Don't Talk To Strangers

[teleen_fiction]

A PSA for every man I encounter on a daily basis:


When I'm in the grocery store, waiting in line at the bank, going into the bookstore at the same time you are, walking across the parking lot...  Basically, if I'm in public, minding my own business and we've never met before, leave me the fuck alone.


I don't care that you like pink (the color of the shorts I was wearing at the store today) or my hair or my dress or my shoes.


I don't care that you want to know what time it is (a common distraction technique for criminals).


I don't care that we're both waiting in the same line boring and you find me attractive so you want to make small talk on the off chance I'll jump on your dick after knowing you for ten seconds.


Don't fucking talk to me.


I don't know you.  If we don't have friends in common or I'm not at work (where I can make money off of you*), I don't even WANT to know you.


Your speaking to me makes me uncomfortable and also makes me wonder if I need to worry about you doing more than speaking. 


I'm a woman alone.  Respect that my paranoia level is up and if you are truly a good, decent and nice human being, YOU WON'T FUCKING ADD TO MY STRESS by being "friendly" with me, a TOTAL STRANGER.


Just... Leave me the fuck alone.


Thank you for your time and attention.


*To everyone who says, "Well, you make money off of men all the time, why don't you like the attention outside of work?" I say, go step on the sharpest Lego you can find.  When I'm alone, not at a social gathering and we have no friends in common, YOU SHOULD NOT BE SPEAKING TO ME UNLESS IT'S TO TELL ME THAT MY HAIR IS ON FIRE (or other equivalent emergency)!

Comments

[sylvanwitch]

I'm not arguing with you here, nor am I suggesting that you don't have the right to feel the way that you do. But I did just want to observe that in my region of the country, strangers talking to each other in the grocery store, in line at the bank, etc., is normal, regardless of gender. I'm not saying that guys don't try to talk up attractive women; that happens, of course. I am saying that there are probably regional differences regarding behavior between strangers in public places such as the ones you've mentioned here.

When I moved to another part of the country, I was shocked at strangers' reactions to me when I attempted small talk in the line at the grocery. They acted like I was a potential serial killer. I learned, of course, that what's natural at home isn't natural in other places and changed my behavior accordingly. I'm going to assume that in your region of the world, it's not natural for strangers to chat.

[teleens-journal.livejournal.com]

I live in a large city, where the men should know better, :(.