just so this story makes sense, last friday i hurt my toe. actually, i stubbed it and a piece that resented all the drama going on in the world decided to fall off. belonging to me, though, it got halfway through, changed its mind, and hung on by a bit of skin. it hurt. a lot. it was an awful thing to wake up to. (i stubbed it on my sister's bed while going to turn off the alarm clock.) and it had a long dramatic blog post dedicated to it that i never posted for some reason. anyway, because of the fact that shoes hurt (my toe for pressing on it, my ankle and knee because of the awkward way i was walking), i have been wearing flip flops when i have to go out.
you know what you get when you wear flip flops in below freezing weather when every blade of grass is covered with ice and every puddle frozen solid? pain. lots and lots of pain. when walking across campus (because i can only find parking on the very far edge of campus opposite my class which is on the other very far edge) i have to stop in almost every building (when i'm around them) to let my toes thaw. then they burn for a while. then i go back out and feel the pain of them freezing again. it's good fun. and the more time spent in buildings means the longer the walk gets drawn out. and the faster i walk, the colder my feet get (what with the wind and stuff). it's a real catch 22. people are constantly giving me weird looks, but i guess i do look a bit strange with my summer shoes and winter coat. hopefully, i'll be back in normal shoes for classes next week, just when the temperature is going to make it to above freezing.
as stupid as i may look, though, the people who see me are just so much stupider. take, for example, these three conversations i had with a couple of people over the past few days.
[one] i'm sitting in the library reading, waiting for my sister to get out of her class. i'm pulled out of the fictional world by a tap on my shoulder. i look up to see a middle aged asian woman is standing by my chair.
her: excuse me, but... do you know you're wearing flip flops?
me: *gasp* i am? really? wow that explains the cold draft around my toes. thanks lady.
actually, i said, "umm... yeah," but i prefer the answer going through my head.
[two] i join the group waiting outside class tonight.
girl: you're wearing flip flops!
me: yes.
girl: but it's winter.
me: so it is.
girl: your toes are blue. are they cold?
are they cold? are they cold?! no, they're turning blue because i am part chameleon and i'm trying to camouflage with my jeans. i mean, seriously.
[three] we get into class. the girl from up there ^ sits like two seats ahead of me. she turns to talk to the girl next to her. (in my ISA class, i have a lot more girls than in my other classes. there are like almost ten of us i think.)
girl 1: guess what i just saw? a girl wearing flip flops!
girl 2: in winter?
girl 1: yeah, i just saw her.
girl 2: did she know?
girl 1: i think so.
ignoring the fact that they were practically right in front of me and talking like i wasn't there, did i know? what is wrong with people assuming that i don't know what shoes i put on when i leave the house. i mean, yes, i can be absent-minded sometimes, but come on. i don't think anyone is that oblivious. i'm pretty sure i don't act blind, and the fact that i'm in school must mean i'm not a complete moron, so i dunno what to think. of course, she could have meant did i know it was still winter, in which case i'm pretty sure i know the difference between cold and hot, and it's still questioning my intelligence.
in other news, i really want a cheeseburger.
*So Cold - Breaking Benjamin
I guess they expected you to be stoned and drunk, and therefore incapable of knowing what you put on your feet in the morning. Anyway you're a badass for challenging the winter with flip flops and a toe injury! (I hope it heals!)
ReplyDeleteBy the way, think of all the trouble idiots would save themselves if they just asked... "Why?"
yeah. i mean, when i see a hijabi the first thing that comes to my mind is "she must be stoned and drunk," too.
ReplyDeletethanks, it's pretty much healed now so i can save my flip flops for the sun.
and omg i know, right? i would have understood a why or two.
sadly, i probably would have said something about the lack of shoes.
ReplyDelete*side note... i swear i almost wrote hat instead of shoes, because i am effin still thinking about that effin hat that that effin drowning girl wouldn't frikkin reach for. wtf.
but would you have assumed i didn't know about what i was wearing? 'cause that was where the real problem was. also, lol to your side note. poor drowning girl.
ReplyDelete