Are there aliens bursting through the windows to the glass hallway? Did a dinosaur suddenly pop its head out of the French room? I mean, there must be something amazing happening in the hallways if you’re seeing something that will stop you right in your tracks.

     If you haven’t gotten the memo, here’s what I mean: I and many, many others get immensely frustrated with the people who feel the need to become one of the statues from Easter Island (those are called Moai) in the middle of a busy hallway.

     We get it; you saw your friend and want to say hi to them. You saw your significant other and want to give them a quick hug or kiss (or…whatever y’all do). Cool, that’s fine. But is a kiss that you can give later or a hi that you can text worth taking up others’ time? This is a huge school! People need to get from class to class with enough time to stop at their lockers or the bathroom, and you’re not helping.

     Not only is this a problem in school, but think about what happens in public. The people who stop in the hallway to talk or stare at their phones are going to grow up to be the adults who see their co-workers in Target and proceed to have an hour-long conversation in the middle of the office supplies aisle, leaving their poor children to fall asleep from boredom (sorry, Mom).

     Now, if you need to stop and ask a question about last night’s homework, that’s okay. If you see a teacher in their room and want to drop in to have a conversation, good on you for being social and kind. However, kindness only goes so far when you’re stuck in the middle of a hallway behind a bunch of students giggling at some TikTok that probably isn’t even that funny.

     It’s not just the hallways, by the way. I’m sure we all know the frustration of getting stuck in the grand staircase while a bunch of clowns stand by the railing, chucking food and stationery down to the first floor.

     I’ve watched students get yelled at in class and given detention slips for being seconds late to class. In most cases, it was because of hallway traffic and the large groups of people that like to congregate by a single locker while everyone else is expected to maneuver around them with ease.

     Really, you guys?

     It’s not even being social at this point. It’s ignorance and a lack of manners.

     So, next time you decide to plant your feet in the ground next to some random teacher’s room, don’t expect everyone to yield to you.

     Move out of the way, or get run over.