Dec. 11, 2003 ~ Something in the air
There must be something in the air. How else to explain recent events? It all started a few days ago. I was minding my own business, shopping at our local discount store. A young man in the candy aisle spoke to me, so of course I spoke back. He spoke again, and I replied. Politely. He spoke yet again, and one more time, I answered him. Then it dawned on me that this was not a garden-variety conversation. He was standing a bit closer to me than is customary, and was making constant eye contact. He was smiling, smiling, smiling. I do not ordinarily blush, but I felt my face grow warm, as I realized that the young man in question was (gasp!) flirting with me! Why... I am old enough to be his MUCH older sister! Maybe even his mother. We're talking fifteen or twenty years here. People do not ordinarily flirt with me, and I certainly do not flirt back. Ever. In this case, I quickly took a step back and ended the conversation with a flourish, mentioning something clever about needing to go buy my husband some thermal underwear. How graceful was that?
This was such an unusual event that yesterday I mentioned it to a friend, who was just as shocked as I was. We chalked it up to a freak occurence, perhaps the result of a full moon. But today I stopped at the local hamburger place, a charming little hole-in-the-wall spot located on our town square, and was chatting with a friend whom I refer to as my second dad. He's quite a bit older, and behaves very dad-ly towards both Husband and myself. In walks this fellow I do not know, who said, in a very low voice, "Hello, Beautiful." I assumed he wasn't talking to Second Dad (who, by the way, gave this man a "watch out" look), but I was momentarily speechless. Couldn't think of a thing to say. And then THIS fellow attempted that flirting thing, too... staring and standing too close. Second Dad was by now giving the guy a really nasty look. My face was probably turning a funny color again. It sure felt that way.
Okay, once is an aberration. But twice is just plain weird. Not since last April have I felt so uncomfortable. Before grabbing my burger and heading for the door, I casually glanced downward, to be sure I'd remembered to wear all my clothing. Yep, everything was in place. And no, I was not dressed like a hussy, unless you consider baggy jeans, grubby tennis shoes, and an oversized purple sweatshirt to be hussy clothes. Please tell me that you don't.
I suspect that some men just consider flirting to be a sport, and all women are fair game. Or it could have been the moon, or maybe something in the air. If you have any other ideas, I wish you'd let me know.
Because, honestly, this kind of "attention" is just a little creepy.
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