Optimus Prime and Maximus Irritation

Freedom is the right for all sentient beings, says Optimus Prime. Well, there seems to be no freedom of choice if you wanna go to the movies around here. We went to our neighbourhood movie theater, which has 11 screens. The ONLY movie they were showing was Transformers II. They have 11 screens, the shows start in every three hours. Quickly counting, that makes about 33 showings of Transformers every night. I did know Sanghainese were big Transformers-fans, based on the abundand Transformers-bumber stickers in every other car, but this big? Are you serious?

Well, maybe it should have told me something, that some colleagues from the office, whom I rarely... I mean NEVER talk with, have asked if I have seen Transformers. I never talk with them, but they consider Optimus Prime important enough to start talking to me :o)

But back to the movie theater. Oh, my Lord. For Pete's sake what was I thinking. Why did I do that to myself? The theater was full. Full of people, who kept eating through the movie. 400 people eating chicken wings, burgers, and all kinds of fried snacks, you know, normal stuff... In China. 400 people who needed to go to the restroom (or to smoke in the hallway, if you want my guess) three times during the flick. But never mind that. What really, really bugged me, was the talking. I should know by now, but O M G the talking! Oh, how I wanted to shut the mouths of those talkers. This guy just behind us kept explaining the movie to his mother. And not in hushed voice! Nooooo, nooo, so that noone could miss what ever important comments he made. To his MOTHER!

Life in China has certainly flexed my nerves, and there are many things I have learned to just shrudd of. But this continuous talking during (such important and culturally important) movie experience! I just wanted to stand up and start yelling. "Shut the F*** up! Shut up shut up shut up!" Or throw my popcorn at this loudest, closest terrorist. (Popcorn, which I, by the way, brough from home, because they only sell SWEET popcorn in the theater, but that is another story.)

I made it through the movie without organazing a public scene, but I am seriously considering signing in to one of those anger managing classes...