There was a troubled-looking guy in Petco this afternoon giving away packets of Natural Balance dog food. He looked like a meth addict or something.
As I walked past him, he mumbled, without making eye contact, “Want some free dog food?”
“My dog won’t eat that shit,” I said, which is not true, but it certainly took the wind out of his sails.
Now you might say I wasn’t very charming but by verbally assaulting him in that way, I was motivating him to rehabilitate himself and get a real job.
Tough love . . .
Sounds like he didn’t have much wind in his sails to begin with. What sort of “real” job would you suggest for a meth addict looking to rehabilitate himself? Do you yell out your car window to harass someone spinning a sign outside of a new subdivision or apartment complex? How about the people selling oranges by the freeway?
At least he wasn’t begging with a “Poor Me” sign out in front of Target…those are the people for whom I have no patience. The people with boring jobs that don’t take much skill shouldn’t be verbally assaulted…
I agree with you, MS. What an appalling story.
I hope to god it was somewhat fictionalized for shock value…
I fear that Hostile Witness might also scorn someone handing out pizza squares at Trader Joes.