untilwereturn wrote:
I've had similar experiences my whole life. Sometimes it's been random bullying or harassment, as others have pointed out. Sometimes it seems to be directed at a thing that makes me stand out.
About a year ago I was walking in a downtown area taking photographs. I have a nice, leather safari type hat that I call my "Ansel Adams" hat, and I often wear it when I'm out on my photo expeditions. A car filled with college-aged kids drove past me and they must have decided I was an easy target for ridicule, because one of them yelled something like, "Nice hat, f**got!"
I do have a rather large head, and this hat was bought from an online store that caters to the "cranially endowed." So maybe it was my oversized noggin that drew their ridicule. Or maybe it was my bouncy gait. Or maybe it was just a car full of bored, oafish teenagers who had nothing better to do. I didn't bother yelling anything back because... well, delayed processing.
It's posts like these that make me wonder what's wrong with the world.
You were right not to yell anything back. They were probably just trying to provoke a response.
I've had similar experiences as a younger teenager. People used to call me Harry Potter because I had shorter hair and wore glasses at the time. It might sound funny but I was a 13 year old girl trying desperately to fit in and the ones doing the name-calling were 14 year old boys and it was devastating to me at the time.
I've also had random teenagers shout things at me from their cars.
One time that sticks out for me in my mind was a boy in my year who threw stones at me in the schoolyard. Thankfully he left the school a few months later.
I find it's not just teenagers though. I've had old ladies roll their eyes at me or speak to me quite aggressively because of something I've done or said that seems awkward.