The Reason You Are All Here....

It should be noted that I do not consider myself a negative person.

Truly.

I just think of myself as opinionated, and not afraid to share that opinion with people.  I know what I like, I know what I don't like.

For example, if someone tries to make me eat seafood, they will know of my displeasure with their decision.

This post shall be the first in an ongoing series I shall bring to the world..."THINGS I REALLY DON'T LIKE."  Why isn't it called "Things I hate?" Well, believe it or not I don't like to use the word hate.  Hate is serious, hate is permanent.  "don't like?" thats more realistic sounding, thus the title: "Things I really don't like"

My thought is that, well, I don't like a lot of things [no shocker there], and due to this overwhelming volume of things that I don't like, I shall give them to you one, two, three at a time.  I'll justify myself, I'll provide supporting evidence and details about my displeasure, then, we shall all go on our merry way.

Here we go.  We start with the #1 thing that I don't like:  IGNORANT PEOPLE.

I should first further expand my definition of what I consider ignorant: ignorance is not a lack of intelligence, ignorance is not caring, oblivious to fact or reason, apathetic about the world around them, prideful, bull-headed.  Kind of a catch-all.

I, regrettably, deal with ignorant people as a course of life in my job [which, due to reasons I shall expound upon at a latter time, I will never tell you where I work.  You know where it is.  I just will never say it though due to possible retaliatory action by this entity] .

Ignorance surrounds me every day I go to work stand behind the counter and say "hello."  From the parent who doesn't believe that the item they are purchasing for their 5 year old may not be 100% kosher for a child that young, to the moron who doesn't realize that what I'm telling them about the system they own is the truth, or that the game they want is sold-out, people have a difficult time believing what is told to them.  This makes them ignorant.

People who know nothing about a major item they are going to purchase? Ignorant.
People who chose not to heed the advice that I in my expert capacity have given them [and was asked for to boot!]?  Ignorant.
People who only believe what they believe because someone has told them it was so?  Ignorant.
Stubborn? Just another word for ignorant.
Prideful?  Also a synonym for ignorant in my book.
Close-minded? See above.

Note that I do not equate ignorance with intelligence--there is a distinction.  A person can't really control how intelligent they are.  Sure, someone can fundamentally control how "book smart" they are, however, intelligence is pretty much hard-wired into you from the second mommy and daddy's DNA decide to come together and create you.  The lack of a particular intelligence is not ignorance, it is the lack of intelligence [if you want to know more about specific intelligences, I encourage you to read the work of Howard Gardner: http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm].  Choosing to ignore your own intelligence, or not use your intelligence, or not being mindful enough to rely on someone else's intelligence--that's ignorance.

My life, your life, everyones life would be infinitely better were it not for those individuals who choose not to participate in life--for those who prefer to remain ignorant.

Is work the only place that I am surrounded by such levels of ignorance?  Hell no, just the most common.  The other area that people excel at ignorance is politics.  If you are just a sheep and listen to your leaders because you don't know any better?  Ignorant.  Follow someone without knowing why?  Ignorant.  Republican or Democrat or Independent because that's what mommy and daddy are? Ignorant.  Not questioning your leaders, your beliefs, the world around you--accepting everything as truth?  Ignorant.  People who don't know how to drive?  Ignorant!

It just pisses me off--more than anything else in this world.

See me in a foul mood?  Ignorant people are most likely to blame.
Read something particularly snarky?  Ignorant folks.
Wonder why I am the way I am?  My distaste and displeasure in dealing with and having to surround myself with ignorant people.

So, there's #1.  I'm sure that by the time I'm done my list will be extensive, probably not exhaustive though.

Until later-
E

The quality of a man...

So, here I go--several people over the years have said something akin to "You should write a blog."  To those two people, here you go.

I shall offer the following promises to those who would ever choose to read this detritus:
1.  The unfettered, unvarnished, unrepentant, straight from the horses mouth truth.
2.  Thoughts both sublime and base.
3.  Yes, the curmudgeonly truth [I have a reputation to maintain after all...]

Anyways, I thought, and thought, and thought about how to inaugurate this new venture that I am starting.  The first topic sang to me in my head, and for anyone who knows me, you shall see how apropos...

"The Quality of a Man..."

How do I judge a new person or a new place that I am interacting with?

The answer may shock you, then again, it may not.

The first thing that I look at is the quality, strength, and ready availability of the toilet paper.

Sure, sure, there's personality, honesty, etc.  When push comes to shove though, toilet paper is a good tell.  You see, of all the rooms of a house, the three that I interact with in any regularity would be 1-the bedroom, 2-the kitchen, and 3-the restroom.  If I am meeting you for the first time, I'm not going to your bedroom, I'm not going to cook for you, but damn if my Crohn's disease forces me into your bathroom within 10 minutes of meeting.  For someone like me, toilet paper can make or break my day.

Offer up thin, cheap-ass sandpaper-like toilet paper...well...that says a lot.  Offer me triple-ply, lush, luxuriant paper, that says a lot as well.  Offer the "moist towelette" with luxuriant tissue option?  You and I are going to best-ies pretty damn quick.

Bet you never thought you would be reading a post about toilet paper, eh?

Thats all I got for now.  There will be more to follow, I'm sure.