It’s late and I’m tired but for some reason I feel compelled to tell you all about my day and the lack of simple common courtesy people seem to have nowadays.

Today I went out to a Gem Show. They sell loose gems and jewelry. Figured it would be an interesting time.

Never in my life have I seen such a lack of common courtesy. I cannot single anyone out, it was not a race, religion, age or gender thing, it was just everyone.

As I walked around I noticed people pushing, stepping in front of others, actually taking items out of someone elses hands. It made my gut turn to think that people could be like this. What happened to manners? Has our society really gotten this bad that people need to act like animals? I went about my business until I could not take it anymore!! As i was walking down the aisle a man literally walked directly into me. Now it wasn’t like he didn’t see me. If I new any better I would have thought he was picking a fight with me. Here is the brief conversation before Security paid us a visit.

Me - WOW excuse me

No Manners Manny - oh sorry (and very sarcastic)

Me - NO I believe the word is EXCUSE ME!! You know what you say to someone right before you WALK INTO THEM

No Manners Manny - Excuse me

Me - I mean did you not see me or were you just being that friggin rude.

I will admit at this point I should have just walked away but I just couldn’t take it anymore!

Security - Excuse me gentlemen is there a problem?

Me - other than the fact this guy is an asshole and just walks right into people

No Manners Manny - No problem, I did walk into him so he does have a right to be mad,

Me - Thank you for acknowledging the fact you have no courtesy for people, (what an asshole, said very under my breath)

Now I have never been to smart at keeping my mouth shut when I should.

Security - Ok, Ok, you go that way and you go that way.

I turn with a big smile on my face and look at the Security Guard and realized that he was trying not to laugh from the whole situation.

Me -  Thank you sir for your assistance in resolving this matter. (trying not to laugh either)

Security - Have a nice day.

As I walk away an older gentleman came over and put his hand on my shoulder and said “Good for you, the people here are just acting plain rude, Someone had to say something, Good for you, for standing up for yourself”.

I guess my breaking point in all this was the fact that it’s not hard to have manners. It’s not hard to be courteous around people!!! This whole thing made me reflect back on a comment that was left on a previous post I had made. “Just another example of the “it’s all about me” generation that U.S. citizens have become.” I’m not saying this is everyone but I think we all need to reflect on our actions around other people and maybe just try and bring back day to day courtesy. It’s not hard to take a second and open a door for someone, or just hold the door for an approaching person. After you read this I hope you can think of a way to show common courtesy to someone.

Also after reading this remember it’s not wise to be drinking for your Stupid Cup with Security approaching :-)

So tonight, on my way home from work I was a witness to someone that drank so much from the Stupid Cup she more than likely should have had “Stupid Cup” tattooed on her forehead.

I’m driving along the back road that I take to get home. I notice it’s fairly warm out and there are a lot of children out playing. The car in front of me is driving slow and so am I as to keep an eye on the playing children. I notice a small child about 6 or 7 riding his bike with his mother next to him. Now I don’t know about you but when I was a kid my mom always kept me on the inside of the sidewalk. The car in front of me slammed on his brakes because the child decided to pull out into the middle of the road. Now this is the conversation that took place.

Motorist Mike - Hey Kid please watch where you are going, you could have been hit

Moron Mom - HEY YOU IDIOT WATCH OUT FOR MY KID, HE’S RIDING HIS BIKE IN THE ROAD.

Motorist Mike now stops in the middle of the road and voices are much much louder.

Motorist Mike- Lady are you Friggin Kidding me, Pay Attention to your Kid.

Moron Mom - Go to hell, if you were paying attention it wouldn’t be an issue

Motorist Mike - (Now Screaming) Hey Lady, Since I’m your kids Babysitter I want 30 bucks an hour.

Now usually an interruption of this sort would have sent me over the falls after a full days work, but the humor and stupidity of Moron Mom was just to entertaining to be mad.

As Motorist Mike slowly drove away, he looked at the small child and said “please be careful, because your Mom is to stupid to look after you”.

Now I am not a parent, but I was raised with a very very attentive Mother. This type of situation didn’t happen in my family. If I darted into the road, I would have been quickly brought to safety and then spoken to or disciplined. Through my travels I have seen situations like this more and more over the last few years. I truly feel that some parents do not know how to control their children. I have seen kids throwing food on airplanes at other passengers. Parents did nothing. It’s not my responsibility to baby sit your kid, It’s not my problem if you have some type of attention disorder where you can’t control your child, find HELP. Parents of the world, reflect back to when you were a child, would you get away with half of the crap your kids do today. I bet not!!!

I wish I had a “Stupid Cup” t-shirt with me today, because as Motorist Mike drove away I think I would have tossed it out to Moron Mom. Maybe she would have actually gotten the message, but I seriously doubt it.

