So, anyone who actually reads this blog (and I know some people do for some bizarre twisted reason probably best kept to yourself) might have been a little confused about the last scatter of posts that appeared here.
Now, I know better than trying to 'make things better' by 'saying something', because experience has shown that the best way for me to dig a hole for myself is to 'open my mouth'. I do think though, that I have an affinity for holes.. :)
Anyway, I went out on Friday night. Caught up with a bunch of mates. Got far too drunk. I vaguely recall 'demonstrating my badarseness' by drinking 3 shots of vodka in rapid succession at one point. I have no idea how many beers I had, but I do know that it came in pints and that I wanted one.
Eventually, everyone went home. It's funny how when you're drunk you kind of know that you are but you don't take the time to 'reflect on this fact', until the next day when you're staring at a toilet bowl, promising that you will NEVER DRINK AGAIN.
The point of this post is just really to tell the tale of the tragic end of my night, because it bothers me.
I can't recall behaving improperly. I know I was hammered, but I'm pretty sure (as sure as one can be) that I wasn't acting up. As far as I could tell, I was just sort of keeping to myself. I got denied entry to one place, so I guess that it must have been blatantly obvious that I was hammered.
I ended up going to some pub. I'm not sure what the place was called. But when we went in we had to pay five bucks. Five bucks tends to point to the place as being 'good enough to get away with a cover charge', but 'not good enough to charge more than five bucks'. Which I guess makes it 'just some dive that you end up at', but I'm not sure. So, that's where I was.
I went to the bathroom briefly, then came out to the main area, and sort of stood around. I don't think I was doing anything outlandish, but I may have made the tragic mistake of *attempting* to dance. I know that at least, I was *considering* it. For some reason, a bouncer came up and grabbed me and then marched me down the stairs. I have no idea what prompted that, but that's what happened. I'm guessing that I just *looked* drunk, and I have a tendency to look out of place at the best of times, it's kind of just a little knack that I've picked up over my life, probably best reflected in my complete inability to wear *appropriate* attire.
So, after having been charged five dollars for entry, I'd been in the place for five minutes and then been ejected.
I know better than to fight it when you're getting thrown out. I always just leave peacefully (these days), except on this particular occasion I felt hardly done by, given that only minutes ago I'd paid to enter the place, and hadn't even had a drink yet.
When I got to the bottom of the stairs I asked the lady at the till for my five dollars back.
She looked at me with a hateful, bothered look on her face and barked off-handedly that this particular establishment “didn't give refunds”.
Of course, I felt like arguing the point, so I pointed out the injustice in taking my money and then kicking me out all within a few minutes. Clearly, that wasn't fair.
The bouncers that were behind me were jostling me to the door, and a few extra ones came in from outside, so there was 3 or 4 or them around me. They weren't taking themselves too seriously yet, I guess because I was mostly co-operating. The chick at the till though evidently didn't want to have a bar of conversation about how she should give me my money back and the guys started pushing harder.
I just walked into the corner and *demanded* that they give me my five bucks back. Of course, I don't really care about five bucks, but I did (and still do) care about the *principle* of the matter. The bouncers realised that I wasn't going to make their lives easy, so one (or two?) of them grabbed me and ran me through the door.
They were much bigger than me, so even if I had have tried to push back sheer physics would have allowed them to move me to the door. So, I enlisted the building in my service and grabbed a hold of the door handle. I knew they could push all they liked, but if I held on the to handle then they wouldn't make any progress, short of moving the entire building with them. Fortunately, I have a relatively decent grip, they tested it for a few seconds and eventually realised that they weren't going to be able to push me while I was holding the door.
One of them was pushing me out the door, and another walked behind him and grabbed my thumb that was still functioning in its role as a handle holder. As it were, based on the relative position of everyone's bodies, I was pretty much face to face with the guy who grabbed my thumb.
We exchanged looks. Mine said “if you snap my thumb you are a cunt”, and his said “I am a cunt”.
During our meaningful and significant 'look' I heard a 'click' and felt the corresponding rush of pain as he snapped my thumb. At that point his method of causing my release of the handle was successful, and the guy who had been pushing me charged me across the pavement into a telegraph pole.
I was still pretty interested in the guy who'd snapped my thumb, and I stared at him the whole time. He was obviously a CUNT, and he knew it. I was pretty interested in letting him know that I also knew this, although it seemed that I wasn't being given such an opportunity.
I was in a cab and on my way home in the next minute or two after I got pushed down the footpath and away.
Until then, I'd actually had a relatively decent night, but having my thumb intentionally snapped by a thug who was part of a *conspiracy* to rob me of five dollars really pissed me off.
Of course, now I'm sitting safe and sound in my room, telling random internet people about my ordeal.
My thumb still hurts.
Fockers!
John.
That's assault here in America. I'd be the type to go get X-rays then go back to the bar and present them with a wonderful bill for damages rendered which should be considerably more than 5 dollars.
They'll think twice about giving you your money back next time. Bouncers are only allowed to go so far, and that one overstepped his boundaries. Laws could be different there though, I'm a little ignorant on that
Hey Jeremy,
If you think *that's* assult, you should hear some of my other stories.. :/
Like this one: https://www.jj5.net/blog-archive-2005/399.html
Because I'm a reletavely tough looking dude, who is often alone, and not real good when it comes to 'behaving quite like everyone else' I just seem to attract violence. It's like people know that they can get away with it with a dude like me, because they know I can 'take it'.
I'm not a violent person myself, but I'm not afraid of it either, so I get into all sorts of situations.
I understand what you are telling me, but on the other hand I'm willing to role with the punches. The reality is that I get injuries that are just as bad playing rugby on the weekend.
I can't tell you how upset I am though, that the only social places that are available to me are policed by bouncers who have the support of laws and 'social stigma' to make a decision to exclude me, and that I'm not even aforded the opportunity to speak with them prior to being manhandled out the door. I often feel victimised. I feel like a fucking 'prole' or 'consumer' who is just being 'managed'. It's pathetic.
I guess that many people would say that I bring it upon myself, because I can be a pain in the arse, and to some extent they're right, but the only reason I'm a pain in the arse is because I think *they* are behaving like wankers.
At any rate, I won't be suing the establishment, and I'm sure that something just like that will happen next time I go out. I don't even really have anything to sue for anyway, there are no 'damages'. Law in this country is designed to protect property, not people.
Oh well.
John.
p.s. My thumb *still* hurts.
At least the citizens in this country aren't (legally) armed. I suspect I'd be dead by now if they were..
John.