I realize that I’m a bad person for saying this… But I just sat through an incredible theatre experience, trying hard to concentrate on the performance without being distracted by the person sitting next to me.
Because he was obese, and he smelled fat.
Now, I know it’s an awful thing to say. I know it’s terribly impolite, and not the least bit politically correct. But this man SMELLED like a person who is too fat to properly wash himself.
I spent ninety minutes with my hand covering my nose, leaning as far to the side as I could get, in the futile hopes of escaping the stench. He smelled like sour milk, with a hint of uncooked fish, mixed with the scent of a dog that’s been playing outside for a week and hasn’t had a bath.
When you’re moving through life, and you find that the pounds are starting to pile on, and your basic life functions (like walking up a flight of stairs, or TAKING A BATH) are becoming difficult, that’s when you need to put down the fork and see a doctor.
And until you take better care of yourself, don’t go into public confined spaces (like theatres or airplanes) unless you’re buying the seats next to you. You’re a damned menace to the innocent bystanders to your left and right.
And that’s my daily dose of intolerance.
July 25, 2009 at 5:40 pm
I have to agree with you. bathing isn’t just hygienic, its polite.
July 26, 2009 at 9:32 am
I gather the basis of your intolerance is his offensive odor rather than the fact he is fat. While being fat cannot always be avoided (be it genetics or metabolism based), being hygenic is something that can and should be taken care of daily. In that regard, I do agree with you. Unfortunately, it just happened to be a fat person this time. Next time it may be you’re stuck on a plane next for several hours sitting next to a skinny person who doesn’t bathe regularly.
July 26, 2009 at 10:06 am
Great point! My issue isn’t with what the guy looked like, it was with the impact of his poor hygiene on others around him.