Monday, February 8, 2010

Curmodgeonly Behavior


I’ll be turning 50 later this month and the process has begun. Clearly I’m starting to morph into a curmudgeonly old bastard.

I recently spent a Saturday coaching a group of high school students in an academic competition. My team was on track to place dead last, a fact that undoubtedly had affected my attitude. Three key students recently quit the team. To make matters worse, one of the top performers called off sick at the last minute. Another kid missed the bus Saturday morning. When she showed up late, missing four of the ten events, I asked what happened. She looked me dead in the eye and told me she couldn’t find her phone. She was ;ate because she couldn’t find her phone.The bottom line is we competed with students in just four of the nine slots. Now wouldn’t you call this a bad way to start a Saturday?

The students were off for two hours of testing, leaving me with a reasonable amount of time to regroup. There was a gas and gulp joint down the road and I figured I might walk over and pick up a cup of coffee. A long transcendentalist walk in the fresh morning air might help me clear my cranium. Before I made it out the door another coach stopped me and pointed me toward the teacher’s lounge.

It was like nothing I’d ever seen. There was an enormous bay window overlooking cool green athletic fields and cow pastures. Facing the window were eight leather recliner chairs. Fighting back tears of joy, I filled up a cup of joe and dropped my bag beside a chair. Falling back into the chair, I reclined, sipped and opened up the paper. Teacher Heaven, baby – nothing less than Teacher Heaven.

At the time I hit the recliner there were perhaps five coaches in the room. Within five minutes the lounge was filled with coaches, all but one from a particular school district on the other side of town; I’ll call it District X. The District X people filled in the recliners and commenced to hooting it up. The conversation was cliquish so I tried to make small talk with the other non District X teacher. To say the coaches from District X were loud would be an understatement. One guy had the loudest voice I’ve ever heard; he kind of sounded like Darth Vadar, only nerdier and much louder. And then there was the woman sitting next to me. When she laughed she cackled like a chicken with a pitch so high it should have broken the bay window. This lady’s cackles absolutely pierced my skull. Every time she cackled, I shuddered - and I got a little angrier.

After one particularly noggin blasting cackle, I sprung to my feet.

“That’s it! I can’t take it.”

I headed for the door. One of the District X women asked me if I left my computer. I didn’t answer; I just waved her off and got the hell out of there. It wasn’t long before I realized I’d left my bag. The woman was talking about my bag. When I returned to the room my chair had been filled and the district X people had settled into a calm, quiet conversation.

I snatched my bag up and the woman asked, “What’s the matter with you?”

This is the part where I turned into the cartoon thermometer and the mercury exploded through the top.

“Lady, you’re asking me what’s the matter? You know what the hell’s the matter. You wanted the chairs, YOU GOT THE CHAIRS!”

Not exactly witty, but I got my point across.

Actually I felt pretty stupid.

To make matters worse, I kept running into those people all day. When I passed a couple of younger District X women, they put their heads down. I heard one of them stifle a laugh after they passed.

Pretty curmudgeonous, huh? All I needed was a cane to wave around.

Then again, those District X people were behaving rudely.

The truth is I could have quietly turned to the cackler and asked her to tone it down. Or I could have quietly got up and left. But the pendulum could have swung the other way. I could have called them all sons of bitches and tipped over all of the recliners before I left. That would have been cool – curmudgeon cool…

10 comments:

Kavita Saharia said...

Someone is turning 50 !!!Well a very happy birthday to you in advance.Do you know that they have a club in Facebook named -i almost get a heart attack when i can't find my phone'...and they have members in seven digits.So not finding a phone is a serious problem now a days.

Interesting Saturday...and much more interesting Curmodgeonly behaviour.Hey Synder take care.

Midlife Roadtripper said...

My, such an honest and passionate post. Such a joy to read. A view from a different eye.

I would not have given up my chair. Ever. Never. Note to self - ear plugs in brief case. Until those in place, fingers suffice. Lounge on, #167 Dad.

Old bastards are fun in many different ways. Just gotta find the right crowd.

Sproglet said...

Ha! Aw, if only she hadn't said something to you once all the noise had died down, it would have been much more in context.

Turning 60 is more fun, my friend Wilf has used it as an excuse for all manner of forgetful and belligerent behaviours.

BeFrank said...

Sounds like somebody didn't get their oatmeal and prune juice that morning.

What can I say? We live in a world where kind and considerate behavior isn't valued or respected. I can only hope that the pendulum will eventually swing back towards a more genteel standard even if I don't expect to be alive witness it myself.

In the meantime, I can only do my part by behaving in the manner in which I would like to see others behave.

It doesn't fix the world, but it makes it nicer for some of the people who have to put up with my crap.

Dave said...

I sometimes have a desire to do something like that, and I'm only 33! Just give me a few years.

You should see the German teens on the subways with their beers, on the way to the clubs Saturday night.

Then there was the guy in the ski gondola this weekend, who insisted on playing Nickelback on his MP3 phone as loud as possible. The distortion almost dulled my hearing, and he kept it up the whole 10-minute rude! I mean, ride.

Guely of Sweden said...

You know that one "is not the years but the mileage" Happy birthday!(when the day comes)

Rick Rivers said...

Admit it, deep down you are proud of the eruption inside you. But you're still a young dude. Patience.

italgalmm said...

Hmmmm
Sounds like "Assholery" if you ask me...

Just Saying...

Oh and Happy Birthday I'll be 50 in June. UGH !!!

Being an Italian female turning 50...
My mustache is coming in right on schedule.

Now THAT' is Something to be pissed off about..

; )

#167 Dad said...

Thanks Kavita. I'm loving cell phones less every day.

MJ,
Next time I'm tipping over the chairs.

Sproglet,
Looking forward to developing forgetful and belligerent behaviors.

Bryan,

Oat meal and prune juice. You're a riot...

Dave,
Rude skiers, huh? Not even the slopes are safe.

G-man,
Oh I got milage.

Rick,
Young dude - I like that.

italgalm,
You're right behind me. Class of
'78 rules.

Unknown said...

I thought I had the franchise on sitting next to cackling, drunk, loud, know-it-all, or otherwise obnoxious humans. Now I see it happens to others. You have my deepest sympathy.

As to curmudgeonly behavior, it only gets worse with repeated exposure to the above types. I know from experience.