The Pickers

Maybe it is the notion of cultural taboos ingrained in me over the years that makes me think the ordinary habits of people in my ancestral homeland are rude and sometimes outright disgusting, or maybe it is my germophobia and abiding hatred of all germs, real or psychologically fabricated, that makes me particularly sensitive. This next matter is not for the faint of heart -- that's right, I'm talking about public nose-picking.

I'm sitting in the air-conditioned post office on a hot day, waiting for my number to be called so that I can pay my health insurance premium. There's a woman sitting in front of me, reading a pamphlet and casually digging into her nostrils with her pinky. No, not just for a brief second or two, this was an indulged, leisurely cleansing exercise, after which she rubbed her fingers together and let it drop to the floor. GROSSSSSSSSS!!!!!! Yes you're waiting, and yes you're bored, but that does not entitle you to flick your boogers in public!

In fact, this is not an isolated incident, a lot of Taiwanese will pick at will, especially when riding on public transit, something about being in a public space must induce these people to empty out their bodily wastes. Even hard stares won't keep them from digging for gold, and believe me I've tried. I know that noses have to get cleaned out, but apparently it is too much to ask people to do it in private, preferably with a tissue, and wash your hands with soap afterwards!!!

I decided to dig a little deeper, and googled "nose picking habit" to see what I could find:

• Wikipedia entry - I found the "Noise-picking in popular culture" section an interesting read

• Web4Health -- a medical perspective on rhinotillexomania, or compulsive nose-picking
  

• Forumosa.com -- Ex-pats discussion board about nose picking in Taiwan

• Adventures of a Big White Guy Living in Hong Kong -- beyong Taiwan

• ...and finally, la piece de resistance, a video of a woman China doing the deed on a public bus (a word of warning: DO NOT watch this if you are squeemish or are getting ready to sit down to a meal). A confession: I was so grossed out the first few seconds, I couldn't stomach watching it any longer. The woman is like the Energizer bunny, she keeps going and going and going and going...

Sorry, I had to get this out of my system.