Said Too Much.

I am currently at work
& FRUSTRATED.
ugh! ew. gross.

Let's be honest, working at this giant, cold, multi-million dollar, affluent neighbor-hood library; I've come across my fair share of arrogant, slimy, old men.... those three words describe most, if not all the men that live around here exactly. They are arrogant, because they actually think that the world revolves around them and that their needs are of higher priority than anyone else, they are constantly stuck on a high horse. They are slimy, because they make remarks that are straight up SLIMY...sometimes on the borderline of being considered sexual harassment and are constantly just plain annoying and difficult. They are old... well, because they are old, usually pressing upon early 50's to later 60's.

They, them, those, men -- wait, they aren't even men, that's not how any man should act -- think it's okay to raise their voice at yours truly & speak harshly to me! In my two point five years that I've worked here, it's happened mmm... a hand full of times. SOMETHING, something really simple doesn't go their way or they are having trouble understanding directions and then, they GO OFF! BOOM. Like a dynamite. They lose control of their words and act like fools.

Okay, so now you kind of understand what kind of person I'm talking about...my most recent encounter with one of these fine tax payers, just twenty minutes ago, really made me think about just HOW important our words truly are!! ... read on

Example, just now -- there were four grown men, meeting in a study room with only two chairs... therefore, they did the logical thing, grabbed two other chairs from the computer desks & rolled them into the study room.

Problem is, it's against our Library's fire code & policy to bring extra chairs into a study room. I had already mentioned that to the main guy, before the others had gotten there and he agreed and was cordial... then acts like a five year old [or just arrogant] and goes [when I'm not looking] and rolls extra chairs into the study room, AFTER I JUST told him he couldn't do that?! Is he five?! Seriously.

I see this interaction, of the chair being misplaced and swiftly, yet composed walk over to the study room & open the door. Tell them that they can't bring extra chairs in and kindly remind the main guy that I JUST TOLD him that. The main guy -- a Library regular, knows the rules, and just heard me say 15 minutes prior that chairs couldn't be moved around -- stands up and just starts going at it, yelling [mind you, we're in a freaking LIBRARY] about how they are in a very important meeting and that I'm disturbing them and that they work for the county and pay taxes so they should be able to do what they want... on, and on, and on....

In between this not-so-manly man's rage, I suggested NICELY [I'm getting paid really well & have no other option, but to be nice...plus it's the right thing to do, right?] that he was MORE THAN WELCOME to switch rooms with other patrons, if he could find patrons willing to switch. I went over asked two ladies to switch rooms with them and the man and his embarrassed, yet spin-less friends went on with their snowy day.

At this point I am FUMING! The rage filling inside me seriously changed how I felt physically. All because a stranger spoke harshly and disrespectfully to me. I sat at my desk with a tingly nose wanting to cry. I kept thinking, if only my dad was here to yell back at them...I'm also pretty sure steam was coming out of my ears.

All of that to say...

Even if I sound like my mom, "it's not what we say, it's how we say it"

You have NO idea what kind of effect words and tones have on people...of course no one is perfect and people mess up, but this is definitely something we ALL should work on. HELLO, people :: angry tones and harsh words can change someones entire day in an instant, like that disgusting man just changed mine.

Lessons learned after today's little FIASCO:
1. keep your tongue from evil.
2. slimy, arrogant, old men are not truly men.

THE END.