I'm too polite (old-school manners)

Man, I totally get where you're coming from with the breakfast burritos 🙂I’m right there with you, eating sliced watermelon with a fork😍and honestly, regarding the burrito 😛I know plenty of people who eat just like that, so I really don't see what the big deal is🤷
You aren't exactly winning any etiquette awards 🤷Excuse me? Too much?
Look, if you've got manners that actually work, they're never going to be a downside.

I run into this exact same issue pretty regularly. I’ll probably dive into the details in a future post once I have a second.
All I'll say for now is that I'm right there with Google on this one—with cultured people, it's all about class, but with idiots? It's just pure stupidity masked by a thin layer of politeness, all in a desperate attempt to show you they aren't actually on your level.

mistyraven said:@Robert Martinez6:

honey, are you gay?

everything's pointing that way (and I just know the crowd's gonna start dogpiling me with comments now).

you're basically an elitist—kind of acting like some young prep school kid. You're too good for finger foods, I guess, because heaven forbid you get a little grease on your hands. You spend all your time listening to "classics"—honestly, I don't know a single straight guy who listens to classical music. And you look down on people on the street like they're uneducated primitives, for no real reason—like, maybe someone didn't move out of your way fast enough.

Burek, are you gay? Come on, let's see if our resident internet psychics actually got it right.😁

Keith Lewis said:Burek, are you gay? Come on, let's see if our resident internet psychics actually got it right.😁

I wonder why someone is labeled a "gay" just because they happen to be cultured or an elitist? 😕

Would the guy shouting profanities on a street corner in Chicago be considered a Neanderthal by that logic? 😕

I would kindly ask that you refrain from asking Hamburger any personal questions.

Burek, I have to wonder, just how much decorum do you actually possess? 😁

Maybe a little you're overreacting, but honestly, I'd much rather deal with that than someone who's just rude and unrefined. It feels like decent people are getting harder to find lately, so meeting someone like you is actually a breath of fresh air! To quote Billy Joel: "There are enough old-fashioned folks among us to save the world." 🙂

Bradley Gonzalez4 said:Seriously, how can you eat corn like that? 😕

With a knife and fork 😕

or do you just skip it entirely 😁

Look, being polite and having good manners is all well and good, but let’s be real—culture is just a tiny, superficial slice of who someone actually is. You can play the part of a sophisticated gentleman perfectly while being a complete hypocrite underneath it all. Honestly? Those are the absolute worst kind of people in my book.

Edward Murphy4 said:Even if you moved to the edge of the universe, you’d still find some way to get annoyed by people's little quirks. You'd find something to complain about in everything—because apparently, everyone else needs to function like a damn robot for you to be happy.🤷 Honestly, you just sound like a total stiff who doesn't know how to live in the moment. It's got nothing to do with culture.😉

For instance, in China, people frequently pass gas or burp in public settings.🙂

Look, you should definitely keep up that polite demeanor of yours—seriously, don't even think about stooping to the level of those unrefined, low-class bullies out there, because once you go down that road, there's no coming back. But more importantly than being polite, though, make sure you don't let yourself become some kind of pushover, especially when you're dealing with people like that. If you want to avoid looking weak, your best bet is to maintain a sense of superiority through your mental strength, your physical presence, and just your overall way of carrying yourself in this world. Basically, what I'm trying to say is that you've got work to do, so quit stalling and get moving right now.

It’s honestly refreshing to see a headline like this 🙂

And look, you can never be too polite. It’s just not worth it. Anyone who thinks otherwise isn't even worth... well, anything at all. 😁

Stick to that Ivy League attitude of yours. Thau shall prevail. 😉

That’s just not how it works... the truth is, the people who get walked all over because they let everyone do whatever they want are the ones who end up struggling, and honestly, that has nothing to do with being "polite"... you can tell an old lady on the sidewalk to move out of your way without being a complete jerk about it.
And look, if you’re just a rude person who doesn't know how to act in public, then yeah, people are going to judge you and think you're obnoxious or full of yourself... and then you're stuck in another lose-lose situation.
I mean, if that’s how you were raised, fine by me, whatever... but you're the one dealing with the headache of letting everyone run all over you.
And sure, I guess the people who fake being polite when they actually aren't tend to have the easiest time navigating life, but who cares about having the easiest path? The whole point of living isn't just to slide through life on the path of least resistance... it's about actually experiencing it. (Even if that means suffering a little, as long as you're actually enjoying yourself and picking up some actual wisdom along the way)

I wish RBOY had just told him straight. 🙄

Bureče, if it means anything to you, there are those of us here who hold people in exceptionally high regard when they carry themselves with genuine class and dignity.

All I can tell you is that you will encounter plenty of individuals just like him if you look hard enough.

My question for you is simply this: how would you react if someone, say, launched an aggressive attack against you or those close to you? If they truly insulted your honor?

Would you stand your ground and push back? Or would you merely step aside to avoid the fray?

Because politeness and good manners are wonderful virtues, but only when they aren't being used as a defensive shield.
If you catch my drift...

