Though losing his hearing, Marley could (and did) still steal food from the kitchen counter; he just couldn't tell that he was about to be caught in the act.

I went to the office, and the man behind the counter handed me some paperwork, which I filled out while I tried to act nonchalant about the fact that I could see his penis.

When we don't respect ourselves, we act in ways that our counter to our interests in an attempt to make ourselves feel better.