Manny vs. Tarik

One thing that has become abundantly clear over the last year or so is that Manny harbors an intense grudge towards our roommate, Tarik. To be fair, if anyone got made fun of as relentlessly as Manny has during the duration of our friendship, they would harbor a grudge too. However, I probably make fun of Manny more than anyone he knows, and Manny doesn't seem to hold anything against me. In fact, Manny more often than not treats me with respect. And although I appreciate the respect, I feel sympathy towards Tarik, who treats Manny relatively better (compared to me), but is subject to appalling and shocking abuse.

For example, we make fun of Manny because he bought and wears black pairs of Crocs. I don't read the fashion articles in Esquire or GQ, so I'm no guru, but I'm an avid people watcher and I have never seen anyone of the male gender wear Crocs. In fact, the only person I know who has Crocs is my mom, who might be the oldest, most female person in the world. So when I see Manny in his Crocs and his natural homeless attire, I think that he's dressed like a homeless grandmother.

Well, yesterday, while we were headed to the Deli, I noticed that Manny wasn't wearing his Crocs, that he was just wearing regular sandals. So this exchange took place:

Me: Why aren't you wearing your Crocs?
Manny: (mumbles incoherently)
Tarik: Wait, you aren't wearing your Crocs?
Manny: ...Fuck you.

Naturally, we've picked up on Manny's mistreatment of Tarik a long time ago, so while in the Deli, we were mocking Manny, re-enacting the previous conversation. Manny overheard Tarik complaining about Manny's unjust treatment and yelled at him, "Hey, I was said 'Fuck you' to BOTH of you guys! So FUCK YOU!!!" Again, I have to re-iterate. He was looking right at Tarik when he said this, he said this right after Tarik made a comment about Manny being a bastard.

Later on that night, Manny was ordering chinese food, but he was saying Tarik's order wrong. Tarik tried to correct him repeatedly, but Manny, getting frustrated by trying to understand the chinese lady on the phone and Tarik's corrections and my laughing, screamed at Tarik "Would you shut the fuck up? I'm trying to order!" I laughed because I thought the whole situation was funny, but I noticed that Tarik was becoming insanely angry, and I know it took every fiber of his being to not punch Manny in the face then and there.

Obviously, there are no grudges being held. But this whole controversy reminds me, that even though a black man is favored to become the next President of the United States, racial tensions are still part of the fabric of America. Hopefully, one day, Manny and Tarik will find the peace needed for a stronger and united apartment.