Buying New Clothes? Make Sure To Wash Them!

[Kevin Bresnahan]

Yesterday, I was shopping in the mens' clothing section of the Kohls department store in Salem, NH when I saw this elderly Hispanic guy suddenly grab a shirt hanging on a rack and loudly blow his nose into it several times.

WTF!

I wanted to kick the guy in the gonads but I also didn't want to get arrested. What do you say to someone like this? I went and grabbed a Kohls person and told them and their response was "Nothing surprises me any more."

WTF!!

What is wrong with some people today? How could he have thought that this was OK?!?!

I know most people already do so, but make sure you wash any clothes you buy before wearing them.

Kevin

[catesta]

That is pretty disgusting.

Over the years I have become more and more of a semi-germaphobe. Not to the glove wearing stages or anything but I carry hand wipes and that kind of stuff.

I always wash new clothes before wearing. Snot or no snot the smell of new clothes plus not knowing how many times it was tried on or touched = schifoso.

[Christiern]

Kevin: "Yesterday, I was shopping in the mens' clothing section of the Kohls department store in Salem, NH when I saw this elderly Hispanic guy suddenly grab a shirt hanging on a rack and loudly blow his nose into it several times."

Was it necessary to point out that he was Hispanic? I hope you are not having a bout of Arizonia.

[Noj]

Wow, I'm always disgusted enough as it is with the people who take stuff off the rack and don't hang it back up, dropping it in the aisle like the servants in the store are supposed to follow them around and tidy up. Nose blowing? Unreal.

As an aside, I went to the reggae festival at UCLA yesterday (Barrington Levy!), and was disgusted by how many left trash all over the field at the close. I mean, who does that? I always clean up after myself...anywhere.

[Aggie87]

Kevin: "Yesterday, I was shopping in the mens' clothing section of the Kohls department store in Salem, NH when I saw this elderly Hispanic guy suddenly grab a shirt hanging on a rack and loudly blow his nose into it several times."

Was it necessary to point out that he was Hispanic?

I actually agree with Chris. His ethnicity doesn't really seem relevant to your point.

[sjarrell]

Also: "elderly". Age-ist!!!

[Christiern]

Indeed.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

So instead of focusing on the disgusting act of this individual, you deny what he did because I had the gall to note that he was Hispanic?

Indeed, what does him being Hispanic have to do with his disgusting act? Nothing. Any more than my describing him had to do with it. When describing a person, traits are noted. If he or she is white, black , Asian, albino, fat, skinny, freckled, pockmarked, young or old - all are valid descriptord when describing someone's appearance.

It is neither politically incorrect nor racist to note a person's ethnicity. It was a fact. A plain & simple fact.

Would you have been a bit more moved to disgust if I had noted that he had a tee shirt with a blue elephant on the front and "I Luv GWB" on the back?

[Chuck Nessa]

No one denied the act. The act was overpowered by the "qualifiers".

[Ken Dryden]

I worked in a "fine dining" restaurant where the cheapskate owner tried to put bread returned from tables back into the warming bin. We would trash it when his back was turned.

He also bought a Kenny G live cassette to play over the sound system, but I would hide it any time I heard it. The only thing worse was his Liberace live cassette.

He was very white, but I won't get into his specific ethnic background....though he did have a hilarious combover.

Perhaps that will offend someone on the board!

[Quincy]

Well...thanks for the heads up as I was going to check out some shirts later on this week. As long as people blow their nose on the outside I stand a better chance of seeing it. If they're going for the inner collar region maybe not. The latter seems unlikely if it's on a hanger. Maybe I'll avoid green, tan and other "snot & booger" colored shirts though.

[Big Wheel]

I worked in a "fine dining" restaurant where the cheapskate owner tried to put bread returned from tables back into the warming bin. We would trash it when his back was turned.

This appears to be very common in the restaurant business. Maybe less prevalent among top-end places, but still definitely not unheard of: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/319864

[Christiern]

So instead of focusing on the disgusting act of this individual, you deny what he did because I had the gall to note that he was Hispanic?

Indeed, what does him being Hispanic have to do with his disgusting act? Nothing. Any more than my describing him had to do with it. When describing a person, traits are noted. If he or she is white, black , Asian, albino, fat, skinny, freckled, pockmarked, young or old - all are valid descriptord when describing someone's appearance.

It is neither politically incorrect nor racist to note a person's ethnicity. It was a fact. A plain & simple fact.

Would you have been a bit more moved to disgust if I had noted that he had a tee shirt with a blue elephant on the front and "I Luv GWB" on the back?

Kevin, noting a person's ethnicity or race is, indeed, not politically incorrect, per se. You, however, added the words gratuitously, and the fact that you did so has a regrettable connotation of bigotry. Would your description (sans the two crossed out words in red) have been any less disgusting, would omitting those words have declawed your story? I really don't think so, but if you disagree, I am anxious to hear your reasoning.

"Yesterday, I was shopping in the mens' clothing section of the Kohls department store in Salem, NH when I saw this elderly Hispanic guy suddenly grab a shirt hanging on a rack and loudly blow his nose into it several times."

[Man with the Golden Arm]

poor guy just had a Kohld.

[sjarrell]

I think age and ethnicity is part of the story. Not significant, but also not a part that needs editing out.

[papsrus]

I dunno. What if the nose-blower was described as a short, stocky Italian woman? Or how about a wobbly Irishman? A pasty white Dane?

I get that folks are a bit sensitive about the Hispanic reference, but I don't think the OP was using it in a pejorative way. If that was his intent, he could have been a lot more colorful than 'elderly Hispanic.'

And the important thing here is the guy blew his nose in a shirt!!?!! Man!

[sjarrell]

poor guy just had a Kohld.

Ouch!

[JSngry]

I think a poll is in order:

Which snot do you find more disgusting:

1. Elderly Hispanic
2. Elderly Jew
3. Elderly African-American
4. Coked-up Arab
5. Crackhead Negro
6. Teenage Trailer Trash Slut
7. Homosexual Puerto Rican
8. Drunken Irish
9. All of the Above
10. None of the Above, snot is not an issue for mr
11. Some of one, part of another (i,e. Elderly Drunken Trailer Trash)
12. Something other than the above (please specify)

[BERIGAN]

He was very white, but I won't get into his specific ethnic background....though he did have a hilarious combover.

Perhaps that will offend someone on the board!

Hey, some of my best friends have hilarious combovers! How dare you mock these people!

[CJ Shearn]

Geez Kevin, that's pretty disgusting. They should tell someone to leave the store after that.

[Free For All]

I think a poll is in order:

Which snot do you find more disgusting:

1. Elderly Hispanic
2. Elderly Jew
3. Elderly African-American
4. Coked-up Arab
5. Crackhead Negro
6. Teenage Trailer Trash Slut
7. Homosexual Puerto Rican
8. Drunken Irish
9. All of the Above
10. None of the Above, snot is not an issue for mr
11. Some of one, part of another (i,e. Elderly Drunken Trailer Trash)
12. Something other than the above (please specify)

It's Mad Libs®!

[BERIGAN]

I worked in a "fine dining" restaurant where the cheapskate owner tried to put bread returned from tables back into the warming bin. We would trash it when his back was turned.

He also bought a Kenny G live cassette to play over the sound system, but I would hide it any time I heard it. The only thing worse was his Liberace live cassette.

And see you mock those who have terrible taste in music. That's not fair either. You should apologize to everyone.

[Free For All]

The prophesneeze of Nostrildamus.

[Aggie87]

The prophesneeze of Nostrildamus.

[papsrus]

I'll take coked-up Arabs for $200, Alex