GorillaOffTopic, Everything But Gorilla Trades

“Where are your manners? Say please.” This is what the Gorilla heard a mother saying to her young son as he was coming out of the gym this morning, and it was refreshing to hear. The Gorilla was asking that very same question a few minutes earlier, when he offered to help a fellow gym member and didn’t get so much as a “thank you’” in return. The manner “misdemeanor” happened when the Gorilla witnessed a man struggling to open a jammed locker. He felt bad for him, so without thinking, he simply lent a hand and was able to get the locker open. Instead of any gesture of gratitude, the man snarled at the Gorilla as if he resented the help, and said nothing, leaving the Gorilla to wonder….”where are people’s manners these days?”  Gone seem to be the days when men held the doors for the ladies; more often than not, the Gorilla sees men rushing out a doorway letting the door slam the woman behind him, smack in her face. (The Gorilla always holds a door for those behind him). In fact, many times, the Gorilla has witnessed men cutting in front of women to get a cab, even though they were clearly there first. Now granted, this is more along the lines of “chivalry,” but this rude behavior is not exclusive to just being gentlemanly. Many people are just plain rude in general; males and females.  Traffic is always a good example. There used to be such a thing as traffic etiquette- you know, letting people out in front of you in a traffic jam, or giving the person in front of you ample room, instead of riding their bumper to make your point that you want them to move out of your way. But, let’s not even get started on the traffic discussion though, because we can spend all day on that topic.  

In general, rudeness seems to abound everywhere we go, every single day, and the Gorilla has come to the conclusion that you just can’t take it personally. It is a different world we live in now. Different from the innocent times of our childhood, when people moved at a slower pace, traffic moved at a slower pace, and yes, life was slower paced. We live in the age of excess, an age in which everyone hurries up to go nowhere, and an age where the concept of instant gratification is the norm. This fast-paced lifestyle, lends itself to rudeness, whether we like it or not.  Whether it be an impolite child, who refuses to say “thank you” or “please,” whether it’s a guy in the gym who didn’t show gratitude for help, or someone who doesn’t bother to hold the door or let you get the cab first, the Gorilla has learned something valuable; Manners are becoming extinct, so do everyone a favor- mind yours, will you?