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Eloi anecdote
A few days ago I was having lunch with a female friend at Ollies, a popular Chinese restaurant on Broadway across from Columbia University. At the table to my left, which was next to the window facing Broadway, a young man was eating alone. At a certain point I became aware that a very large man, in his late thirties or forties, with dark glasses, a dark short sleeve knit shirt stretched tight over a vast protruding gut, and a somewhat threatening appearance, was standing just to the right of and behind my friend, and was speaking in the direction of the young man. He had a thick Slavic or Russian accent. I had no idea what he was talking about, though he mentioned something about the Columbia Spectator and the Mossad. He also used some foul language. Since he was speaking and the young man was saying nothing, I assumed they knew each other. But after this monologue had been going on for a minute and a half, maybe two minutes, my companion said to the young man, “Do you know him?” At this, the large man walked away and went back to his table at the back of the restaurant. My friend again asked the young man if he knew the big man, and he said no. I was not in a position to observe the young man, since he was to my left and slightly behind me, but my friend pointed out that during the whole time that the big man was speaking, the young man had no reaction. He just sat there while this strange man was addressing him, or, rather, haranguing him. It was only when my friend said something, bringing some reality into the situation, that the large man retreated. She said the passivity of the young man was typical of young men today.
Picture it. He showed no response at all, while this bizarre character was talking to him for maybe two minutes. He didn’t bother saying anything like: “Who are you?”, “Why are you talking to me?”, “Go away.” He had no spirit, no life, no nothing. Email entry |