By a complete stranger, no less, who happened to notice my 30th birthday button which I had forgotten was on my coat. Almost burst into tears on the spot, but then I am a bit hormonal today.
Please, fellow lemmings, cheer me up by telling me: what’s the worst thing you’ve had said to you by a stranger?
I’m sorry…but I don’t get it?
It means you look old/tired/haggard basically (I mean… I hadn’t had a coffee yet, but still!)
As an American I would have never guessed. You guys have a gold mine of creative insults
Coffee? Don’t you mean spice melange?
Intentionally: I was cycling to college one time up a hill and a car behind me went to overtake, as he overtook the passenger put his window down and laughed at me and put it back up.
Unintentionally: I was a particularly self conscious teenager with fairly long hair. I was sat on the bus as a young girl looks at me and goes: “daddy why is that lady’s hair wet?” I’m a man. My hair wasn’t wet it was just greasy. I felt that one for a few days.
Little kids can be brutally honest. My kids have certainly helped me develop thicker skin. Some things my daughter said to me as a toddler:
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Daughter: daddy stop singing - Me: why? - Daughter: because you can’t
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After I gained 20 lbs due to stress and COVID lockdown and my daughter saw me without my shirt on: Mom, dad has weird boobs
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My daughter looking at a picture from our wedding: wow, dad you look so different? - My brain: just keep your mouth shut and don’t ask her to elaborate
Those are just the ones I remember off the top of my head. Thankfully, she’s grown beyond that age now.
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Not a complete stranger, but a guy who was attempting to seduce me did once tell me he loved my pretty face and it made up for my body not being great.
Dude fuck off I’m average weight and I’m not gonna be shamed for having big hips, take your negging elsewhere!
Sorry you ran into someone terrible, and happy (presumably belated) birthday! Hope you had a good one.
When I was a little kid, I point at random people and shout at them: “You are a bus!” And there is one man who responded to me and said, “You are a bus too!”.
I love this, did it cause an existential crisis in your child brain?
After that man said that, everyone just laughed and it was fun.
Ever since then I share this to all my friends just to make them laugh!
Since moving to the UK I’ve been called a foreign removed surprisingly often. Is that a thing you do here?
You need to stop going to flat roof pubs mate.
Seriously though, sorry some of my country folk are twats. On behalf of the nice people, welcome :)
That’s the first time I’ve heard ‘flat roof pubs’ and it’s so true and just fucking glorious!
Well, are you a removed?
I mean yeah, but that’s beside the point
Fair point, it isn’t fair on the others.
Not particularly bad, but for some reason it stuck with me:
I was walking back from a house party, back when I was a student. It must have been 7am or something, I start walking through a park, and the only other guy in there is a runner, complete with one of those compression vest things.
Either way I barely notice the guy until I’m about halfway through this park and he looks like he’s making a bee-line for me. Not especially concerned or anything, but he’s definitely heading right towards my direction.
Well he makes it within about 5m and then just roars “Morning after is it?! Hahahahahahahaha” at me and then runs off again in another seemingly random direction whilst cackling for far too long.
I’m still wondering over a decade on if he went out of his way to run by me and deliver a relatively beige heckle.
Damn I’m sorry that happened. Sounds like you just randomly ran into a cruel asshole. Happy 30th! I’m looking forward to mine soon too!
When you smoke weed do you become High Wrothgar?
Nope🤷
You made me realise that that’s a 12 year old reference and now I feel like a pensioner
Creaks
Yeah ngl I still have no idea haha
Haha, in the main quest in Skyrim you go to a place called High Hrothgar, tenuous humour at best 😅
Ah I see, I was never much into Skyrim. My name actually came from my barbarian in a d&d campaign
Happened to me a few times, but it is buried so deep I cannot remember the things they said. Don’t take it personally, think about it with empathy - what kind of a sad life must someone have to feel the need to make a stranger feel bad, too? Pity them. The people I met who tend to be mean to/talk bad about strangers because of outward appearances often enough had some serious troubles with their own lifes and especially self-esteem. It made them feel superior to talk someone else down. Often enough I think they are just jealous or misogynous. How old was this stranger? Maybe they would like to be 30 again to live life differently. If they were younger - maybe they figured you had the button because someone gifted it to you, or you had a party just for you, and this person does not have any friends to party. Whatever it is - nothing’s wrong with you, it’s the person who actively chose to spend their time - even if just a short moment - to make some stranger feel bad, who has a problem. Don’t let your birthday memories be shadowed by this and enjoy your coffee.
Thank you for this. I always try to be empathetic but I was so busy feeling sorry for myself I forgot to think about why they did it, so thank you for reminding me that it’s not about me at all, it’s about them. It helps knowing that. :)
(Also mouserat rules)
What a weird and horrid thing to say to a stranger. I’m not sure what strangers say to me as I usually wear my trusty earphones.
