Mutants at the Mall
Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 4:25 pm
OK, so maybe this thread isn't entirely "politically correct."
But then... After hearing about the poor Vermont physician who is being raked over the coals for trying to save his patient's life by calling attention to her morbid obesity (a.k.a. being really, really fat), I'm thinking we are enabling people by being too PC. After all, should we allow a drunk driver to lay some BS on us about our prejudice of his alcoholism disability? Those of us who purchase health insurance are paying the bill for this overindulgence.
For more info on that subject, see discussions at DB's Medical Rants
And besides, why can't we have some fun now and then? So... I'll start this here where Panther can tell us when we're getting out of line.
WARNING - THIS MAY BE OFFENSIVE TO THOSE WHO ARE HURT BY CASUAL AND HUMOROUS DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THEIR LOT IN LIFE
Many years back, my soon-to-be wife and someone we both knew had bumped into each other in the mall. At the time, my wife was competing in bodybuilding up and down the east coast. The fellow in question was Ernst Soudek. He was a Ph.D. Professor of Humanities in the engineering school at U.Va. I never had any classes with him, but did manage to have a class with his beautiful and intelligent wife who also taught in the Humanities department. They both were born in Austria. Ingrid (I can now call her that) had no accent, but a trained eye could see her beautiful heritage. Ernst was a bit different. He was a BIG boy... He had competed in the Olympics in the past, representing Austria in the discus throw. And Ernst still had his accent.
If you think there are comparisons here between Ernst, Arnold, and the Hanz & Franz stereotype bodybuilder, well... Ernst had this attitude as a hard-core Austrian athlete before Arnold was Arnold and Hanz was Franz.
So anyhow... It seems that one day my present mother of my children and Ernst had bumped into each other in the mall. Ernst and she used to bump into each other in the athletic training facilities at University Hall. Ernst was helping then strength coach Bill Dunn write a book about weight training for basketball (featuring Ralph Sampson) and my soon-to-be wife was training amongst the varsity jocks for her competitions. They knew each other through this athletic medium.
After exchanging pleasantries, Ernst took a look around and commented about the number of "mutants" he saw walking around this mall. When I heard about this conversation later, I had to laugh. Here we had two perfect physical specimen talking about folks who later would be referred to (by Dana Carvey) as "girlie men." Even Arnold gets into the act these days, when trying to kick some political bootie. It's a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it speaks unspoken truth about odd people around us. On the other hand, it says something about the person behind the viewing glasses.
Meanwhile...
I am not a big fan of amusement parks, but some of my friends are. I don't know... I've had a person who worked for me who could get so excited about the latest rides at Busch Gardens or Pamamount's Kings Dominion. She took a week trip to Disneyworld, and thought she had died and gone to heaven. Rich's family has gotten season passes to the local parks, and his daughter earned quite a few bucks there over various summers working for the places. But I go, because I have boys and I suppose it's fun for them. I end up going maybe once or twice a year.
It's worth mentioning that number 1 son earned quite a bit of college money as a 5-year-old playing a "major" part in a Paramount commercial for King's Dominion. It's strange how we stumbed into that, but we did. So I suppose I should be very grateful indeed.
But...
When I go, I can't help but see... MUTANTS! Lots and lots of them.
Look, let's be clear. I've seen more than a few people in wheelchairs who are having a day out of their institutions. That warms my heart. I looked yesterday at one elderly black woman in a wheelchair with white hair and one eye, and thought how wonderful it was that her family got her outside. That is a very good thing indeed.
No, I am not talking about people with genetic issues. I am talking about hideously out-of-shape people who for god's sake should never be showing the skin and flesh that they show.
Look... I realize that the Alpengeist and Apollo's Chariot probably contributed to the nausea I had with me from their corkscrew and loop-the-loop turns. But for crying out loud... When you see people who obviously have ruined their skin from a lifetime of smoking and being out in the sun without sunscreen, when you see teenage girls with midsections that roll over the waistlines of pants that can't stay on because the girl doesn't have a butt muscle to hold it up, when you see rolls of tatooed fat that is tanned and intentionally exposed for our viewing, ...
AAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!! MUTANTS, MUTANTS, MUTANTS!!!!!
It's not just this time; it's every time I go to these parks. I joked with my son about how the nausea I had all day may not have been from the rides screwing with my vestibular system, but from the horror I had to view before my eyes. He knew exactly what I meant, and laughed with me.
OK, so maybe I'm being bad. Or maybe not. Maybe it's time that people who take horrible care of themselves and then expect "the system" to take care of them should catch a little bit of good-natured abuse. It's worth mentioning that you don't see people like this in Germany, where they eat fatty food but walk to places most of us drive to without a thought. What a surprise that these average Germans look so much better...NOT!
What is it about these places that attracts so many of these people? I have my theory on this, but want to hold it back for now. Maybe this is all me, after all. Maybe I'm turning into Hanz and Franz, and need more sensitivity training.
