Well, this morning, and by extention the week, was off to a helluva start. I awoke at seven in the morning, and then went back to bed for a half hour. When I awoke, I hurridly prepared myself for the day and was suited & out the door by 7:45. Unfortunately, being so early in the month I’d not been extorted $80 (!!!) for a bus pass and had to do so before I could make use of the transit system in February. So I missed the first bus.

 Arming myself with a huge coffee (the one convenience store that sells bus passes in my neighborhood was sold out. ah, the pain!) I went to stack my ducketts at the bank before hitting up the bus station. I waited in line while some old ladies did everything I do on the RBC website at the one bank terminal. Painful though it was, I sat back and chilled while the seniors did their thing. I then did mine and proceeded to the bus station.

 The first bus was full and paid our stop no mind.

 Now, I’ve been describing my day to you thus far because I want to show you how I deal with things that annoy the hell out of me. I dont get all uptight about them, I let them sort themselves out because it just ain’t work the additional aggravation.

Now, when I’d finished my coffee, the second bus had pulled up. At the head of a throng of people and about 20 feet from a garbage can, I discarded my empty coffee on the ground.

Please bear in mind that nine times out of ten, indeed whenever convenient or rational to do so, I use proper garbage cans. I dont see a problem with littering when it suits my purposes. Indeed, compared to greater polluters (I’m lookin’ at you, Defasco), I’d done no damage other than cosmetic to our fair city. At least, thats what I thought.

Without warning, from behind, a good samaritan (a McMaster student, freeloading on the HSR) decided to inform me of the location of the closest garbage can. He pointed it out very clearly to me, so that I could find it. Never mind that I obviously live in the area, use the bus stop every day and would know where to get rid of my trash in a PC-manner.

Well, it was a different issue for me now. Glancing at the garbage can and the bus, I gave my reply with a thumbs-up.

“Stellar!”

Now, the poor guy probably thought he had the moral high ground. In fact, he went back and picked up the cup and disposed of it properly. What he did, paternally, condescendingly, implying that I shouldn’t litter, was ignorant and rude. To approach a stranger, indeed an apparent social equal, with a petty matter like this, shows a pretentiousness I can’t fathom. I dont try to impose my standards of morality on anyone around me. My litter did him no harm, yet he sought to humiliate me in public.

Its the principal of the thing, really. You just don’t tell other people-strangers- what to do in public. If it bothers you so much, fix it yourself. I can’t imagine anyone spoken to in such a manner would bow to the request. Instead, I turned the tables and made him follow through on his sentiments, lest he be thought a hypocrite.

I’m obviously making a big deal about a very small situation, but the example applies all throughout life as well. Some people get a real kick out of telling you what is right and what is wrong and exporting their morality to others. These people are the worst kind of tyrants, the ones who briefly outlawed alcholic beverages, criminalized marijuana and other God-given plants, and demonized free sexual expression. They’re the ones who’d like to see cigarette smokers thrown in jail…

 Well, that was my trip to school. I hope I made that guy think as deeply about our brief encounter as he made me consider mine.