Dumb things people say
I was watching Youtube videos of “dumb things Americans say.” It’s easy to find videos like that (because Americans are so dumb). Their school systems sucks. They are so devoted to “self-esteem” that even though they know so little about the world, they still feel good about themselves - which speaks to the success of the self-esteem program, I guess. Honestly speaking, though, everyone is stupid some of the time, and Americans are neither unique, nor exclusive. I suppose the ignorance and stupidity of people springs measurably from their location. I mean, people know about themselves and their immediate environment first and best. The farther removed things are, the less familiar they are. That’s an excuse, though, not a reason.
Canadians say some dumb crap, too, and this story is about the stupidest encounter I ever had with a Canadian. It happened in 2014 during a summer vacation to Ontario. I was in my hometown and I bought some postcards to send by postal mail to a select group of people in Japan, It’s something I always do. I had my postcards addressed and written, and then I went to a convenience store that sold postage stamps.
“I’d like an international stamp, please.”
“We don’t have international stamps.”
“You don’t have international stamps?”
“We only have Canadian stamps.”
“Yeah. I understand. I want an international stamp, not a domestic stamp.”
“The Canadian post office will only accept Canadian stamps.”
“I understand. I want a Canadian stamp for international mail.”
“Without a Canadian stamp on it, it can’t be delivered.”
“I know. I understand. I have this Canadian postcard [showing her the card] that I bought here. I want to buy a Canadian stamp to put on it so that I can put it in the Canadian mailbox outside, so the Canadian post office will pick it up and deliver it to an overseas, foreign destination in Asia.”
Blank stare.
I didn’t say that I wanted a stamp to send the card to Japan. It seemed like an irrelevant and excessively personal detail. The only relevant thing is that my postcard needed an international stamp, which is more expensive than a domestic stamp.
“I’ll get the Manager.”
The girl’s immediate boss can over and we proceeded to have a nearly identical conversation. I thought, why are these people so stupid? Why are we not communicating? I think they’re just confused about my use of the word “international.”
I left and went to the main branch of the post office in downtown Guelph and began with the same request. “I’d like an international stamp, please.”
No problem. They understood me perfectly and the exchange took all of fifteen seconds. So, what was the problem with the convenience store? Maybe they didn’t have international stamps. In hindsight, I think it might be that the girl cashier I spoke to was so young, and had spent her life with e-mail and digital messaging, that maybe she didn’t really understand how postal mail works. Or, maybe she had no conception of what “overseas” means, or what a “foreign” country is. But that seems a bit harsh to me.