That morning, I put on an outfit similar to this, with pantyhose instead of bare legs, and a pair of my flats instead of Mary Jane heels, and off I went.
After parking the car, I did some walking around inside the mall, not wearing a coat or sweater. (Yes, we had our 3 wonderful days of summer...now it seems we're headed into fall, with cooler temperatures. LOL!) I noticed that the two annoying (or affirming) kiosk peddlers who had always accosted me about their cosmetics on every walk around the mall...were gone. Yay! Though to some extent I enjoyed their attention, nonetheless it was annoying, so I'm fine with their disappearance.
However, if it was attention I was seeking, I received quite a bit of that...despite the peddlers' notable absence. Standing outside a cell phone company store's door, waiting for them to open, was a small gaggle of people. One was a 50something woman. I was wearing my sunglasses, as sunlight was pouring through the skylights.
As I walked (and people-watched from behind my Foster Grants), I couldn't help but notice the woman's eyes immediately lock on to me like radar as I approached. I observed her gaze follow me until I passed her, and as I approached a store with a properly aimed window glass, I stopped to window shop and observe her continue to watch me. Probably two minutes later, with her never missing a beat, I said to myself..."To heck with it...I'm moving on." And I did. No doubt she watched me disappear down the hall until the buzzer rang and the store opened.
Such fun...
And at the cobbler's shop, I was properly addressed as "Ma'am."
Isn't life fun?
Mandy
I think that the first thing most people do when they see someone is instantly assess their gender. It is a natural primal instinct to know whether those in your sphere are the same gender as you or are of the opposite sex. I surmise that this woman may have been simply trying to answer that question in her own mind. Most of your cues are female but she may have pinged on some quality, look or mannerism that got her T-dar lit up.
ReplyDeletePat
Whatever the reason (and I'm sure there was at least one), her"radar screen" must have had all sorts of alarms flashing. Confusion, definitely. But it is what it is...
DeleteSomeday when it happens and I'm feeling brave it might be fun to walk over, say "Hi" and try to enlighten the observer. But then reality sets in - she might feel threatened and accuse me of something I didn't try to do. Legal complications like that - I simply don't need. And more importantly, it would cause major issues on the home front.
So such folks shall remain unenlightened by me, at least for now. :-(
Mandy