On Courtesy

Everybody knows I'm fairly old-fashioned. Feel free to open the door for me if you like, though I might look at you funny if you offer to carry my books. Yet, even in Kentucky, the home of the Southern gentleman, courtesy is dying. In all fairness, most of these interactions are with the female of the species -- I keep forgetting that women are above the rules of courtesy. For example:

1. Jeanine wakes up between four and five in the morning. Please refrain from calling her after midnight unless you're dying. And even if you are, I might not truly comprehend the situation. Yes, I sound awake on the phone. That's acting ability, not reality. The perpetrator in this case: a college professor with a doctorate!
2. Jeanine may be found closeted quietly in a study room in the library, preparing for midterms. Please don't walk in uninvited and prepare to join her. Even if you promise to work quietly, she will no longer be alone. That was the original idea behind sitting alone in a closed room in the first place. And you know you won't be able to remain quiet! The perpetrator: one of the most talkative people in my class.
3. The Italian professor has been walking on a bad foot all semester, limping about with a cane. Before meeting with Jeanine and another student, she begins to erase the board, which runs the entire length of the classroom. Does courtesy suggest that you help erase the board or that you encourage her in word and gesture? Hmmm... The perpetrator: dense blonde sorority girl. Who would have thought.
4. Your son has a trumpet lesson with Jeanine at seven this evening. He comes home from school sick. Really, is 6:55 the best time to call and cancel the lesson? The only appropriate excuse I can think of is if the boy gets out of school at 6:50. The perpetrator: the same woman who called every Wednesday for four weeks to ask her son's lesson time. Yup, still 7:00.
5. You drive down a two-lane road. You stop in the middle of the road. You give no indication of the cause for this sudden stop. After a confused pause, you turn left. Aha! That's what you wanted! You wanted to turn! You know, somebody should come up with a device to alert other drivers of your desire. I bet it would really catch on. The perpetrator: 50% of the drivers in the UK area.
6. Okay, this one was a guy thing. There is a sidewalk down which I walk daily to and from school. It is wide enough to drive a Mack truck upon (which they do, on occasion). Just before the sidewalk reaches the road, there's a two-armed gate that has enough room for one person (or two good friends) to walk through. You and several of your friends wish to congregate on this sidewalk to chat. Obviously, the best place to do this is in the middle of the one-person gap in the gate. As you stand there, watching a pedestrian nearing the gate and talking with your friends, perhaps you should practice your look of surprise for when you discover she intends to walk through your congregation in order to reach the street. It's important to be convincing; how were you to know she desired to pass through the gate? After all, she easily could have been ... um... going to the fraternity house next door? Walking up and down fully loaded with school books for her health? The perpetrators: Two different groups of guys on two consecutive days.

The good news is that there is yet hope. The other night, after withstanding (I hope graciously) an undeserved (though understandable) blow-up by a coworker, she called me. She apologized beautifully and courteously. Her small courteous act made my night, and I'm not sure she'll ever know how much. Courtesy -- I wonder what the etymology of the word is. Surely something to do with the noble court. Behaving in a noble manner could change the world, don't you think?