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Nobody likes a vague disclaimer.
Aug. 12th, 2007 12:11 pmIf I don't stab my step-dad, either this week, or the week I'm stuck in close quarters with him at the beach, it'll be a miracle.
We were talking about Barry Bonds' home run the other night, and the guy who caught it. And my mom mentioned this guy on the news who had said they should tax the guy for his ball, since it's obviously worth quite a bit now. And we were saying how stupid that was, you shouldn't have to assess baseballs, and my dad starts in on how that's all the Democrats' fault, and it's "democrap" and so on. For about ten minutes. And when my dad goes on a rant, he doesn't really stop to let other people say anything. I may think most of the Republicans in office right now are jackasses, but I don't malign the whole party and call them idiots when I'm speaking face to face with a Republican. Or anytime, really, much as I may rant about the fanatical right-wingers.
And today he tells me to go get tomatoes, even though we have five sitting on the counter. And when I pointed that out, he said that all but the two little ones taken from our garden were those genetically engineered, tastes-like-crap tomatoes grown God-knows-where. And when I told them I'd bought them from Larriland two days ago, he told me they didn't feel like it, and I should get more anyway. Then I asked him how I was supposed to get better tomatoes if the ones from the pick-your-own farm weren't good enough, and he told me I'd know a good tomato when I picked it off the vine myself.
Larriland picks some tomatoes for their customers, and on a 90+ degree Sunday, with weekend crowds, I'm not going to wander through the tomato plants to pick my own when I can get the ones the employees picked from the same bush the day before. I'm going to get it from their market, thank you very much.
Last week, someone mentioned politics (I don't even like the subject being brought up around him), and he told the guy that since he didn't like anyone involved in politics, his solution was just not to vote for anyone.
This is about the worst thing to say in my presence, and he's said it before. He actually believes it's better to vote for nobody than someone he doesn't like. Which, if you really can't pick someone, or don't care, or whatever, fine. Don't vote. But don't you dare bitch and complain about the state of things if you're not going to do something about it. If you pay enough attention to complain, you can pay enough attention to learn about candidates and make a goddamn choice. He complains about high health insurance and doctor's insurance and the like, but he thinks universal health care is stupid. He hates what the Republicans have been doing, but he thinks the Democrats are idiots all around. Yeah, it's often a lesser of two evils deal, but having two or more bad choices is not at all the same as no choice.
Mom was making ribs for tonight, and she likes cutting them into smaller pieces because they're easier to handle. Whatever; she was making them, she can make them however she likes. Dad wanders in to get a glass of water, asks what she's doing, and then goes on about how now she has to turn them over eight times more to season them, because they're in pieces, and you know what? Mom was making them. If she wants them in pieces, she can make them in pieces. It doesn't affect him.
But he thinks he has the right to comment on anything and everything, and that his opinion is somehow better than any of ours, because he's seen more, talked to more people. No, he's just been a bigot to many more people in his life than any of us have.
My step-dad and his many opinions: Reason #4857 I can't wait to get out of this house again.
We were talking about Barry Bonds' home run the other night, and the guy who caught it. And my mom mentioned this guy on the news who had said they should tax the guy for his ball, since it's obviously worth quite a bit now. And we were saying how stupid that was, you shouldn't have to assess baseballs, and my dad starts in on how that's all the Democrats' fault, and it's "democrap" and so on. For about ten minutes. And when my dad goes on a rant, he doesn't really stop to let other people say anything. I may think most of the Republicans in office right now are jackasses, but I don't malign the whole party and call them idiots when I'm speaking face to face with a Republican. Or anytime, really, much as I may rant about the fanatical right-wingers.
And today he tells me to go get tomatoes, even though we have five sitting on the counter. And when I pointed that out, he said that all but the two little ones taken from our garden were those genetically engineered, tastes-like-crap tomatoes grown God-knows-where. And when I told them I'd bought them from Larriland two days ago, he told me they didn't feel like it, and I should get more anyway. Then I asked him how I was supposed to get better tomatoes if the ones from the pick-your-own farm weren't good enough, and he told me I'd know a good tomato when I picked it off the vine myself.
Larriland picks some tomatoes for their customers, and on a 90+ degree Sunday, with weekend crowds, I'm not going to wander through the tomato plants to pick my own when I can get the ones the employees picked from the same bush the day before. I'm going to get it from their market, thank you very much.
Last week, someone mentioned politics (I don't even like the subject being brought up around him), and he told the guy that since he didn't like anyone involved in politics, his solution was just not to vote for anyone.
This is about the worst thing to say in my presence, and he's said it before. He actually believes it's better to vote for nobody than someone he doesn't like. Which, if you really can't pick someone, or don't care, or whatever, fine. Don't vote. But don't you dare bitch and complain about the state of things if you're not going to do something about it. If you pay enough attention to complain, you can pay enough attention to learn about candidates and make a goddamn choice. He complains about high health insurance and doctor's insurance and the like, but he thinks universal health care is stupid. He hates what the Republicans have been doing, but he thinks the Democrats are idiots all around. Yeah, it's often a lesser of two evils deal, but having two or more bad choices is not at all the same as no choice.
Mom was making ribs for tonight, and she likes cutting them into smaller pieces because they're easier to handle. Whatever; she was making them, she can make them however she likes. Dad wanders in to get a glass of water, asks what she's doing, and then goes on about how now she has to turn them over eight times more to season them, because they're in pieces, and you know what? Mom was making them. If she wants them in pieces, she can make them in pieces. It doesn't affect him.
But he thinks he has the right to comment on anything and everything, and that his opinion is somehow better than any of ours, because he's seen more, talked to more people. No, he's just been a bigot to many more people in his life than any of us have.
My step-dad and his many opinions: Reason #4857 I can't wait to get out of this house again.
