Wednesday, October 8, 2008
John McCain, you are no friend of mine
John McCain used the phrase "my friends" or "my friend" 23 times in last night's debate. For heaven's sake, he only said "earmark" five times. But John McCain and I are not friends. In fact, I suspect he is not friends with a majority of the people who watched or listened to the debate last night. I find that type of forced casual dialogue interminably patronizing. It reminds me of the sales clerk who uses my first name after reading it on my credit card. "Thanks, Rachel," she says. "I'm sorry," I want to reply. "Have we been introduced?"
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7 comments:
I never, ever do that when I'm ringing up a sale at work -- not only is it just weird and awkward, how do I know that person actually goes by the name on the card? I work with a guy we all call Terry. His first name is James. It says James on his credit card. But nobody in the world, except maybe ignorant sales people, calls him James. It's just... another way of furthering the awkwardness.
How do you feel about "Have a nice day"?
At least he didn't wink at us.
Have a nice day can be okay if the salesperson seems to have a generally happy disposition and seems, whether it's true or not, to actually wish that I, just by virtue of being a human being, deserve to have a nice day. However, when "Have a Nice Day" is accompanied by body language that says "I hate this job, and the only reason you are buying and I am working is because of the injustice of 'the man' and this chip on my shoulder is what causes me to slouch like this", and the glare actually says "I hate you, and hope you are promptly run over by a bus upon leaving this store", well, then I'd rather they just said nothing.
That's just what I was thinking, Jill. I try to be especially pleasant to the chip-on-the-shoulder clerks, since they're obviously having a worse day than I am.
Rachel, those same Clerks HATE you for being especially pleasant to them. They want YOU to wallow in their misery too, not flaunt that you are happy that can waltz out of there in 5 minutes and they are stuck there for 10 more hours.
They weren't even supposed to BE HERE today!
Clerks? Anyone? Hello?
I agree, at least he didn't do the wink and the snap gun, thing! I may have had to hurt someone at that point :)
He certainly was especially "cute and adorable" as he was painted into a corner, do you think?
And the "have a nice day" is nice when you smile back at the cashier--or whoever--and say something different like, "I hope you do, too." That often makes them smile back and, I hope, brightens their day a bit.
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