Diary - Day 34

I tasted a bite of New Age Feminism yesterday in the gym.

There were 5 treadmills among which one was unoccupied when I entered the gym. I stepped in, walked towards the one treadmill. A middle-aged, visibly capricious lady sprang up from behind a Pilates ball and asked that she'd take the treadmill instead (it works on a first-come-first-serve basis with treadmills at the gym).

I said okay but pointed out the she'd spend more than permissible time on treadmill (which is 15-20 minutes) during peak hours. She retorted by dragging a friend of hers into the argument by a seeking a validation from her friend that she never overran on a treadmill. I tried to play down the altercation by saying, "I don't have to lie to you, madam. I've seen you going on about 45 minutes and over, many a time" and walked into the weights section.

Some good 30-35 minutes passed and this lady got off the treadmill. Mind you, 30-35 minutes. She walked up to the farthermost corner of the gym where I was working out. She wagged her right hand index finger at me threateningly and said,"Learn how to talk to women first."

This was after I kept addressing her as madam all the while. I spoke only in English - not to give scope for any possible misinterpretations.

I shot back saying,"madam, maybe you need to know how to talk to human beings first before you advise me on learning how to talk to women," and went ahead with my workout.

My back could feel the piercing of virtual arrows she shot while she stood there fuming (probably plotting another gibe at me) as I went on with my workout.