Don't judge!

I’d had a busy day going from place to place teaching/tutoring/etc. Traveling between places always involves some walking, which could be great… I love to walk… but… it was hot and REALLY humid. During a 15 minute walk to my second teaching time of the day, all I could think was, “I really want some ice cream!!!” But, if I stopped I would have been late, so I went on to the home of the lady I was teaching. By the time I made it there I almost fell over onto the couch. After a few moments of cooling off… We had an awesome lesson and a great discussion and then I went on my way. I still could think of nothing but ice cream, so I stopped at the nearest cart to buy some. I’ve discovered I love one that they sell everywhere with oatmeal ice cream covered in a chocolate shell. I found one of those and pulled it out of the little portable freezer. I handed the man my money and waited for change. Well, I kinda waited, while impatiently ripping open the package…

“OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

I screamed as the ice cream slipped out of the package, out of my hands, and onto the ground. Heads turned and watched as I reacted in my (occasionally) over dramatic sort of way. I stared at the ground in disbelief. I glanced at the older man and his son/grandson standing next to me who watched my every move. I slowly bent down and picked it up and then just stared at the ice cream, pouting. I looked at the man and his son. They were talking, I thought maybe it was about me and maybe they would tell the man working to give me another one. I looked back at him and he handed me my change and moved on with his life. I gave him a pathetic look that said, “But my ice cream!!!!!???” No sympathy.

So, I stared at the deliciousness in my hand and contemplated what to do next.

Hmmm… The ground here can be pretty dirty. People spit. But…
It was really close to the edge of the cart and so feet and spit don’t really reach over there.
I brushed it off… blew on it… brushed it off again.
I inspected it. It looked okay…
I looked at the boy. He would eat it, I knew. But I’m not a little boy… I’m a “grown woman!”
But I really want my ice cream.
I looked at the older man. I didn’t know what he would do, but I knew he was watching me.
What will he think if I eat it?
It’s a hard shell. Stuff doesn’t really stick on it. It really looks fine.
But it only cost like a quarter (US). I could afford to buy another one.
I hate wasting. There wasn’t a trash can. I couldn’t put it back on the ground and if I carried it, it’d drip all over me by the time I got home.
Ugh… this is a terrible decision to have to make on a hot and humid afternoon when you’re exhausted.
I didn’t want to think anymore so…
I took a bite. I looked at the man and his son and smiled. The boy smiled back. I knew at least HE approved of my decision.

I walked away and mumbled, “Don’t judge!” in the direction of the man (knowing that even if he heard me, he couldn’t understand me).

It tasted soooooo good. J And don’t worry… it’s been several days and I am still quite alive so… I think it was a great decision. I’d do it again. ;)

Later that night I had dinner with a young married couple. I “confessed” what I had done. She laughed at me and couldn’t believe it. He was absolutely thrilled. He thanked me and told me I made his day. He said that for the rest of his life, he will remind her of me every time he eats something after dropping it on the ground (apparently he gets in trouble for that a lot). Haha, great… what a thing to be remembered for!!! J Later he brought it up again and said, “Earlier, I was going to tell you never to tell that story to potential boyfriends until after you start dating and he’s already hooked … but then I thought that actually maybe you should! That could be the thing he falls in love with. I can just hear it now… She told me a story about when she ate ice cream off of the ground and I just knew she was the one!!!” That made me laugh, a lot. What a romantic story that would be. Hahahaha.

Anyway… that’s me: the girl that will eat ice cream after it’s fallen on the ground (especially on a HOT and HUMID day in Panda Land!).

Don’t judge!

J