A brother and a sister, for better or for worse

[venta]

On Saturday night, ChrisC and I were strolling across the North Circular on the way to the cinema. Not that we were a danger to traffic, we used a pelican crossing and everything. As a car which had stopped at the lights pulled away, the passenger wound down the window, leaned out and yelled at us "Are you two twins?"

Now, I can understand the question. Superficially, we look quite similar: similar height, similar hair-colour, and we both have long hair[*]. We have - occasionally - been mistaken for each other by people who know us well (though admittedly at a distance, or in photographs, and not recently).

What baffled me was that the shouter clearly intended it to be a cutting and deadly insult. As it was, it left us both faintly amused with a side order of "eh?"

Of course, it is possible that our fashionably-tousled teenager has embarked on a policy of yelling weird things out of windows with the aim of causing confusion and cognitive dissonance all over London (I'd certainly find that much more fun than hurling abuse at people).

[*] We also wear nearly-identical, independently-chosen glasses. Though mine were in my bag at the time, rather than on my face, so not directly relevant. On the rare occasions I leave mine lying around somewhere in our flat, whole seconds of hilarity ensue.

What's the strangest thing anyone's ever shouted at you?

Comments

[ruanae.livejournal.com]

Hmm I've had various things shouted at me, including the standard "Oi Goth" and other such witty banter. I once had a cabbage thrown at me from a van, fortunately it missed. (I've also had stones, sweets, spit etc and been set on fire but that's par for the course) When I was waiting for the bus to college someone shouted "Get a job" which was confusing as I was waiting at a bus station, which i didn't think was an indicator of being unemployed...

Actually the weirdest question was when I was on holiday, when a woman came up to me and my brother and asked if we were part of some religious group as we had long hair! When we said no her next question was "Do you work in IT then?". Was by offensive, just odd

[venta.livejournal.com]

and been set on fire

Er... no, I think it's worth asking about that one.

What !?!?

[ruanae.livejournal.com]

It's one of those stories that sounds more exciting than it is. Basically I was sat on a bus with friends going round to someones house. Sat minding my own business till suddenly smoke starts drifting round in front of me. Friend turns round and tells me I'm on fire. Well smouldering anyway. Turns out a scally got sat behind me had decided to set the back of my head/pony tail on fire with a lighter. Fortunatly i don't use hair spray or those spray on hair dyes or it would have been a lot less fun. So I managed to put myself out and the scally got off the bus laughing. Bus driver didn't do anything either. Was more annoying than anything else, but after that not a lot tends to phase me. Although i do prefer to sit with my back to a corner on a bus if possible.

[venta.livejournal.com]

Yikes! Still rather scary-sounding - and annoying that whoever did it got away free and laughing :(

[chrisvenus]

I gto somethign similar, never worked out whether it was deliberate or accidental... I was sitting on a bench in manchester (if i remember correctly) when suddenly I feel something on my hair. I turn around and there is somebody standing there looking like they'd just messed with my hair. Confused briefly until he (or maybe it was a she) indicated that there was a cigarette butt smouldering in my hair that they were getting out. No idea whether somebody threw it at me deliberately or jsut tossed it away without looking though. Little damage done to the hair fortunately, just a little bit of it burnt.