Cultrual Combo

I'm sitting at the library doing some work [surprise], and an elderly gentleman comes into the area I'm sitting in and is about to sit down at the table across from me. I, like many men, acknowledge him and he does the same - but the way he did it was slightly out of the ordinary.

[I forgot to mention that he is a very large African man. Not an African-American who was born or even raised here, rather, a man that has grown up in an eastern African country and has just arrived here.]

After acknowledging his presence he he opens his mouth and says 'HOWDY!'.

I was slightly taken aback by all of this. I really enjoyed this man say a greeting from the Old Midwest. It's not everyday that you hear such an expression, but it made me smile.




I was going to call this post 'Cultural Clash', but then I realized that this situation was not a matter of cultures actually clashing, giving a violent feel, rather a soft combination which embraces such change.

Yelling Kid

I was walking into the library today when I saw and heard a child, about 7 or 8 years old, yelling into his cell phone at the top of his lungs, "YOU CAN'T MAKE ME! I'LL PEE ON THIS BOOK ON MY OWN!"

Now, there are several questions one should ask -

a) Why does a 7 or 8 year old have their own cell phone? I was in high school when I got mine!
b) Why is a kid threatening to urinate on a book?
c) Why is there someone on this kids phone encouraging the child to pee on a book (causing them to say that they will pee on their own.)?

...and I thought my generation is weird.


Riddle: What is the chemical compound for dog urine?



K9P.

This Time of Year

I was in the library today getting some work done and the librarian near me sneezed. Since she sneezed, I figure I would say 'Bless you'. (To be honest, I kind of had the urge to say 'God bless you and his almighty fortress' just to see what she would say, but I didn't).

After saying 'Bless you' she proceeded to tell me that they were allergies and that they were 'oh so bad this time of year'.

One thing that I tend to notice is that not very many people say, 'this is the most delightful time to have them' - in the most genuine way possible. I think there is just a constant assumption that when one has allergies, that it, at that moment, is the very worst season (or 30 seconds for that matter) to have them.

Pollen and allergies usually initially sprout from higher than normal levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) which cause over production in plants. This in theory *could* be linked to global warming and greenhouse gasses, which only brings the idea of blaming your allergy-induced sneeze on the fact that you drive a Hummer. Just a theory.

In actuality, it really is not allergy season right now, but saying so could justify your Godforsaken sneeze.