...and I'm getting a bit tired of DK commenters tracking mud all over the carpet, tossing dirty dishes in the sink and leaving the toilet seat up. (I live with three females – they could fall in when you do that shit!)
Not long ago, a commenter who visits my home often – a sociable guy who we'll call Jarvis – strolled in and sat down on the floor. There must have been ten or so people in the room chatting, the conversation mostly cordial and informative, and we all looked up. I waved and welcomed him in (as I try to do when any guest arrives). At which point Jarvis interrupted everyone and consciously tried to hijack our discourse with a rather useless tangent, perhaps looking for a fight.
A few people glanced around, confused, and the dialogue stopped....
...at which point I took Jarvis aside and said, Dude, you're totally welcome in my home. But could you please not do that? It's really distracting.
To which Jarvis responded, Fuck off.
I wanted to hide rate Jarvis, but instead reminded him that he was in my home, and that while I welcomed discourse, such behavior wasn't appreciated.
To which he replied, Chill. It's not like I punched someone in the freakin' face.
____________
Look, I leave my home unlocked and the door open, happy to welcome anyone who would like to enter and sit down on our beige, cross-stitched sofa and comment.
I may challenge you, but if you're respectful – if you treat my home with respect – I'll let you sleep in the guest room and invite you to grab whatever you want from the fridge. And if you're both respectful and intelligent, hell, I'll give you the keys and maybe even let you babysit the most precious girls you're likely to ever encounter.
But, just because my home is on the interwebs doesn't mean you can come in and just trash the place. I mean, what the fuck? Seriously. What the hell is that? What, just because my house is made of pixels and syllables, of electrons and ideas, the rules of normal civility don't apply?
I know, I know. Troubadour, I hear you say, don't be stupid. It's like this everywhere on the internet (perhaps except for Deadspin). Just deal with it. Don't let it get to you.
And I'll respond, You know what? I don't have to accept it, particularly in diaries that deal with issues of conflict resolution. I mean, I'm not going to tell them to leave, but I don't have to just sit there quietly.
I mean, come on. My diary is my home.