I usually just slice my watermelon into bite-sized pieces with a knife; it’s much more efficient than that old-school way of picking at it like a typewriter, which is probably the last time I ate it like that when I was eight years old.

Now, there's no need to get extreme or anything—we aren't talking about basic etiquette here—but while reading through these posts, I couldn't help but notice how certain things mentioned really grate on my nerves. For instance, when a sidewalk or a walkway is two or three feet wide—or even five or six in some cases (though a farmer out in rural Nebraska wouldn't think that's nearly enough)—you see groups of four or five people just walking side-by-side, blocking everything up. They act as if they're the only people left on Earth... honestly, just move over; walk two by two if you have to, but don't act like you own the whole damn city and expect everyone else to pass through like a flock of sheep.

And then there’s the littering, which "fascinates" me almost every single time I see it. A cellophane wrapper flies off a pack of Marlboros—whoosh—they wolf down a burger, toss the paper aside—bye-bye... it’s common enough with certain immature types, but when you see an older person acting like a total jerk, it truly makes you lose your patience.
I’d personally give those people written permission to litter only if they could prove they behave the exact same way in their own homes. But of course, they wouldn't, because they don't want to deal with it where Mom or the wife is breathing down their necks, so the cowboy heads out to the street to pollute our SHARED public space—where on earth do they get the right to do that?!

In scenarios like that, I would definitely authorize the police to step in, perhaps even allowing them to issue fines, much like how we handle dog waste left in public parks.
Where does some elderly person who owns a dog get the right to let their pet, which probably wears a hand-knitted sweater at home, turn our SHARED public space into a mess?
If you’re a dog owner and you care about your pet, then please, take full responsibility for all its needs, including cleaning up after it. Grab a bag and do your part... but no, apparently that's too much work! Well, sorry, but I am certainly not picking up after your dog!
If we implemented strict monetary fines, you'd see real progress in public decency, because clearly, nothing works for people unless they are forced to do it—or rather, penalized. Nothing hits harder than a sting to the wallet (or, for some, a slap on the wrist).

That's all from me. 🙂

router, I get why you're annoyed.
Speaking of dog mess—have any of you ever been stuck in a major downtown area or a concrete-heavy neighborhood without a patch of grass in sight? How often do you find a pile right in the middle of the sidewalk or tucked against a building first thing in the morning? Why does this happen? Because certain "gentlemen" can't be bothered to walk a few hundred yards to a nearby park, let alone pick up after their pets.
It’s a disaster when someone steps in it, leaving "footprints" smeared all down the street. Truly lovely. 🙄
The city recently installed those blue stations with the little waste bags, but within an hour, the bags were just strewn across the lawn. Within fifteen days, the bins were gone. I sincerely hope they were removed by the same people who installed them, rather than some thief stripping them for scrap metal. 😁

Sorry, getting a bit off-topic here...

Back to the point:
Watermelon is for summer, when I don't mind being covered in juice 😁, mostly because I'm constantly at the beach anyway 😁. But in the winter? No thanks. Back then, I'll slice everything up, though I stick to orange juice since slicing oranges into wedges is such a chore.

So... it seems we aren't exactly saints ourselves 😁 ...

It’s refreshing to see people actually paying attention to these things. I notice it all the time—especially with men. They’ll stop at an unmarked crosswalk, hold the door open for the person behind them, or refrain from littering even if it's just a tiny scrap of paper. Basically, they stay aware of their surroundings and show basic respect to everyone, whether it's a kid, an elderly neighbor, or just a stranger on the street. It doesn't matter who they are.
As for the others? I usually have a biting comment ready or at least a look that lets them know exactly what I think. Surprisingly, that seems to get through to them. 😁

And why is it that you tend to notice especially when it comes to men?

Because apparently, if a young guy in our "wonderful" little town tosses an ice cream wrapper in the trash, he’s a loser—but if he litters on the street, suddenly he's some kind of big shot.

Robert Martinez6 said:Ever had this dream of living in some refined, civilized utopia populated exclusively by decent people?🙄

I’m just too polite—too well-bred, really. In today’s world, that seems to be a liability, a fact I've learned the hard way.
My parents raised me this way, and frankly, I can't seem to shake it—even though part of me wishes I could.
For instance, if there's even a slight misunderstanding with a neighbor, my first instinct is to extend an olive branch—to check if *I* was the one in the wrong and offer them a drink to smooth things over.
I always greet acquaintances on the street, I always give up my seat on the subway, I actually use silverware (yes, even for watermelon), and I have a genuine distaste for any form of crudeness...
I was just heading down to the corner store. In those ten short minutes, I witnessed absolute chaos: people blocking the crosswalk while they chatted (forcing me to walk through the grass just to get past), some guy spitting right on the sidewalk, and some idiot flying through a red light and splashing pedestrians with a puddle...

The rude ones always seem to come out on top, but I simply don't have it in me to change...

I agree regarding the pedestrians who block the middle of the sidewalk and refuse to budge, as well as the drivers who clog up the streets.
According to etiquette: "Finger foods include bread, sandwiches, crackers, pastries, ribs, lobster, cookies, corn, certain fruits, and olives."☕