So on my way to work this morning I bumped into an old friend. You all probably know this guy also; his name is Horn Tooting Tommy.

I am very fortunate, as I have a 2 minute commute to work through a very small town. Most of the people on the side of the road still wave every morning even if they don’t know your name.

On my way to work every morning I encounter at least one of two school busses. Each one causes a small traffic backup. Now to some of you out there a traffic backup can go for miles and miles, this is not the case here, we are talking like 30 cars.

So I’m in the car this morning listening to the news on the radio when I reach the spot I always get stuck waiting for the school bus, no big deal I have time to kill. I’m on a side street trying to pull onto the main road, School Bus is coming down the road to my left (about to put on the stop lights) and I have a Mac Truck pulling a trailer to my right. Knowing that the bus was going to be stopping and not ever pulling out in front of a vehicle that can use me as a speed bump I stopped. Well behind me Horn Tooting Tommy felt the need to let me know he disapproved of my decision to stop. There are few things that really enrage me while driving; HORN TOOTING IS ONE OF THEM. There is a time and a place for it, kid in the road, sure toot your horn, Hey I’m about to hit you, Toot your Horn, but when I stop for a school bus and a big frigging truck WRONG ANSWER!!!! Horn Tooting Tommy was obviously up to late watching eagerly to see if Hilary took Indiana, and had been sipping out of his stupid cup all morning long to wake himself up since he was now late for work. While sitting patiently waiting for traffic to clear and sipping from my cup, I now pull out onto the main road at a nice slow pace. I have found that while fully engulfed in road rage it’s better to drive slow and piss off the person behind me otherwise I would more than likely follow Horn Tooting Tommy to work, pull him out of this car and beat him to within an inch of his life with a crowbar!! Driving slowly and watching him freak out is much more therapeutic than jail time. I’m driving 20 MPH in a 40 MPH zone, taking my sweet time, watching Tommy through his hands in the air, giving me the finger and riding my bumper. I’m amused. It’s not like he doesn’t know I’m doing it on purpose. I put my blinker on to pull into work, half hoping he pulls in after me to say something (Sip Sip Road Rage still there), but he doesn’t he just whips past me and speeds away.

For Tommy’s sake I hope the effects of the Cup wear off at some point today. There are others out there that drink much more heavily from the Cup than I do.

Just remember A Sip for A Sip doesn’t make it right

Introducing Cell Phone Cindy 

Let me start by saying, Cindy in this case can be male or female. My dislike for Cell Phone Cindy is gender neutral. We all know Cell Phone Cindy, the person that interrupts our lunch with her Carrie Underwood ring tone on full Blast, She is the reason you now know how to dance the mambo because of her cell phone ringing in the office so much. You all at one time or another have been Cell Phone Cindy, I know I have!!

Let’s talk about cell phone Etiquette.

When you work in an office, now I’m not talking about Wall Street Stock Exchange here, I’m talking about a quiet office, do you need to have your volume up so you can hear your phone ringing when you are not at your desk. IT’S A CELL PHONE!!!! Pick it up, put it on your belt, or in your pocket, set it to vibrate if it’s that important. Like I want to hear your newly downloaded ever so cool hip hop or country song ring tone that you got screwed paying 3 dollar for.

Yummy, I love food; you’re probably saying what in gods name does that have to do with a cell phone. Well, while I’m enjoying my double cheeseburger and fries at the local Greasy Spoon Cell Phone Cindy is behind me like a stupid monkey, trying to have a conversation on her cell phone. Why she keeps screaming into the phone “CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW” like a damn cell phone commercial is far beyond me. Ready for a lesson in basic technology, CELL PHONES HAVE THIS NEW INVENTION CALLED A MICROPHONE, SO COULD YOU PLEASE KEEP IT DOWN AND LET ME ENJOY MY HEART ATTACK ON A PLATE please J

Now I’m not saying everyone is rude with their cell phones. I just feel that society has accepted the behavior for much to long. I mean I bet if Cell Phone Cindy was sitting in the movie theater watching Bed of Roses or Maid of Honor and someone’s cell busted out with SMACK THAT GET ON THE FLOOR, she would be pissed.

I really think the next time I’m out on the town and I see Cell Phone Cindy, I’m going to grab her cell phone, drop it in her water glass and politely ask her to take a big SIP.

Today, the lack of common sense that someone had enspired me to write a quick story. Let me start by introducing todays main character, Cry Baby Chistine.

This Afternoon while spending some time at a local cigar shop, enjoying a nice cigar and talking to a friend (Cigar Shop Bill), in comes Cry Baby Christine.

Cigar Shop Bill - Hello, Can I help you

Cry Baby Christine - No thanks I’m just looking around

Cigar Shop Bill - Ok, Just let me know if you need anything, more than happy to help you

Cigar Shop Bill and I continue our conversation while enjoying our fine hand made cigars.

