SELF IMPORTANT PEOPLE ARE NOT REALLY IMPORTANT AT ALL

Sometimes I am amazed at how arrogant and inconsiderate people are. I don't know if it is just me or if I am getting older and tend to notice just how inconsiderate people are these days, but over the last few weeks I have certainly found that the rudeness of people has been magnified.  I worked in public service for more than 40-years and I can say without a doubt more people in general are more demanding, rude and inconsiderate than they use to be. There use to be a certain degree of respect between people, but today that respect has dwindled. One more thing that I have discovered, people have no respect for themselves, so how can they have respect for others.

Don't get me wrong the majority of people are polite and a benefit to society. But the rude and demanding people tend to stick out more and get most of the attention. Over the last few month I have experienced a few examples of just how rude and demanding people these self-important people can be.

The Food Lion Parking Melt Down: Back in November I was parked at the Food Lion Store near my house. It has a large parking lot that serves Food Lion and a couple of other small businesses. The parking lot is never full and there is always parking close to the store. 

This one afternoon I'm returning to may car with my purchase, and as I am putting my bags in the trunk this one car pulls down the aisle and stops behind me.  The parking space on my right is handicapped, and the space on my left was vacant. I also might add the three spaces directly in front of me were vacant. 

As I finish putting my bags in the car, I looked and thought that the lady in the car sitting in the aisle might be pulling into the space to my left, but she was just sitting there. I get in my car and started replying to a text message before pulling out. As I was typing my message I heard someone blowing a horn. I looked around saw the woman that was sitting in the aisle was blowing her horn and waving her arms motioning me to move.

I went back to my text message and heard the horn blow again and then a few seconds later she actually got out of her car and came up and pecked on my window. As I cracked the window and she lit into me saying "You (meaning me) need to hurry up, I am waiting for this parking space." I look at her and say "You kidding, right?" 

She again said that she wanted may parking place and I "needed to hurry the hell up."  Me being the smart ass that I am I just looked at her and said, "I'm still using it, and she could have it when I was finished," and rolled the window up and went back to my text message. 

As she went back to her car the language she used would make a sailor blush but she finally got the message and went around and pulled into of the three a parking spaces in front of me.  As she began her trek into the store she couldn't resist giving me the finger. 

Again me not willing to let her have the last word, I pulled out of my space and rolled the window down and yell, "Hey, I'm done now, you are welcome to it," which generate a F-You and another finger.

Starved For Attention at Cracker Barrel:  The job of a waitress is a thankless job and one that I could never do. As a waitress you must smile and pretend that the customer is always right, even when they are not. I could never make it in the restaurant business because I could never smile and pretend that an overbearing, attention seeking, customer is right. 

Back in December, I was traveling back from my weekend in Pigeon Forge and stopped at the Cracker Barrel in Abingdon, Virginia. I was quickly seated next to a man and a woman. It was obvious very quickly that the woman was arrogant and educated well beyond her intelligence. Our waitress was heading toward me to take my drink order when she was stopped by "Miss Important"  She told the waitress that she wanted a "fresh glass of water, with a larger slice of Lemon."  The water glass in front of her was full and still has a small piece of lemon affixed to the lip of the glass.

The waitress smiled and said yes ma'am, and continued on to my table and quick took my drink order, which was met by an audible sigh from Miss Important. 

A couple of minutes later our waitress reappeared and dropped off  her "fresh water" with two slices of Lemon, and proceed on to drop off my drink and take my food order.  As the waitress turned, Miss Important again stopped her and as is she could bring some bread to "munch on" while we wait on our food. 

The waitress quickly returned with not only the bread but their food order. A few minutes later My waitress came to deliver my food and was again stopped by Miss Important. This time she wanted a new bowl of "fresh greens" because these had too much juice and she couldn't pour in the vinegar. 

To make a very long story short, the waitress could not pass Miss Important's table without being stopped for something. This one woman was manipulating this poor waitress who through it all continued to smile and do he best to tend to this overbearing lady while not neglecting her other customers. An to make matters worse, on their $28.00 ticket Miss Important left a $1.00 tip. 

People like Miss Important irritate me to no end and it was all I could do to keep from telling this overbearing woman that the world does not revolve around her. But I didn't, however I did leave a note and $10.00 tip on my $13.26 ticket just to let the waitress know how much I appreciated her and to thank her for doing a job that I could never do. 

Cell Phone Check-out: One of the things that ticks me off more than anything are people who think their cell pone conversations are so important that they hold up the checkout line at the grocery store.  Just last week I was shopping at Kroger's and got behind a lady who was having a casual conversation on her cell phone in the checkout lane.  There were 8-check out lanes open and all had customers line up waiting to checkout.

She would put a few items on the belt, then stop and continue her conversation, and then put a few more items on the belt. While the checker was scanning the items this lady continued her conversation.  Then to make matters worse, when the clerk had finish scanning, she tried to tell the Cell Phone Lady the total only to be met by a finger in the face, while continuing her conversation. 

Finally after more than two minutes of waiting I (in a rather abrupt voice) said, "For Goodness sake Lady come on either get off the phone and pay or get out of the way so the rest of us can get on with our day."  

My statement was met with an evil look, but she did tell the party on the other end of the phone that she had to go, that there was some rude man behind her was giving her grief.  She finally paid and on the way out turned and said, "I hope you have a great day." I replied, "I'm sure I will now that you are out of my way." I got a finger, only a different one than she gave to the clerk.

The moral of these stories seem to be that most people a caught up in their own self importance and are oblivious to anyone and anything around them. The walk around all of the time in their own little bubble caring only about themselves. But I have come to realize that these self-important people really serve no useful purpose and are not important at all.