I am not a touchy-feely sort of person. In college, I had to limit one of my friends to one hug per day. No joke. So I understand that some people are going to be more physically affectionate in public than I would be. (Although my family has their theories about how I would act if I was dating someone).
But, like all things, moderation is best.
I was recently in China on vacation. My friend Beth and I were actually very surprised at the amount of PDA we saw there.
One very common sight is a guy carrying his gal's purse. Apparently they put so much junk in there, it is just far too heavy for the girl to manage. So what does the girl do with her free hands? She wraps them around her guy's arm and walks as close to him as she possibly can. It almost looks like they are glued together.
A thought - maybe they do this because there are so many people milling around and you don't want to lose or become separated from the person/people you are with. *Cough, cough.
I mean, it would be horrible if you were with some friends and, say, getting on the subway and suddenly, they aren't there anymore. Just the worst! I can't even imagine what that would be like . . . . .
Hence, the "Glue Walk."
Here's another example. We were riding on the subway and there was a couple standing next to one of the poles. The dude was rubbing the girl's stomach. You know, like when you pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time, only with no head rubbing. And let me tell you, there was no way this girl was pregnant. If she turned sideways, she would have disappeared. I just have no explanation for this.
Well, maybe she had a tummy ache. Hm.
We are no strangers to PDA in the good 'ol USA. Lobby couples, movie theaters, the Metra. The drive-in has a horrible reputation for PDA. Whenever I suggest going there with a group of people, they just look at me oddly. Oh, you mean you actually watch the movie at the drive-in? Who knew?
One of my biggest PDA pet peeves is when it happens in church. Too many times I have sat behind couples who can't seem to keep their hands off each other. Now I'm not talking about hand holding or an arm around the shoulders. I mean heads on shoulders, hands caressing hair, head massages, back massages, etc. Just, ewww. Do you realize that I'm trying to listen to the sermon? Instead, your morbidly fascinating inability to not touch each other is both distracting and disgusting me.
This year I was a part of a small group of mostly couples. And most of these couples are young and fairly recently married. Now I have nothing against young people or married people (even the recently married). I also happen to really like the people in my small group. But, well, let's just say their awareness of their surroundings is not always that good.
Our group had a lovely turkey dinner hosted at the home of the other single woman in the group. We were sitting in the living room before dinner and oh my word! Could these couples have been any more cozy? (You know I love you guys). So much canoodling going on. I wasn't quite sure where to sit . . . . .
Physical affection is a good thing and I'm glad all you non-singles like each other so much. But just make sure you are aware of the environment you are in before getting all snuggly.
We'd appreciate it.
Love,
Joy