puff this.

There is nothing- NOTHING- that infuriates me more than having to walk by smokers when I'm strolling with Isla. This irritated me when I was pregnant and I always hoped it made them feel bad when I was walking by with a big pregnant belly, but lately I almost can't keep from calling them out.

Today, as I was walking to coffee with Isla a woman was walking with her cigarette. This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine- it is SO inconsiderate! I was walking behind her with the stroller and an elderly woman was walking behind me. I'm sure she didn't need the second hand smoke either. Once we got through the cross walk I sped past her and fanned in front of my face to clear out her disgusting smell....then she said "You'll live"   ....

yep, see that dot. dot. dot.
That means I wanted to punch her in her face.

It's one thing to stand outside a building and smoke... It's a whole other thing to walk with a cigarette ... dragging that smoke along with you so others can't even avoid it.

I stopped in my tracks. Turned around and glared right at her dumb face. I had a million things to say but I knew it wasn't worth it. Nothing was going to change someone like that. She would probably have put her disgusting cigarette in Isla's mouth if she had the chance... (insert string of expletives). After staring her down with my stroller I turned and tracked down my Americano. Please take notice- this is me being the bigger person.

In the park later as I was rattling off this story to my Sister (who was just as outraged - and she's an ex-smoker! (sorry to out you M :) she said, "Don't you wish you could publicly shame people like that." Which reminded me of that dog shaming website. I so wish I could have got this woman's picture as she was carelessly puffing away next to a baby and an elderly woman with a walker and stuck it right up online with a big lovely caption....or blown it up on a very public piece of signage. It's in moments like these that crazy billboard ideas take place. Like the guy who put up a billboard to find his wife a job or the wife who outed her husband's affair on a billboard.

That's when I remembered back in the day when everyone wrote checks and those unlucky souls whose check bounced got it taped to the register as a little public embarrassment. It was made even better because most places only accepted local checks so inevitably it was someone you knew. A couple years ago this happened to us when I wrote a check to Countryside Donuts in Kirkland (I don't even eat donuts and I will splurge on this place once a year- so good!) for 2 dozen donuts for our office. The check bounced when I didn't check my personal account and I had to call and reconcile before the owner taped my local check to his register. yi-yi-yi. Public shaming over $20 of maple bars and chocolate old-fashioneds. (reality- I don't know if "fashioneds" is a word but I googled it because I thought it was "old-fashion" donuts and realized it's "fashioneds" so now I'm in unfamiliar territory. Forgive me if I made fashioneds up.)

I know I can't change people from being careless or kicking a smoking addiction but I just wish they would step back from my baby, not crowd a doorway, not walk with a cigarette or get in the elevator after puffing a full carton (biggest condo pet peeve at the moment! ug) Help a Mama out people!

Hope everyone's staying cool out there (without smokes-just shades and AC :)

xoxo.
S