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Ain't nobody got time for that!

Sunday afternoon at a grocery store in the suburbs. I haven't witnessed such unbridled egomania since I watched the news last Black Friday. Niceties are thrown out the window. Road rules are forgotten. (Stay to the right!) The volume is turned way up and your only defense is to keep moving, and keep moving fast. If you abide by the rules, you'll get in and get out, groceries in hand and if you're lucky with very few defensive wounds.

Today, I was in the midst of this mess. All was going well. Then you get in line behind cash-and-coupon-Clara. You know who I'm talking about. She's in her early 50's. She had a change purse. She had a coupon organizer. She had a question about every damn item scanned. She had all the time in the world. What she didn't seem to have was a damn clue.

I stood watching her. I didn't have much choice. I was about 4th in line and the people ahead of me were absolutely fuming. And just when we were about to make some headway -- something rang up for the wrong price. I had to laugh. We were all in this together now.

It got me to thinking. Are there people out there really this oblivious? They move about with a lightness that knows no schedules. People around them do not exist. It is only their needs that seem to matter and you're gonna wait. Get comfortable.

Patience has never been a virtue of mine. But I have learned to bite my tongue. Still, my anxiety never lets me forget for a second that I am part of a whole; one cog in this ever-moving wheel that keeps suburban society moving smoothly. And when I am forced to disrupt the flow, I feel horrible.

To be honest, though, I'm not sure who's right here. In a time when we're constantly told that self care is a necessity to mental health, am I right for putting others first? Or is she for thinking of herself first? After all, I'm still thinking about it. This blog is proof. She's probably at home with her 8 cats (Fancy Feast was on sale this week!), watching PBS and clipping next weeks coupons.

And I'm sure I'll see here again. Probably tomorrow morning, as I enter the weekly rat race. I'll be running late, as usual. She'll be the lady in the 1997 Buick Regal going well under the speed limit. Then in front of my again at Timmy's with her free voucher. I may even give her a "what the hell are you doing?" hand gesture. But she won't see it. My tan skin will be lost in her rose-coloured lenses.

Vanessa Sully

I need a prers-mertch!








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