the prison laundry...blec.
for my first update in a year, i'll begin with a rant:
So, i'm working out at eglin again this summer. as much as i love it, there are a few things that never cease to annoy the living hell out of me. today's topic; picking up/dropping off stuff at the prison laundry.
on base, the laundry facility is maintained by our resident prisoners. and it's not a fun place to visit; oh nooo. they basically let them roam about in and out of the building. this made me a bit uneasy to begin with. these people arent serial killers or anything of that calibur, just to put that out there. as the summer hire here in the protocol office, i get to take care of office managerial type things, along with running errands no one else has time to do, which is totally fine by me. however, when it comes to throwing myself into a proverbial den of wild beasts, that's another story. and they just would always make me go do this...a 21 year old girl. i'm sure you can see where this is going.
so i went down to the prison laundry a few weeks ago to drop a few things off. i walk in, and the guy at the desk immediately begins chatting me up. it's okay at this point, he just seems like a really nice, friendly person. but he conintues to talk to me, without filing the paperwork for the tablecloths i brought in. i'm totally aware of the fact that he is a prisoner, too. i'm beginning to grow a bit antsy at this point, but he hasn't really 'violated' any sort of universal unspoken rule of humanity , so i continue to keep my cool. well, as soon as i tell myself this, he asks the age-old question, "so, are you married." i answered, "why, yes i am." and his eyes immediate dart down to my visible left hand. surprise, surprise. fortunately, this worked out well because i always wear the ring my mom gave me on my left ring finger because the rest of them are too fat. but i digress. so, i continue to be nice to the guy, all the while i'm growing increasingly uncomfortable. he begins to file the paper work, and i start to leave. he goes "aww, you're leaving me so soon?" my reply, "uhh...yeah." seriously, how am i supposed to answer to that? honestly, i hate when people purposefully talk you into conrners, hoping for a favorable response.
so, i go back a few days later to pick up everything and he continues this only to a greater degree, even after i gave him the cold shoulder. that day he asked me if i went to church, and i blatantly answered, "no, i'm an atheist," knowing somehow that he himself was a man of god, and that this response would somehow cause him to quickly lose interest. i couldn't have been more wrong. he then offers to take me to church with him that coming sunday, as if i would somehow miraculously find jesus through attending a church service with a convicted felon. this is going a little too far now. so i bust out the big guns; "i don't think my husband would be to happy with that." he stops being pushy, and i go on my way.
well, today i find that i have to take some flags you-know-where to be steamed. somehow, when i woke up this morning, i knew this would be a day of reckoning. so i go down there with a open, positive; positive that my harassment days are over. boy was i wrong. as i approach the door i see him standing there, and my stomach starts to turn. i walk in the door and am my usual, high-pitched voice (a result of nerves), phonily friendly (a sure-fire man repellent) self. and the first words he has the audacitiy to utter, "i've been thinking about you all week; i missed you." oy, what a trip THIS is turning out to be....can people seriously not take a hint? there comes a point when you have to morph into a complete and utter bitch to get your point across, and i was faaar past it. i just glare at him until he walks away to get the flags. i knew things were finally set straight..wrong again! when i go to sign my paperwork, he says, " you can leave your phone number there, too." that was it. "no, thats quite alright," i reply. "you don't want me to have your phone number?" he whines. "no," i snap. "i don't believe my husband would appreciate strange men calling our house, nor would i." THEN, as if all that madness wasn't enough, he repeatedly offers to carry my stuff out to the car, as if he know this will be the last time hell ever see me. i firmly decline, and he walks through the door and picks up the flags. "i've got it," i say, as i rip all the flags (they seriously were way too heavy for me to carry on my own, and he knew this)out of his arms, reach for the door, drop everything on the floor, pick it back up, and proudly walk through the door. i seriously don'y knw how i managed to carry everything; i guess they say adrenaline causes you to do amazing things far beyond your means in moments of turbulence...i was definitely all riled up.
and to make the ending of this story perfect, i pass two prisoners on the way to the car. they look blankly at me, and as i pass i can feel their heads turning as one says, "daaaaamn, girl's got an ass on her." i was seriously about two feet past them when he said this, and he was DEFINITELY not using an inside voice. how infuriating is that? i feel like a piece of meat everytime i step into that place, and i don't think i should have to tolerate such behavior. especially in the "workplace".
i've been analysing this situation over and over again (because that's what i seem to do best..hehe)and i've considered every factor.
could i have been "asking for this"? i'm not going to lie, some girls do "ask" for such things; the way they dress, the way they act, etc. i'm not in any way suggesting that they deserve to be treated the way i was treated, but the way you convey yourself to others directly affects the way they will treat you. it's sooo very true. the fact that i'm well aware of this should clear any question of this scenario right up.
could it be that the prison laundry just isn't the palce for a young girl to be wandering about? big yes. sometimes, however, you have to endure situations that aren't necessarily the greatest, and learn to handle things. after all, thats what i'm here for; to sometimes help with things there just isn't time to do. and that's totally fine. i'm in a very safe, secure place and nothing would ever physically happen to me. if something ever got sketchy, the SPs would be there with their huge scary guns in a matter of seconds. and after all, what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger.
i was thinking, maybe i come across as naive or as a pushover. this is most likely the case...i've always been this way, and its very easy for others to read it too, especially in a situation where im nervous or uncomfortable. that's why i think he continued on and on and onnnnn...he knew he was getting to me, and that was his aim.
indeed i have learned something valuable today; always stand up for yourself and stand firm with your convictions.. don't let people push you around, and certinaly don't "tolerate" any form of harassment; nobody deserves that. there will always be situations like this in life; it's totally unavoidable. you just have to learn how to cope and i believe i'm beginning to.