You know when you and your friend or partner are in the presence of someone doing something stupid/crazy/infuriating, and you want to signal “This is crazy, right?”? But raising your eyebrows, maybe even looking at each other might tip off the person doing the crazy thing? Tiny Cartridge co-editor Eric Caoili has a clever solution.
does anyone else have a Notes doc that just has the word “yikes”, so you can pull out your phone and show your partner whenever someone is wildin out around you but you can’t say anything pic.twitter.com/Vg9xeJ4CNU
— Tiny Cartridge (@tinycartridge) December 12, 2018
Sometimes you can just give a look or a nudge. But, as Caoili tells Lifehacker, “A lot of times, that’s not really possible. If you’re around family, it’s pretty obvious when you’re looking at each other.”
You could text each other. That’s what Caoili and his partner usually do, when it’s safe. But again, people who are acting inappropriately often seem to have temporarily heightened senses—you just know that Angry Apple Store Lady was aware of every eye on her. You do not want to become the target of that energy.
So you calmly pull out your phone, pull up that “yikes” note, and show it to your friend or partner like ah, look at this thing I have received or seen, which has nothing to do with the present situation.
“The most recent time I pulled out the ‘yikes’ phone,” says Caoili, “we were on the L train. Someone across from us had lost their phone, they’re cursing profusely about it. You don’t want to give away that you’re reacting, you don’t want them to turn that on you.”
So add this tool to your belt, along with your Seinfeld-style secret hand signals, your fake incoming phone calls, and your carefully calibrated deadpan.
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