Why People Bitch 101

Today I was doing weights/abs in the lady's part of the gym after my cardio workout.  It was glorious.

Until, that is, some backwards-ass, disheveled lady came up to me whilst I was on the ab machine (you're so vulnerable on the ab machine) and said "Do you smell that awful smell?" Resisting the urge to check my underarms (which were fresh, I later confirmed), I sat up and took in a deep whiff.  I might have smelled a faint smell of something chemical-ly.  So I responded (annoyed) telling her I did smell something that reminded me of lawn chemicals, but that it didn't bother me.

I laid back down to resume my crunching in peace and she says, "well good, if I'm not the only one who smells it, I'm going to say something."  The first thought coming to my head was UGH.  Just deal with it.  Clearly it isn't some poisonous gas that the owners of the gym are trying to off us (their paying customers) with.  She leaves the room, comes back in and says, as I still long to do nothing but crunch in peace, "they say it aint gonna hurt us. YEAH RIGHT!" Paranoid much, lady? Geez, Louise!

It got me thinking about what causes people to bitch so much.  And I can be guilty of it, too.  I came up with these quick reasons/situations I think inspire people to bitch, from my past experiences.

1.  When the bitcher is a representative of more than one person's views (see above incident):  The bitcher becomes the heroine of the gym.  She stands up for all who want to bitch, but are not bitching.  Even though I was truly not bothered by the smell, my perspective matters not.  Bitching is all about the perspective of the bitcher.

2. When the bitcher desires conflict in an otherwise peaceful, amicable situation aka somebody wants  to start some drama where it is not necessary.  In my experiences, the women in my life who I tend to genuinely dislike the most enjoy this method of bitching best.  When there is no reason for getting their panties in a bunch, these bitchers find a way to wad 'em up.


3. When the bitcher is tattling Another situation overheard at the gym's front desk... "I just want to let you know that the lady up there in the booty shorts and red sports bra didn't clean the fourth eliptical from the right side after she used it."  Okay, so maybe I exaggerated this one a little.  But it's another instance of the bitcher becoming the do-gooder.


4. The bitcher feels better venting through complaint This is my personal favorite method of bitching.  I resort to this one in my own life probably too often.  Sometimes nothing compares to a conversation with a close friend or your spouse of straight-up unashamed bitching.  It feels so good when you're done, even if you did completely unload on an innocent party.

5. The bitcher is tired/had a bad day/ is taking out some negative circumstance on her bitchee All women are guilty of this, and if you say you aren't, then I think you are full of shit.


Can you think of any more?

XOXO,

Aud