Recently I have come across an influx of morons. I was about to use the word stupid people, but I have no idea what their intelligence levels are, and I bet most of these folks are relatively smart. I call them morons because they lack people skills, common sense, and common courtesy for others.
I am back to traveling at a steady clip and I am still nursing Christian. Being away means keeping up the every 3-4 hour pumping regiment. First off, pumping sucks. It hurts, it takes time, you have to lug multiple bags around with you, and you are always searching for a “place to pump”. I can be heard mumbling under my breath “I love my son, I love my son” as I search for these places or cringe in pain. I’ve been known to pump in a car while driving, eating lunch, and possibly taking a conference call. But flying brings a new complication into the mix. There are a few flights I take, Dallas and Chicago for instance, where the flight is actually longer than the time that I should wait in between sessions. That is just flight time alone and does not include the 30 minutes prior that you need to board, or the 30 to 60 minutes you wait on the tarmac on occasion before you’re allowed to take off. There’s no option to pump on the plane… at least not one that I’m aware of without hogging the bathroom or freaking everyone out around you. That means that once you’ve made it through security and prior to boarding your flight you need to find a family restroom or nursing room where you can take care of business.
That brings me to moron story number one. A few weeks ago I was waiting for my delayed flight to Dallas and I stood in line for the nursing room for 15 minutes. It was being used by another working and traveling mom. As soon as she was exiting the room someone that works for Delta literally pulled a road runner in front of me and was about to shut the door when I said “excuse me but I was waiting for that room”. She promptly told me that it was not a restroom… No shit Sherlock. I told her that I need to use the room and that it was a nursing room. She proceeded to look around me as if looking for a baby and said oh you’re nursing? I said no I’m pumping as she is still guarding the entrance door. She proceeds to ‘let me in’, as if needed permission, and then says I have something personal I need to take care of. Apparently expressing milk from your body does not fall into that category for this lady.
I don’t have time to waste on this woman so I come into this small space with her and begin to get my stuff out. Not only is time critical in an airport but I also have lost all shame. I don’t even care who sees my boobs anymore. If watching someone do this is your idea of a good time I’m happy to give it to you (and also, you have way bigger life problems). Ha. So…are you super curious what this important personal matter was? Delta employee needed to flat iron her hair…I.SHIT.YOU.NOT.
As if I needed more material this guy sitting across the aisle from me on my flight home from this same trip served it up on a delicious plate…let Moron story #2 commence. This man just finished berating the flight attendant because his FREE inflight entertainment was not working. He asked her to reset the wifi multiple times even though she said she had. Then he demanded her to tell someone else. When she asked who he would like her to tell he said the pilot. THE.FLIPPING.PILOT. I’m sorry sir but I would really like our pilot to worry about flying the damn plane and not about the fact that you cannot watch Jack Reacher. Seriously, what is wrong with people? Why do they feel so entitled? Why do they believe it’s OK to treat others like that?! Or, an even scarier notion, are they too oblivious to even know they are acting like an ass?
I ran across an article the other day that talked about a CEO who conducted all of his interviews at a restaurant. He arrived early and always asked the wait staff to mess up the interviewee’s order on purpose. He wanted to see how they handled the situation. Did they sit there and take it? That might be an indicator that they didn’t have a backbone or couldn’t speak up when it’s needed. Did they treat the staff poorly because of the mess up? Would they then treat coworkers or subordinates poorly? I love love love this strategy as I’ve always thought that the way someone treats a waiter or waitress is a true measure of their character. And I’m super sensitive to it because I come from a long line of restaurant business employees: waiters, waitresses, bartenders, restaurant managers, caterers, etc. I worked as a waitress all through college and grad school and I know that it made an impact on my character.
Each one of these encounters serves as fuel for me. It drives me to teach my kids what not to do and how to treat others with respect NO matter who they are. But Liz and I know we cannot just preach to them about how they need to act…we need to be living, breathing examples of it. I make it a point to interact with and thank every toll both operator I come across. I wave at the crossing guard we pass every day on the way to Christian’s daycare. I say thank you to the cashier that bags my items and to the waitress who brings our food. We hammer “pleases” and “thank yous” into our boys. Liz has started a little mantra with them each day…”be kind, be courageous, and have fun”. So simple and yet, our world would be a much better place if people actually did just that.
In regards to the kids…will it all stick? Maybe, maybe not…but so help me, they will treat others with respect. They will work in a service industry at some point in life so they “get it”. And hopefully they will be good examples for their friends and the little humans they might raise one day.