Practice proper etiquette, avoid being rude

Practice+proper+etiquette%2C+avoid+being+rude

Natalie Larimer, Staff Writer

I’m sick of dealing with people who don’t know how to act in public. Etiquette is a commonly thrown-about word, though I think etiquette should be common sense. But obviously a lot of people don’t have any of that. Etiquette is extremely important to daily life.

For example, I was recently at the movie theater watching “How to Train Your Dragon 2”, which I understand is a children’s movie. But there were parents who were doing absolutely nothing  to silence their child. To quote my unnamed coworker, “They have child leashes, why not muzzles?” These children in the theater were talking at full volume during the quiet, emotional parts of the movie. Every time they said anything, my friend and I glared in their direction, though it didn’t do too much in a dark theater.

Another incident was during “The Fault in Our Stars” when my friend and I saw it in theaters. Yes, it’s a sad movie. Yes there are funny moments. No it is not okay to go “He is SO cute!” every time Augustus Waters (the lead male character) breathes. My friend and I accidentally got into the showing with the group of teenaged girls (yes I understand we are also teenaged girls) who hadn’t read the book, though I think every showing had that group. Every time something happened, one of them would gasp dramatically and the others would make as much noise as they could as they comforted her. Then when the ending came along, they were all weeping and I was glaring at them intensely, which again, didn’t do anything.

I’d just like to let you know that if you don’t behave like a proper human in public, I’m most likely going to be mad. Like my column a while ago, if you stop in the middle of the hallway and I am walking behind you, you have made a new enemy. If you are rude to waiters, you’ve gained the hatred of your peers. If you speak in a movie theater, everyone in that theater is plotting revenge. Proper etiquette is a life skill that you need in order to successfully go through life without death threats rolling in.

One thing to practice: don’t be unnecessarily rude to strangers. I cannot tell you how much I hate getting customers that come up to my register at work who are extremely rude for no reason. Especially when they blame me for things beyond my control. Is it my fault your return exceeds the return policy? Short answer: no. Also, I see my managers getting a lot of crap about not having hardcover copies of certain books. That decision traces back to the publishers and/or higher up in corporate. My managers don’t sift through piles of books and select that ones that they like to have in hardcover. That would be insanely dumb.

In short, just be a pleasant person and respect the social norm. Boundaries are usually set for a reason, and unless they are oppressive and make you feel uncomfortable, they shouldn’t be broken. (Now, when I say oppressive, I mean like, not holding hands with your significant other because people look down upon your relationship. Not you wanting to sing at the top of your lungs in the middle of a library.)