Cry Baby Christine - Excuse me, The smell of your cigars Offend me, and the smoke is bothering me

Cigar Shop Bill - Oh I’m sorry let me move to the other end of the shop for you, he asks me nicely if I minded taking our conversation to the front of the store.

I agree, I don’t want to bother one of the customers

Cry Baby Christine - I don’t think moving is going to help, could you go outside or put your cigars out.

At this point I look at Cigar Shop Bill and say, I’m sorry Bill I don’t think so. We head up to the front of the store to keep Cry Baby Christine away from us as much as possible

A minute or two goes by and Cry Baby Christine approaches the front of the store.

Cry Baby Christine - I can’t believe you didn’t put your cigars out when I asked you to, I’ll take my business elsewhere.

Ok, Now I understand that things bother people. But I mean lets stop and think about this. Would you go into Toys R Us and ask children to stop playing with toys. Would you go into the local bar and ask the bartender not to sell beer because the smell offends you. WHY IN GODS NAME would you go into a CIGAR SHOP where you can clearly see people SMOKING a cigar if cigar smoke OFFENDS YOU!!! I would love to see Cry Baby Christine on the street somewhere and have her come up to me and tell me my cigar smoke offends her!!! She would get a burst of laughter from me while I continued to Puff away on my stogie!! If  I know something bother me I tend not to subject myself to it. If I don’t like loud noises, I don’t go to loud places. Oh excuse me Mr. DJ or Mr. Singer at a concert, your music is to loud can you  turn it down. We all can guess how that would go right. Now I do enjoy a cigar when possible, I do my best not to subject non cigar smokers to the bad habbit, but coming into a cigar shop and asking people to put out their expensive cigars, I mean WHAT WAS this person really thinking. She is the kind of person that would go to Greatful Dead or a Tom Petty concert and be upset that people were smoking weed. I really just wanted to run to the local coffee shop and grab an empty cup. Then hand it to her and SCREAM, SHOW ME HOW YOU DRINK FROM THE STUPID CUP.

So the information technology age has people relying on technology more than ever. I understand this, but for some reason people think that technology moves at the speed of light.

I’d like to introduce Buffoon Brian. Brian is usually a pretty reasonable guy that is on top of stuff around the office. Below you will read about the conversation between Brian and Tech Support.

Buffoon Brian – Hey if I bring my laptop in tomorrow can you update my critical software program for a meeting I have at 9am

Tech Support – Brian, if you have a meeting tomorrow at 9am don’t you think you should have brought it in today so I could have tested it. I cannot promise it will be all updated by 9am. We do start work at 8.

Buffoon Brian – Oh come on, you have a whole hour to update stuff. I mean how long are you going to need.

Tech Support – Like I said no promises but I will see what I can do.

Next Morning Buffoon Brian comes in smiling, while walking by saying hey brought the laptop with me.

Tech Support – I’ll see what I can do

45 minutes later

Tech Support – Brian I’m really sorry it doesn’t look like your software will be installed in time.

Buffoon Brian – Are you serious! I have a huge meeting. How can you do this

Tech Support – I’m really sorry I can’t make the program install any faster, Maybe you should have planned better and brought the laptop in earlier

(Buffoon Brian walks away steaming mad)

To all End Users, If you have something important, Something you need to have done at a certain time, don’t wait till the last minute. The last thing I want to hear is your sad sob story about how your piss poor planning should now affect my life. Like I should drop everything I’m working on, and run to help you like your the Queen of Friggin Sheeba. Ready for the reality check, I have to seem like I care, it’s my job as a tech support person. I have to put my best effort forward, but please don’t think for a second that I will be laying in bed tonight thinking about my failure to get your stupid laptop ready for your ever so important meeting. That you didn’t have enough foresite to bring in early to test. The moral of the story is simple, Yes computers are fast, yes the networks are running at blazing speeds, but guess what Things still take time.

Remember before you ask someone something, STOP and ask yourself
DID I HAVE A SIP TODAY

Well, This has been a long time coming. In the corporate work place I encounter people from all walks of life, and it seems that almost everyday I speak with someone who has obviously taken a big sip from the stupid cup. Now if you smiled when you read that you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you do not understand what you just read, you might want to move on to another blog you can understand a bit better or maybe play some webkinz. Now as I post stories and experiences I will not have proper English or grammar. I do not apologize for that. This is a blog, its not a Pulitzer prize novel. There are times I will actually make mistakes on purpose. Now that, that is out of the way. Let me introduce myself, I am the Stupid Cup I am the cup that is passed around homes, offices, building, towns, cities and countries all over the world. People drink from me from time to time, and when they do I will be writing about it.

Stay tuned for more to come