I'm bored. Distracted. Friday afternoons can be so long sometimes. At times like this I do anything and everything rather than focus on the job that needs doing. And the interweb is perfect for distraction.
Lunchtime today. Went for a walk. Well more of a limp (running injury strikes again!). And thought what I so often think: why do the English stare at the ground when they walk. When you go to France/Spain/Italy and the like people look at you, make eye contact, connect. The English act like an exchanged glance would turn them to stone. Everyone avoids eye contact. No wonder we get road rage. Don't flash your headlights at me: look at me and wave me through. Don't switch the hazards on to say thank you: give me a wave, say thank you. Don't stare at the front of my car when you step off the pavement on a red light: look me in the eye to know my intentions. And for pity sake, don't stare at the ground when you're trying to walk to the left, right, left of me: look at my face and then we'll all know where we're going. Is that really so hard?
People start from the assumption that intentions are bad. If I look at you I obviously intend to molest you. If you look at me, I may get the wrong idea and give you my phone number and before you know it we're making the twin backed beast in an alleyway, even though you need to hurry home to make tea for the kids. What is everyone so afraid of?!? If I look at you, it doesn't make me a pervert. I'm admiring you, your clothes, your hair, your shoes, whatever. By returning my gaze it says no more than "thank you".
It is very rare when someone looks at me, but when they do, I feel good. So go on, lift up your eyes when you next walk down that city street, make someone feel good, make yourself feel good, enjoy your fellow human beings and stop being so uptight and defensive. People are beautiful (except for the in-bred upper classes of course...they're just weird looking with their strange hairlines and horsey noses), so soak up the beauty and smile!
