I feel like I am becoming a cranky old lady of the "get offa my goddamn lawn" variety more and more lately. Yesterday, as I walked to the gym (don't be impressed, it's just two buildings down from my apartment) I saw these three young teenagers walking in the same direction. I was filled with dread, because I just knew they were going to the gym as well, and I knew they were going to be annoying. And I was right.
First of all, they got there before me and were hanging around outside the door, presumably because they didn't have a key card and you can't get in without a key card. Someone must have let them in right before I got there, which saved me the trouble of deciding whether or not I would have told them they couldn't come in with me.
But then the truly annoying part started, because they proceeded to go all Gym ADD and jump from machine to machine, using each one for anywhere from 30 seconds to two minutes and then running in get a drink of water. They they would shut themselves into a little side room that is basically a "kids room" for parents who need to bring their kids along when they work out. There are lots of windows into this room, and I could see that they were watching the Skanky Ho Video Hour on MTV. Then they would come back out and start the ADD circuit again or play soccer with a basketball in the weight room.
Now, I am not against kids exercising or kids having short attention spans or even kids talking about the skanky hos on MTV. (As Keanu Reeves said in Parenthood "That's what little dudes do!") But do they have to do it when I am around? Kids should get their exercise by running around outside or riding bikes or playing football or swimming. They shouldn't be misusing weight machines just so they can flex in front of the mirrors.
I took some comfort in noticing that I wasn't the only one annoyed by these kids -- most of the adults in the gym were glaring at them too. And I'm sure they aren't bad kids, just kids who didn't know what they were doing and no one around willing to tell them that. (Seriously, I kept wondering how I would become the bitch or get a nasty visit from a parent if I had told them to stop running frome machine to machine or to take the soccer game outside or to stop using the wipes meant to clean the machines to clean their faces.) Besides, I thought all kids today were addicted to videogames and anime?
That's my rant for today. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go watch my stories and then get to the early bird special. Bedtime is at 8pm, you know! Pissy McCrosserGrump, OUT!
