it still surprises me how rude new yorkers will be while telling someone else of their bad manners.

the other day, a friend of ours was on the bus and listening to her ipod. another woman boarded and apparently tried to speak to her, but our friend didn't know she should have been listening. "you're so rude!" the woman finally yelled. "and you're fat, too!"

and yesterday i was waiting in line to buy something when the guy in front of me suddenly let fly with the cashier. "you're RUDE!" he said loudly. "you shouldn't be so rude!" and when the woman turned in confusion to the other cashier, the man got louder. "YOU! RUDE!! YOU!!"

he turned and left, but i wish i had said something. i wish i had told him something about how rude he himself was being. i could plead that by saying something i would have been perpetuating the cycle, but i know better. i was just being chicken.