were not polite about it in any way, they were rude and confrontational. I spoke five words to my husband, and in the world of free speech I am within my rights to comment to my husband if I so desire. I was not even looking in their direction when I spoke to my husband because he was on my left and they passed on my right. And in what universe do the five words "That was kind of rude." sound "really mean" even if overheard? Unless they had a problem with my husband saying "Yup." (Could be they're not Storage Wars fans.)

Sometimes I feel sad for the new generation of children growing up. They are learning how to communicate electronically and not with other human beings. Every day you hear stories of bullying, and not all of them children on children. I had tears in my eyes when I read about Karen Klein and what she was subjected to by the "children" on her school bus. Granted, my encounter did not bring tears to my eyes and was by no means cruel, just rude and disrespectful. But what does that say about the future of we as a society if this is representative of the next generation?

I wanted to ask these boys what it was I supposedly said but the middle of a crowded supermarket is not the time or place for arguing with a trio of disrespectful brats. Yup, I am insisting on calling them brats because that is what they are.

So here are my conclusions:
- these young men need to have their hearing checked
- these young men are not learning sportsmen-like behavior playing sports
- these young men are probably bullies
- these young men need to be taught respect for their elders
- these young men will probably grow up to be obnoxious adults

Harsh? Eh, no, I doubt it. And you can only make a first impression once, and in the two minutes of interaction I had with them that's the takeaway their behavior left me with.

I hope my conclusions are wrong.

But I don't think so.

I hope their parents are proud.