No white after Labor Day. Having to hug relatives you’ve met once in your life. Acting as if you like your friend’s boyfriend so she won’t hate you forever. There are a million things we do (and don’t do) every single day because it’s “appropriate,” and while most of them are harmless, they can seriously get under our skin.
Regardless of whether you agree with the 15 people below, I’m sure you can see where they’re coming from…
#15. Just being nice
“Never being clear about if you actually don’t want something or you’re just being nice by refusing it. I try my very best to clarify what I’m doing but the existence of the concept makes it so frustrating to deal with, no matter which side of out I’m on.”
#14. When there’s nothing good about it
“Having to praise someone else’s work when there’s nothing good about it.
I can’t even tell if I did good or if people are just trying to be nice.”
#13. I still have trouble
“Don’t speak unless spoken to.” One sure fire way to make your kids awkward adults is to follow the children are to be seen but not heard philosophy. I still have trouble talking to people at almost 30.”
#12. Socially acceptable
“What time of day during which it is socially acceptable to drink. Due to my work schedule, I wake up in the evening and go to bed mid morning. Somehow it’s considered more normal for me to drink as soon as I get up at the start of my day than at the end.”
#11. Silence is a good thing
“Silence. People are expected to always have something to talk about if you don’t talk than it’s considered awkward. Sometimes silence is a good thing.”
#10. It never ends
“In the Netherlands: congratulating someone with a family member/friend’s birthday. When in multiples, everybody congratulates everyone else.”
#9. Showing up on time
“Don’t show up on time to parties. Show up 15min to 1hr late.”
#8. No one sees me all day
“having to dress to the nines for my IT Position where i sit in a locked room in a cubicle where noone sees me all day.”
#7. Am I supposed to answer?
“I just moved to US not too long ago and I find it weird that people always ask “how are you?”and other variations and then walk away. There’s this guy at work, he was going down the stairs and I was walking up. He said “how you doing” without stopping, not even looking at me. Am I suppose answer? My husband told me it’s the normal form of greeting here, form of acknowledgment. I’m just torn whether to answer or not, because half the time before I can even respond they’re already out the door.”
#6. I just don’t want to go
“That when you decline a social event you can’t just say you’re staying home, you have to have another event or commitment on at the same time. You can’t just not want to go.”
#5. Filled with fury
“In Ghanaian culture (and presumably some others) it’s considered disrespectful to hand someone something with your left hand. It had to be your right.
When I was a kid my dad (who was an all round dickhead) would give us all such a hard time over it. He would get legitimately mad as if we’d done something consciously disrespectful if we handed him maybe the TV remote with a left hand.
The other day on Twitter I saw a teacher (or maybe a preacher I couldn’t really tell which) slap a kid because the boy handed him something with his left. And it wasn’t a slap like “You’ve done something wrong this is the consequence” it was filled with fury like the guy looked legitimately pissed.”
#4. I decide who is family
“Having to invite X person to a wedding. I have zero relationship with my first cousins and make no bones about how much I deeply dislike a stepbrother. But I’m supposed to invite them because “family”?????
Fuck them and fuck that. They have not and will not do a thing for me. My buddy I go to shows with? He helped me move furniture into my apartment at 10 pm on a weeknight because he’s a good dude. He is more family to me than the others. I decide who is family.”
#3. They don’t deserve said respect
“Respect your elders no matter what.
That’s perfectly fine on a day-to-day basis, but if they’re elderly and a cunt they don’t deserve said respect.”
#2. No love lost
“That you have to love your family members. Sometime family members are shitty people.”
#1. Run, don’t walk
“That running places instead of walking is weird. I’m sorry, but where I live is absoulety freezing and I don’t feel like being outside that long plus it’s a good workout. I don’t mean a full out sprint, but just any type of jog or speedwalk”
Rebel, my friends. Because why the heck not?
