Hobos

Since I've been busy writing a novel, which I will be posting in the near future, I haven't really had much time to post some short critiques recently. I figured I'd break my "silence" with a short post about something that has been bothering me for a long time. It once again has to do with some of the culture in my current school. Perhaps this culture is prevalent in other schools as well, but I do not know, and thus will not speak for those. My problem is simple - it has to do with my lunch.

I have a lovely mother. She is a talented cook, and she always finds the time to make the other members of my family lunch. So everyday, before I leave for school, my mom hands me my lunch. Everyday it is something different. Generally, it is healthy and made from some good-quality food. There is a snack, a sandwich and a treat. Most of the time, all the food groups are represented - for these reasons, I am ever so grateful to my mom for making me lunch. This sounds great, right? What in the world could I complain about now? Well, what I will be complaining about will be the problems that I have to deal with at school because of my lunch.

What is the issue that I encounter due to my lunch at school? People take it. Annoying little twerps steal my lunch. Actually, it's not stealing, it's called "begging". There are two girls in particular, who behave like hobos around my food. When I take out my lunch, they flock to it.

The most repeat offender is a chubby girl, with the world's highest voice. She comes up to me, and with her shrill, shrill voice and her batting eyelashes asks me for my lunch. Sadly, she doesn't just straight up ask me "can I have your lunch?" She asks me in an extremely -for lack of a better word- whore-ish way. She says "whatcha got there?" Then I tell her. Then she basically begins touching my food, levitating her finger an inch above it, and asks "can I have some?"

Look, in my head I say something along the lines of "no you cannot have some, bitch! This is my lunch, it's not my fault that your parents don't care enough to actually give you lunch money, or make you a lunch. Go get your own lunch or beg someone else." But in reality, my parents taught me to give to the less-fortunate, so I always let her have some. She isn't really less-fortunate, but she acts that way. Anyways, I give her part of my lunch, and after her shameless begging, she proceeds to shamelessly devour it. She doesn't eat it like a human, she eats it the way a hyena would rip and tear the carcass of a zebra. Her manner of eating reminds me a lot of that of a person who has just come home after being lost in the woods for days, and hasn't eaten and is on the brink of death.

Is this girl going to die if she doesn't take bites the size of a lumberjack's? Is she going to go into some state of shock if she doesn't put the entire sandwich in her mouth within one second of me permitting her poor soul to eat it? No, plain and simple, no. She is going to be fine, but she acts as if she isn't. That is the annoying part. What's more, is that this isn't a occasional thing, this is an everyday thing. Is this fair to me? Should I be giving some girl, who isn't my friend food? Should I be giving a girl who immediately leaves after eating my food, my food? I don't think so. I get nothing from that except knowing that I helped a person. At the same time, I'm jeopardizing my mental sanity by doing that, so I recently decided that I would no longer give her my food.

The other girl is different. She does this thing where she puts her face so close to my food that it appears as if she is going to make out with it. Her face is so close, and she widens her eyes so wide, and she stalks my food. Also, totally inappropriate. What's worse about this girl is that she has her own food, but she wants mine too. Since I dislike her more, I never give her my food.

One fine day, the first girl from this story came up to me. She asked me for my food. I knew that as soon as I gave it to her, she would leave me, as if I were a disposable napkin. I wasn't a napkin, nor did I deserve to be treated like one. I didn't want to give her my food. She did her usual thing of batting eyelashes and whatever else, but I said no. She made a pouty face and pretended to cry, but I didn't budge. Then she looked up and uttered the word "please". It was still a no, and I proceeded to explain why. 

"[Insert name here], every single lunch you take my food, that isn't okay. You're not my friend, you just use me to eat food. As soon as I give you food, you leave me. You don't really say hi to me in the halls, all you do is ask for food. I give it to you because I feel so sorry for you. I feel as if you're a hobo with nothing, but at the same time, I know that you aren't. You're just too lazy to make yourself lunch in the morning, and you thus have to exploit yourself by begging for food. It's not nice, and it isn't respectful, not to me, or to yourself. Just stop. I'm not going to give you food anymore. Simply put, I feel like you are a leech, who sucks my blood and then leaves in search of new prey."

Her reaction to my explanation only served as proof as to why she is so shameless. She simply looked at the ground, batting her eyelashes again, and said "sorry, so can I have some?"

What the fuck? Did she not hear me? I just went all life-coach/motivational speaker on her, and clearly stated that I didn't want to give her my food, but she asked for it again. I realized that it would be pointless to argue with her, for she was too dumb. So I told her once again, "no, you may not have some of my lunch". She walked away.

The next day, I discussed the issue with my friend, who also said that she feels bad for the girl and thus, gives her food. Then it happened. My other friend came screaming down the hall: 

"[Insert name here] has a lunch!"The girl had come to school with a lunch and had actually said hi to me when she saw me. Quite an improvement, if I do say so myself.

People. Some of them are just so shameless and so annoying. But, with enough backbone, and enough confidence, they can stop being so annoying. Put them in their place and tell them what you feel, since everyone else is too busy being "fake nice", your honesty will come as a breath of fresh air. You'll change them for the better.