Wake Up And Smell The Body Odor

Obliviousness (noun) – a state of being disregardful or unconscious of one’s surroundings, concerns or obligations; unmindful, unconscious, unaware; lacking active conscious knowledge or awareness.

If this describes you at certain times, then you are part of the human race. I know that I sometimes find myself daydreaming or running on autopilot or just plain not paying attention and do something inconsiderate to others in public, such as cutting some little old lady off in line at the grocery store (no, no, no, just kidding!).

But there are also those people who seem to be deliberately obtuse when it comes to human interaction in public places, people whose only excuse can be that their mamma didn’t raise them right. Because mine raised me to be considerate of others.

I started thinking about this the last time we journeyed to the beach, a place where you are on full display, so to speak, and should therefore be a bit more mindful of your actions. There we were, enjoying some sun, sand and solace from the world’s problems, when loud blaring music assaulted our ears. Why do people think the rest of us appreciate their taste, or lack thereof, in music?

What if we all, everyone on the beach or at the pool or in the park or wherever we are, turned up the volume on our tunes on our portable outdoor speakers? Would we all suddenly, sheepishly remember that, oh yeah, that is what earphones are made for? Or would we all engage in a cacophonous game of one-upmanship until we all went deaf?

You also notice obliviousness when people are trying to enter or exit somewhere in large quantities at the same time, such as a movie theater or concert hall (remember them?). As soon as people pass the portals, what do they do? They stop, oblivious to the people behind them, as they look around and get their bearings or chat with friends or decide they can’t wait one second more to check their messages on their phone.  

Even more of an annoyance these days is the lack of social distancing. It’s great most of us are finally on board with wearing masks in public during this pandemic, but what part of the six feet apart is so difficult to understand? Please don’t reach around me to grab a cucumber or a bag of chips just because you are in a hurry; back off a couple of steps and be patient. This would be a good time to check your messages on your phone.

Perhaps if we all stopped bathing regularly then body odor would act as a natural repellant and remind us all of the need to keep our distance. Hey, scary times call for drastic measures.

It’s often said that people sometimes are too much like sheep because they mindlessly do what they’re told and forget that they are supposed to think for themselves. But sheep also just walk around and eat whatever grass they can find, not caring if their baaing is too loud or they’re stepping on another sheep’s hooves or defecating on some grass that I had my eye on. 

So, please, stop being a sheep. Stop being an obliviant (I wish I’d made that up). Wake up, be aware, and start thinking about other people.

Don’t make me turn my music up.