Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
So, I'm in the barbershop yesterday, getting a haircut. This chubby kid walks in. He's maybe 13 or 14 years old. He's wearing athletic shorts and a t-shirt, both emblazoned with the local High School Marine Corps JRTOC program.
He gets in the chair across the room, by the cash register. My haircut is done, I walk over to cash register to pay. The kid is 3/4 of the way to high and tight. Big difference. A big pile of hair on the floor. As I pass by I said, "Now you're starting to look like a Marine."
I pay for the haircut, and as I turn to leave, I looked at him and said, "Now you need to get in shape." He looked at me blankly.
I mentioned this to my GF. She was aghast. She said I was being rude. I mentioned it to my boss, and she said I was being "mean." That some "old guy, stranger" wasn't the person to tell that to some kid in a barber shop. She suggested if the kid's mom had been there I could have gotten a punch in the eye.
So, was I really out of line? I'm career military. I see a pudgy kid in a barber shop, who seems interested in Marine Corps JROTC, and I told him he needs to get into shape. I wasn't mean about it. I was matter-of-fact about.
Are we really to the point where our precious little snowflakes shouldn't be "exposed" to a man who tells them they should get into shape?
You think the kids who stormed Normandy would have had an issue with some guy in a barbershop telling them they needed to get into shape?
--
I still recall when in 8th grade pitching in (the entire PE class was dragooned as a work crew) to install pvc pipe at our local school. The contractor commented I needed to do some more manual work because I was weak and struggling with my section of the pipe. He was correct. I never forgot that comment. I did me a world of good in terms of lifelong interest in exercise. That was in the late 70s!!! I still remember the guy's name.
By today's standard it was rude. Back then it was normal.
I recall my interactions with adults quite well from those early years. It is part of the shaping process. Sometimes a known person- family, teacher and sometimes a stranger. At least I remember these corrections and note they had a positive effect.
ruined his day? this is the kind of remark/experience that can stay with some people for years and years.
Honestly?? You think I scarred him for years to come? Really? By telling him he needed to get into shape? He'll need anti-anxiety and anti-depressant meds? Require therapy for PTSD? Please refer back to my original "snowflake" comment.
I was listening to a local radio station play the song, Rockstar, by Nickleback. And they bleeped out the word "drug" in "drug dealer." I couldn't believe it. I guess they were afraid if all of the delicate little snowflakes out there even heard the word "drug," they'd immediately go out and become drug addicts.
Yes you were out of line. At 13-14 a kid is just developing. Will he continue to develop out? Maybe. Will he develop up instead? It's possible and happens quite often.
My wife still talks about how she was heavy in elementary school. She hit puberty and grew straight up (she is 5 10). It still bothers her the things that were said to her then.
ruined his day? this is the kind of remark/experience that can stay with some people for years and years.
If someone ruins your day, I hope you know it can stay with you for years and years.. memories can last a life time. Some remember not the day, but just the moment in time.
My wife still talks about how she was heavy in elementary school. She hit puberty and grew straight up (she is 5 10). It still bothers her the things that were said to her then.
Keep in mind, I didn't tell him he was heavy. Or pudgy. Or fat. I told him he needed to get into shape. After saying that he was beginning to look like a Marine (an obvious reference to the Marine Corps JROTC clothes he was wearing).
Keep in mind, I didn't tell him he was heavy. Or pudgy. Or fat. I told him he needed to get into shape. After saying that he was beginning to look like a Marine (an obvious reference to the Marine Corps JROTC clothes he was wearing).
--
Maybe......I wasn't there so I can do nothing but give you the benefit of the doubt.
Honestly?? You think I scarred him for years to come? Really? By telling him he needed to get into shape? He'll need anti-anxiety and anti-depressant meds? Require therapy for PTSD? Please refer back to my original "snowflake" comment.
I was listening to a local radio station play the song, Rockstar, by Nickleback. And they bleeped out the word "drug" in "drug dealer." I couldn't believe it. I guess they were afraid if all of the delicate little snowflakes out there even heard the word "drug," they'd immediately go out and become drug addicts.
We're becoming a country of marshmallows.
--
You asked for people's opinions...and now this post.
If you knew the kid and had a sit-down chat with him as a concerned person, that would be one thing. But to stick your nose into someone else's business is simply not your business.
Keep in mind, I didn't tell him he was heavy. Or pudgy. Or fat. I told him he needed to get into shape. After saying that he was beginning to look like a Marine (an obvious reference to the Marine Corps JROTC clothes he was wearing).
--
If he wanted to be a Marine, then you have said nothing wrong to him. An overweight teenager asked my brother once if he could be a Marine. My brother told him he should do some research, talk to a recruiter, and definitely he needed to get in shape, otherwise, bootcamp would be miserable for him.
If he could not handle the "get in shape" comment, how could he possibly handle bootcamp. lol
ruined his day? this is the kind of remark/experience that can stay with some people for years and years.
And it might just have well changed it forever.... for the better...........
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
