It used to be all about being the best. We were told to try hard, excel, and succeed - and if we were able to pull that off, we had the right to enjoy the fruits of our labors. We had the same expectations of our country as we did individual people- growing up I remember a collective feeling of national pride - pride when our astronauts accomplished a mission, pride when our athletes took the gold in the Olympics, pride when our voices were heard and decisions & laws were made because we believed in them.
Boy, things sure are different now, aren't they? I think it all started with standardized testing in the schools. Seriously. Tell a kid they don't have to be the best - just meet the national average & what kid is not going to coast instead of peddling as hard as they can? Those kids are now raising kids & they have either become so complacent or were dumbed-down too much to understand that they were cheated out of the American Dream. The same American Dream our country was founded on, the one that our current government - mediocre to be sure and not even close to average - is trying to erase from our history.
We went from a nation of power and influence to a nation of wimps - politically correct pansies who bend over backward to keep from offending or upsetting anyone else - silencing our own voices and denying the foundations upon which we were built so that everyone else would "like" us - and guess what?? They STILL DON'T LIKE US!! The only difference is that when we were a nation of power and pride we commanded respect - even if it was respect based on fear... NOW THEY NOT ONLY DISLIKE US, THEY WIPE THEIR FEET ON THE DOORMAT THAT IS NOW OUR COUNTRY & LAUGH AT US! They laugh because they know just how far we have fallen from what we were. Yeah, they laugh.... we, as a nation, should cry - and bow our heads in shame.... And while they are bowed maybe say a prayer.... that somehow our nation remember what greatness is and decide that average is not something to strive for, but something to surpass...
Sunday, October 16, 2011
My Personal Issue with Smokers (in the Workplace)
I am a minority in my workplace - a non-smoker. No offense to anyone personally, but I hate smokers. Hate working with you. I watch you walk out of the store at least once an hour, sometimes even more & spend 5-10 minutes because you "have to have a cigarette" - while I am stuck taking care of customers without anyone to help me.
And you can't just go alone - smokers in the workplace seem to like to smoke in groups. Meanwhile, my line is getting longer and longer, I am dying of thirst or need to use the bathroom, but can't because there is no one else in the store! 10 people are in my line already, the phone is ringing, the CAT scale is buzzing in with a truck needing to be weighed, someone's having trouble with the "pay at the pump" card reader, someone wants to buy an item from the display case, someone else needs to send a fax & oh yeah, did I mention I need to use the bathroom?? You can see me in the window, I know you can - but you puff and chat and then come in & make me look incompetent by asking "Why didn't you call for help?"
Why should I have to call you for help? You can see me, you can see the customer line - I don't have time to call you over the radio, ok? I am doing your job AND mine & trying to do it with a smile & pleasant word for everyone in line.
When you come back inside the building and I tell you I need to go to the ladie's room, you expect me to clock out for a break, yet it is perfectly fine for you to spend an average of an hour a day getting PAID to SMOKE??? That is just messed up.
And you can't just go alone - smokers in the workplace seem to like to smoke in groups. Meanwhile, my line is getting longer and longer, I am dying of thirst or need to use the bathroom, but can't because there is no one else in the store! 10 people are in my line already, the phone is ringing, the CAT scale is buzzing in with a truck needing to be weighed, someone's having trouble with the "pay at the pump" card reader, someone wants to buy an item from the display case, someone else needs to send a fax & oh yeah, did I mention I need to use the bathroom?? You can see me in the window, I know you can - but you puff and chat and then come in & make me look incompetent by asking "Why didn't you call for help?"
Why should I have to call you for help? You can see me, you can see the customer line - I don't have time to call you over the radio, ok? I am doing your job AND mine & trying to do it with a smile & pleasant word for everyone in line.
When you come back inside the building and I tell you I need to go to the ladie's room, you expect me to clock out for a break, yet it is perfectly fine for you to spend an average of an hour a day getting PAID to SMOKE??? That is just messed up.
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