Asshole of the Week is "The One-Upper"

Today I met someone, who as they left my presence, all I could say was "What an asshole". Nothing sums this man up better.

Other than "asshole", I will call him "D from Burlington- The One Upper".

I had never met this guy before today. I really could care less if I ever saw him again. He was involved in part of a conversation between a friend of mine and myself for about 20 very long minutes. My friend knows him through business. I swear when "The One Upper" left, my friend muttered something along the same lines as I.

It didn't matter what was being discussed, this guy knew better, had better, saw better, owned better, etc. If I drove a Firebird, he drove a Trans Am. If I had a beer, he had champagne. Know what I mean?

Our conversation involved topics on birds (of course) and photography. This was due to me showing my friend my recent photos of the Snowy Owl Angie and I had seen at a waterfront park near out home. Instead of "wow" or "good for you" or even nothing being said, which would have been fine... I got "I see you've played with these on your computer. I can tell you've blown them up beyond the max. They are grey and grainy." Stuff like that. He then asked me what kind of camera I have. I told him. Well, he had one waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better than me. He went on to tell us how great it is, how he could get shots from across the street on his zoom and be able to print them with no cropping or manipulating whatsoever and being crystal clear. He even told us about the amazing shots he gets but had none as testimony... it was all in good word I suppose. Good for you pal but unfortunately nobody asked nor cares!

He went through my latest pics. Suddenly he comes to my Red Breasted Nuthatch pictures. He accused me of photo-shopping these to unbelievable ways as the colors were un-natural for this species of bird. He said it didn't even look like a Red Breasted Nuthatch. I felt like telling him how uneducated I am with a computer, not having elaborate photo-shopping programs and so on. Instead, I just said "that is how they look in my backyard, up close, on a sunny day, with the flash on". I should have said I have better food for them than he does, giving them brighter shinier coats.



He talked about how great it is where he lives. I get 12 to 15 Goldfinches... well, he gets 65! He has birds who do not migrate anymore, they just stay with him, because his property is so good, his feeders are so good, and the food is too! He's got Eastern Bluebirds that most of us won't see until May, and only if you are some ways out of the GTA. He gets four different species of Woodpeckers too. Blah blah blah. Enough!



I looked at the clock and was going to give this another 5 minutes before I would just up and leave. People like this, listening to them go on and on, and knock down anything from others, are nothing but serious time wasters, but he finally left.

I am certain most of us know a person like this... or have been exposed to someone just like "D from Burlington - The One Upper".

I just have to say "Lets all give him a big hand for being 'The Asshole of week' and it's only Thursday!"

People are Shit-heads OR I want Crazy Taxi!

One thing I have to say about the age of computers and e-mailing is that it is so much easier for people to be dicks, shitheads, impersonal and just plain rude.

My example of the week, excluding the horrible drivers I see everyday, is this...

I've been wanting a game for my Sony Playstation 2. It's called "CRAZY TAXI". I had game 1 and game 2 for my Sega Dreamcast and they were awesome. It's a fun driving game with a soundtrack of tunes by Bad Religion and The Offspring. The object of the game is you, the taxi driver, must pick up fares about town and take them to their desired destination... be it KFC, the Library, a record store or whatever. The more thrilling of a ride you give them, the bigger the tip you get. That's about all there is to it. It's just a fun game to pop in, play for a while, and shut off until another time. It's nothing complex, not needing to worry about special moves, missions, etc.


So, right after Christmas, I posted an ad on Kijiji.com. I've seen the game on eBay and sellers through Amazon.... prices range from $4.99 used to $30.00 brand new. I search EB Games at random who sell it for $14.99 when the game is in. I try to find it locally in hopes to not deal with any shipping costs. The game isn't expensive. It's just older, not impossible to find, just stores don't carry it unless it's traded in.

As I was saying, I post an ad on Kijiji. I got 3 replies within the ten days.

First one... seller has the game, no instructions or casing (no big deal)... he offers it to me for $5 but also says it's badly scratched and he's not sure if it even works... why did he bother?

Second one... seller is trying to sell 4 games, which includes Crazy Taxi... $30 for all four... I offer him $15 for two games. He soon replies back that there is great interest in the game(s) and will sell to the highest bidder. I don't go for that and pass. A day later he contacts me again, I find out he's a 12 year old, there was no other bidder(s) and he wants as much as he can get for the games. So he asks me "how much will you pay for the games?" He tells me he's a kid, too young to have a job and wants to sell his stuff for something else and wants as much as he can get. I stand on my price. "Whatever bro! It's your loss!" was his last bit to me.

Third, and most recent... someone contacts me from Thornhill. He says he's got the game, clean disc, all the instructions and so on are included. He wants $15 for it. I reply with "SOLD! Where and when can we set up the transaction?" The next evening, which is tonight, he writes me and says "I need money bad, you can have the game for $35." I reply with "Not interested." and I won't be even if he comes back with the initial offer.

It's just way too easy for people to be such jerks in this virtual world. It makes me wish I could reach through the computer screen and strangle the buggers!

One day I will have this game again... and such a$$holes will not ruin my fun.