Or...
- Bill
But then... After hearing about the poor Vermont physician who is being raked over the coals for trying to save his patient's life by calling attention to her morbid obesity (a.k.a. being really, really fat), I'm thinking we are enabling people by being too PC. After all, should we allow a drunk driver to lay some BS on us about our prejudice of his alcoholism disability? Those of us who purchase health insurance are paying the bill for this overindulgence.
For more info on that subject, see discussions at DB's Medical Rants
And besides, why can't we have some fun now and then? So... I'll start this here where Panther can tell us when we're getting out of line.
WARNING - THIS MAY BE OFFENSIVE TO THOSE WHO ARE HURT BY CASUAL AND HUMOROUS DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THEIR LOT IN LIFE
Many years back, my soon-to-be wife and someone we both knew had bumped into each other in the mall. At the time, my wife was competing in bodybuilding up and down the east coast. The fellow in question was Ernst Soudek. He was a Ph.D. Professor of Humanities in the engineering school at U.Va. I never had any classes with him, but did manage to have a class with his beautiful and intelligent wife who also taught in the Humanities department. They both were born in Austria. Ingrid (I can now call her that) had no accent, but a trained eye could see her beautiful heritage. Ernst was a bit different. He was a BIG boy... He had competed in the Olympics in the past, representing Austria in the discus throw. And Ernst still had his accent.
If you think there are comparisons here between Ernst, Arnold, and the Hanz & Franz stereotype bodybuilder, well... Ernst had this attitude as a hard-core Austrian athlete before Arnold was Arnold and Hanz was Franz.
So anyhow... It seems that one day my present mother of my children and Ernst had bumped into each other in the mall. Ernst and she used to bump into each other in the athletic training facilities at University Hall. Ernst was helping then strength coach Bill Dunn write a book about weight training for basketball (featuring Ralph Sampson) and my soon-to-be wife was training amongst the varsity jocks for her competitions. They knew each other through this athletic medium.
After exchanging pleasantries, Ernst took a look around and commented about the number of "mutants" he saw walking around this mall. When I heard about this conversation later, I had to laugh. Here we had two perfect physical specimen talking about folks who later would be referred to (by Dana Carvey) as "girlie men." Even Arnold gets into the act these days, when trying to kick some political bootie. It's a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it speaks unspoken truth about odd people around us. On the other hand, it says something about the person behind the viewing glasses.
Meanwhile...
I am not a big fan of amusement parks, but some of my friends are. I don't know... I've had a person who worked for me who could get so excited about the latest rides at Busch Gardens or Pamamount's Kings Dominion. She took a week trip to Disneyworld, and thought she had died and gone to heaven. Rich's family has gotten season passes to the local parks, and his daughter earned quite a few bucks there over various summers working for the places. But I go, because I have boys and I suppose it's fun for them. I end up going maybe once or twice a year.
It's worth mentioning that number 1 son earned quite a bit of college money as a 5-year-old playing a "major" part in a Paramount commercial for King's Dominion. It's strange how we stumbed into that, but we did. So I suppose I should be very grateful indeed.
But...
When I go, I can't help but see... MUTANTS! Lots and lots of them.
Look, let's be clear. I've seen more than a few people in wheelchairs who are having a day out of their institutions. That warms my heart. I looked yesterday at one elderly black woman in a wheelchair with white hair and one eye, and thought how wonderful it was that her family got her outside. That is a very good thing indeed.
No, I am not talking about people with genetic issues. I am talking about hideously out-of-shape people who for god's sake should never be showing the skin and flesh that they show.
Look... I realize that the Alpengeist and Apollo's Chariot probably contributed to the nausea I had with me from their corkscrew and loop-the-loop turns. But for crying out loud... When you see people who obviously have ruined their skin from a lifetime of smoking and being out in the sun without sunscreen, when you see teenage girls with midsections that roll over the waistlines of pants that can't stay on because the girl doesn't have a butt muscle to hold it up, when you see rolls of tatooed fat that is tanned and intentionally exposed for our viewing, ...
AAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!! MUTANTS, MUTANTS, MUTANTS!!!!!
It's not just this time; it's every time I go to these parks. I joked with my son about how the nausea I had all day may not have been from the rides screwing with my vestibular system, but from the horror I had to view before my eyes. He knew exactly what I meant, and laughed with me.
OK, so maybe I'm being bad. Or maybe not. Maybe it's time that people who take horrible care of themselves and then expect "the system" to take care of them should catch a little bit of good-natured abuse. It's worth mentioning that you don't see people like this in Germany, where they eat fatty food but walk to places most of us drive to without a thought. What a surprise that these average Germans look so much better...NOT!
What is it about these places that attracts so many of these people? I have my theory on this, but want to hold it back for now. Maybe this is all me, after all. Maybe I'm turning into Hanz and Franz, and need more sensitivity training.
Or...
- Bill