I was excitedly preparing to get some ice cream then visit my partner for a minute at his job then head home from my own workday. I was wearing big, teal “don’t talk to me” headphones, and just a couple doors down from the desired ice cream shop I see a young, 20 something (my age range) guy walking towards me, then stop abruptly. He loudly says “EXCUSE ME” so I can hear him over my jams. I ignore this and walk on. He then comes up behind me and taps me on the shoulder. I wheel around with an incredulous look, pull one side of headphones aside, and ask “yeah?”

“Do you like green? You look like you like green. I like your headphones, and your shirt and earrings…they’re all green.”

I sort of half nod and grimace while walking on, and at this point I’m veering to enter the ice cream shop. He moves to block my path, so I have to say to him, “excuse me, I’m going in here” and quickly jerk the door open. He then follows me inside! I got real pissed real fast, as this seemed very intimidating and cornering to me. The place was empty with just the clerk up at the counter. I whip around and tell him “dude, I’m good. I don’t want to talk to you.”

“You don’t want to talk to me? Why? But I just want to talk to you… I just think you like green and are pretty and I just wanted to talk to you. So really, I can’t talk to you?”

Fucking seriously?

I passionately assert that no, you little twerp, I don’t want to talk to you and leave me the hell alone. He reluctantly sulks out of the ice cream shop and I’m left to shakily order my ice cream, which totally doesn’t taste as good as I imagined it would now.

The ironic part is that all this happened almost exactly outside my partner’s bookstore front, where he was blissfully, unknowingly awaiting my arrival. But I must say, in my “defense” of why I didn’t want to talk to this jerk I specifically did not say “because I have a boyfriend” as my reason because even if I was single, and was remotely attracted to this honestly not bad looking dude, this ass ignored all polite, civil conversation and approach rules. My HUGE headphones, my body language, the steely ice cream driven look of determination on my face…all these things signaled NOT INTERESTED to anyone curious parties.

Submitted by Sandy

Location: Adams Morgan, 18th street

Time of harassment: Evening Rush Hour (3:30P-7:30P)

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