Is it just me?

I went down to Starbucks for my second cup of coffee just a short while ago and ran into one of the local... uh, I don't know what to call him. But there are a lot of them here.

I work in Seattle in a building near Pioneer Square, Union Station, and the stadiums. I know this area is known for its drug and prostitution traffic, but what draws the mentally unstable people? In the mornings, Starbucks has its share of the methadone clinic regulars, loading up on sugar with coffee in it until they get kicked out. They generally aren't a problem, but they can get a little raucous. The ones that worry me are the ones that walk around talking or shouting at people who aren't there. Sometimes the bystanders will just look at them and look away, other times they watch them until they're out of sight. Today, the guy in Starbucks was walking back and forth, going on and on, mumbling things I couldn't for my life make out except for the dates. It was as though he was reciting a time line, but I couldn't understand anything but the dates he was throwing out. The weird thing was that nobody seemed to notice he was doing it, or maybe we were all just automatically pretending not to notice it. La la la, this is me getting my coffee and ignoring the elephant in the room. He seemed harmless enough, but I generally tend to assume that if they are unbalanced enough to talk to people who aren't there, they may also be unbalanced enough to stab me in the neck and not know they're doing it. Seattle is generally a fairly polite city, and it isn't polite to stab people in the neck while they're just trying to get a cup of coffee.

Incidentally, I usually order a triple tall Americano. Today I ordered a drip coffee because I wanted to get out of the store faster than normal because I was vaguely uncomfortable with the crazy orator there. Just as one person handed me the drip, the other brought me the Americano that she assumed I would order. So I had to pay only for the drip! Woo hoo! Two fisted drinking! Luckily, I switched to decaf a couple of months ago. Otherwise, this would have done me in.

And yes, I know it is mean to call people crazy. It isn't politically correct. Well, I call people retarded and fat too, and I know they aren't PC either. The fact is, they are catch-all terms that everyone understands and can spell. When I know a more specific term, I use it. The dishwasher at the sandwich shop, for example, is not retarded. He has Downs Syndrome. The guy who shouts obscenities nonstop and kicks over the trash cans is schizophrenic, not crazy. The guy who spits big gobs of mucous into the fountain and throws his garbage on the ground near the trash can is an asshole, not a man. You get the gist. I calls 'em like I sees 'em.