Monday, October 29, 2018

I'm kind of an asshole.

Um....no, I am an asshole. I know some out there think I'm much worse than an asshole. But, for the sake of this post, let's just leave my stats as asshole.

I have worked in the food service industry and the retail industry. Both are industries I think should be mandatory for everyone to work in for at least some time in their lives. I think this because I feel it will make people better customers. The shit you have to put up with in these lines of work should teach you how not treat others when you are on the other side of things. I still believe this to be true...for the most part...except when I fail at it.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I work in the office. There is an Einstein Bros. Bagels on my drive. So, I tend to grab a bagel on my way. I have a rewards' account with them. When I buy a bagel, the bar code is scanned to do a check-in and is always a card for payment. Not that long ago, there was a problem with my account and I wasn't getting my points. I was really frustrated about this. So, the next time I went in, I started complaining to the cashier. I was getting more worked up than I should have.

Later, I thought about how ridiculous I had been. I pulled out my past job experience and thought about how the cashier had absolutely nothing to do with my rewards' app. It was so far above his pay grade that no amount of complaining on my part was going to get me anywhere. Even if I would have asked for the manager, it would have been dumb of me because this wasn't an issue management could handle. So, I felt horribly guilty about the way I acted toward the kid.

The next time I was in and the kid was working, I apologized. He didn't remember what had happened, but I told him it wasn't fair of me to behave that way. He thanked me for apologizing even though he didn't recall the situation.

Forward on to last week.

Next to the Einstein Bros. is a Starbucks. I stop in it, too, on my way to the office. Last week, while I was in there, a man and a woman were having a loud argument. It was some road rage/parking lot based fight. The woman was behaving much more ridiculous than the man. She was so loud and purposely drawing the attention of everyone. I had placed my order and was trying to get out of the way of the register. This location has an unusual setup. She was blocking my way. It took me a few attempts at "Excuse me" before she finally got out of the way. The man had gone outside, but she was still carrying on. I was waiting for my drink and my blood pressure was rising. She had gone way overboard. Finally, I just burst. I told her she was being ridiculous and should stop or leave. She then starts in on me about how it was none of my business. I told her she made it my business when blocking my way and with the way she was carrying on with the intention of getting everyone to hear here. I can't remember what else was said, but a barista told her to take it outside. I got my drink end exited. The man was on the phone with the police. They talked to me, but let me go because there wasn't really anything they needed from me. I left.

Later, I was ashamed at how worked up allowed myself to get. Again, it was something ridiculous on my part. I didn't need to interject myself, even if the lady had been blocking my way and yelling to everyone.

A couple days later, when I was back in that Starbucks on my way to work, I apologized to the baristas who had been there that day. I told them there was no call for me getting worked up and raising my voice like that. They said there was no need and that the woman was being inappropriate. But, I still felt it was the right thing to do. No one needs their place of work made uncomfortable. Granted, I wasn't at the level of the lady, but I certainly didn't help matters.

Sometimes, you just really have to take stock of your behavior and recognize that just because someone's job is to "serve" you, your place is not to treat them or their work environment with anger and hostility.

It's a new week with new stops in at Einstein Bros. and Starbucks. Let them be free of me being an asshole.