Don’t be a pine cone
Ahh, pine cones.
They were littered over parts of the trail tonight and I laughed as I ran around them. I cannot see a pine cone without thinking about a silly incident from fifteen years ago.
I was at a gathering, and someone decided to bring pine cones for a craft. When they asked me and the group I was with if we wanted to do their craft and we said no thanks, they got p-i-s-s-e-d and argued with us. For quite some time. And wouldn’t drop it. It was such an odd thing.
One person in the group finally agreed to do the craft and we all went home with the pine cone creation, even though we didn’t all participate (I still have mine, ha).
To this day, I still don’t understand why people get so mad when others don’t want to do their activity. Is it a control thing? Are they mad we don’t appreciate their effort? Do they think we’re rude a-holes? What’s the dealio?!
In the pine cone incident, it wasn’t like we were saying no to a chore or our job. I just don’t like crafts, generally (then, or now). You can’t expect people to do what you want to do, and get super mad when they don’t. That’s a trait to grow out of, ideally, when you’re young. (But, hey, this is the same person who gets mad if they suggest a game and no one wants to play, so they leave the gathering. So there’s that.)
So yeah. Don’t be a stiff, prickly pine cone. Ha! And yes, know when to be polite and say yes to things from time to time too. Eyeroll. Ha ha ha.
Themocracy
Out of curiosity, have you always used “pine cone” as a sort of pejorative? We did a few years back because it was kinda used that way in one of Nathan’s cartoons so Katie and I started using it to replace swear words around him. I just find it funny that someone else does too. At least I think you do.
I have not!!! I find it really funny that you were though. What do you use now?
I don’t craft well either lol I have zero artistic skills…you actually seem like you possess some, I am surprised some reason you don’t craft lol I guess because you knit so well.
I can follow a pattern (most of the time, ha!) when knitting! I don’t get much joy out of attempting to do artistic things though. 🙂
Wow, this post definitely did not go the way I was expecting from the post title. I thought you were going to talk about stepping on a pine cone or how easy it is to trip on them while you’re running. Not…about some loser and pinecone crafts! I’m amused that you still have yours after all that.
I obviously love crafty things (but not all of them), but I’d never force them on people. That makes it so un-enjoyable!
Ha ha ha! The post could have definitely gone that way too. They were quite the tripping hazard!!!!
I am not sure why I still have it. It cracks me the hell up every time I see it. I will text you a pic of it when we get our holiday stuff out.
RIGHT!!! No one wants to be forced to do anything!
It’s so strange that someone would get seriously mad about people not participating in a craft – honestly, I think I’d have tossed the pinecone rather than keep it as a reminder of such an uncomfortable encounter. People are weird…
Isn’t it though?! It’s really like a little kid getting mad you don’t want to play the game they want to play or something… which, like I said, is something you learn how to handle.
I have no idea why I kept it. I do laugh about it now. I wonder if the other people kept theirs.
I wonder if maybe the person in question is particularly sensitive to having his/her ideas rejected and feels like the rejection is of him/her as a person rather than the idea presented (a craft, a game, whatever), and that feeling of rejection manifests itself as anger and offense? That seems like the only logical explanation for that kind of overreaction to that kind of situation. That’s certainly a tricky situation to be in as a person on the outside. You don’t want to accommodate them and lead them to think that they can always get their way, but you also don’t want to hurt their feelings. Though that is something I’d think you’d have to deal with more if the person in question was a child, not an adult, but it doesn’t sound like that’s the case in this situation!
It could very well be that! On the outside, it just appears childish, like they can’t handle life when they don’t get their way. And it’s tricky, like you said. I am not one to accommodate that, especially when someone does that all the time.