I was in a US airport recently. It was the Boston airport and my flight home to the West coast had been delayed. I took the opportunity to eat one more lobster roll and relax before the 6 hour flight home. If you are not familiar with a lobster roll it is lobster meat with maybe some mayonnaise on a hot dog bun. It is fantastic. I grew up in the Boston area and eat lobster as much as possible when I am back visiting. During the summer in Maine and Massachusetts, McDonalds will even have lobster rolls on their menus.
I was in one last lobster bliss stupor, watching baseball on the bar TV, enjoying myself completely when a woman next to me interrupted my reverie. She did not have an American accent and was holding out American coins wanting to know their values. Being a polite person, I engaged her in conversation about where she was from. She told me but with an attitude that I should know just from her accent. She then proceeded to go into a tirade about how stupid American coins are in relation to their size and denominations.
Again, let me state, I was having a pleasant time. How often does that happen when you are delayed in an airport? So I listened to her and told her she was over-thinking the whole money thing. I took her bill and looked at the money she had laid out and told her it was not enough. She was leaving all her change for a tip, amounting to about 5%. She went on about how Americans are so stupid because a nickel is bigger than a dime but is worth less and all the bills are the same size. Yeah, I had enough of her and wanted to get back to the baseball game and savor my lobster roll, but she wouldn’t stop harping.
I sized her up as not a fan of Americans. She was haughty, belligerent and from her tab, cheap. So what could I do? I told her to put down all her change and take another bill that had a big ‘5’ on it and put it on the counter. She asked if wasn’t that too much? I assured her it wasn’t and she did what I asked. I waited for the waitress to come over and collect the bill. She was still talking and going on and on so I had to tell her to take her skinny boney ass back to her country and get the hell away from me. I am patriotic after all. Rude is rude, what else could I do?? What would you do?
6 comments:
This teaches me and you the lesson - when you are enjoying some quiet time no matter where you are, you should let it be! Do not engage with anyone else -- hahaha!
Rachel
You are so right Rachel! My first instinct is to be polite and pleasant and with some people they really don't deserve the time of day.
Oh this one made laugh. I'm not as polite as you. I probably would have inserted a snarky comment about her country. Or you could have pulled out the crazy lady act you use to keep kids off your garden!
I know from traveling in various countries, sometimes you are just not sure of the coins so I was giving her leeway. In my travels people have been so kind when I have been in doubt so...
Our money is confusing to most foreigners. It makes no sense that the sizes don't correspond to the values. I'm surprised she didn't kvetch about the notes all being the same color and size! That being said, arriving in a country and carrying on the way she did is phenomenally rude. Your reaction was nicer than I would've been. I really like this post.
Thanks Dianne for your kind words, and she did complain about the bills as well. By that time I was through listening with politness!
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