People are dumb.
It has taken me months to train the Clientele At Large at work to recognise the difference between 'red' and 'green', which you wouldn't think would be so fucking difficult considering they had to pass a test involving those colours to be in a position to fuck thsi simple problem up in the first place, but I have done it.
Silly me, I thought this would mean my problems with complete morons was over.
If you drove into a gas station, got out of the car, looked at the pump, and noticed that you couldnt punch in how much you wanted because theres a plastic sign clipped over the buttons which states "Pumps on prepay. Please pay the cashier first.", what would you do?
So far Ive seen the following reactions:
#1: Lift the handle anyway, put it in the car, squeeze the trigger, stand there for about 20 mins waiting to hear it click off as the tank becomes full, get fed up waiting, walk inside and declare with absolute authority "Hey man that pump's not working!"
#2: Exactly the same as above, but less presumptuous: replace "That pump's not working" with "Is that pump working ok?"
#3: *See* the sign, but fail to read it, resultantly seeing it as nothing more than an obstruction between fingers and buttons. Unclip sign and move it out of the way. Press buttons to no avail. Stab increasingly angrily at buttons in the hopes that eventually youll push them hard enough to override the fact that theyve been removed from the process, give up, walk inside and declare with absolute authority "Hey man that pump's not working!"
#4: Both see *and* read the sign, look crestfallen, walk inside and say "I want to fill it up".
The standard reply is "You have to estimate about how much it will take"
In theory this is fine since every single person I have ever known can guess to an accuracy of about $5 margin of error, but the reality goes like this:
"Well I don't know"
"You don't know how much fuel your car takes?"
"No"
"Well did you fill it up last time you put any in?"
"Yes"
"How much did that cost you?"
"I don't know"
"Okay, well, if you put in $20 worth, how much does the gague needle rise?"
"I don't know"
..... ad infinitum
This last is my favourite. It combines the ignorance and arrogance of the first examples, with the added bonus of complete and total incompetence. These people dont know how much they're spending on fuel, they have no idea how much a given amount will affect the gague afterwards, and they refuse to just pay for a certain amount and get change back if that much doesn't go in, which is what would have happened if they didnt have to prepay at all.
I have come to the conclusion that 99% of people on the road are too fucking thick to be trusted with the operation of a motor vehicle, and should be culled from the human gene pool as such.
In other news, I didn't get the job at the signage company due to a thinly veiled example of nepotism, but the production manager there is pissed off at his boss for this development and insists to me that I was by far the best applicant and he wants to have me around regardless, so I have been asked to come in again on monday so he can try to get me set up as a freelancer for them. What this means is basically that I can upgrade my hardware and software (as long as its for graphics) on thier tab and I can charge whatever I damn well please per hour. This might end up being even better, but I've never thought about freelancing before. There are too many questions... What about legalities? How about licenses for software since its now going to be used for profit? What about a printer for sending proofs? Would working from home domineer my life, or conversely, would I procrastinate to the point of never ever getting anything accomplished? And last but not least: If I really am that fucking good, how come Im the only one whos ever believed it up til now? For the first time in my life I have doubt about my skills with a computer and a decent graphics package. I think Im scared, but Im not sure....
I still love Janine more with each passing day and I know now that my life just wouldnt be right without her. Can't help but feel guilty about mentally floundering any time wedding plans are discussed - I want to help, my mind just goes so blank I might as well be stuck in a room full of people who want to talk about cricket, only not as bored and astounded at how anyone could possibly find the subject matter worth discussing.
I must be becoming mentally ill since I have started to find the cuteness of children outweighing the annoyance and stress.
Out.
Silly me, I thought this would mean my problems with complete morons was over.
If you drove into a gas station, got out of the car, looked at the pump, and noticed that you couldnt punch in how much you wanted because theres a plastic sign clipped over the buttons which states "Pumps on prepay. Please pay the cashier first.", what would you do?
So far Ive seen the following reactions:
#1: Lift the handle anyway, put it in the car, squeeze the trigger, stand there for about 20 mins waiting to hear it click off as the tank becomes full, get fed up waiting, walk inside and declare with absolute authority "Hey man that pump's not working!"
#2: Exactly the same as above, but less presumptuous: replace "That pump's not working" with "Is that pump working ok?"
#3: *See* the sign, but fail to read it, resultantly seeing it as nothing more than an obstruction between fingers and buttons. Unclip sign and move it out of the way. Press buttons to no avail. Stab increasingly angrily at buttons in the hopes that eventually youll push them hard enough to override the fact that theyve been removed from the process, give up, walk inside and declare with absolute authority "Hey man that pump's not working!"
#4: Both see *and* read the sign, look crestfallen, walk inside and say "I want to fill it up".
The standard reply is "You have to estimate about how much it will take"
In theory this is fine since every single person I have ever known can guess to an accuracy of about $5 margin of error, but the reality goes like this:
"Well I don't know"
"You don't know how much fuel your car takes?"
"No"
"Well did you fill it up last time you put any in?"
"Yes"
"How much did that cost you?"
"I don't know"
"Okay, well, if you put in $20 worth, how much does the gague needle rise?"
"I don't know"
..... ad infinitum
This last is my favourite. It combines the ignorance and arrogance of the first examples, with the added bonus of complete and total incompetence. These people dont know how much they're spending on fuel, they have no idea how much a given amount will affect the gague afterwards, and they refuse to just pay for a certain amount and get change back if that much doesn't go in, which is what would have happened if they didnt have to prepay at all.
I have come to the conclusion that 99% of people on the road are too fucking thick to be trusted with the operation of a motor vehicle, and should be culled from the human gene pool as such.
In other news, I didn't get the job at the signage company due to a thinly veiled example of nepotism, but the production manager there is pissed off at his boss for this development and insists to me that I was by far the best applicant and he wants to have me around regardless, so I have been asked to come in again on monday so he can try to get me set up as a freelancer for them. What this means is basically that I can upgrade my hardware and software (as long as its for graphics) on thier tab and I can charge whatever I damn well please per hour. This might end up being even better, but I've never thought about freelancing before. There are too many questions... What about legalities? How about licenses for software since its now going to be used for profit? What about a printer for sending proofs? Would working from home domineer my life, or conversely, would I procrastinate to the point of never ever getting anything accomplished? And last but not least: If I really am that fucking good, how come Im the only one whos ever believed it up til now? For the first time in my life I have doubt about my skills with a computer and a decent graphics package. I think Im scared, but Im not sure....
I still love Janine more with each passing day and I know now that my life just wouldnt be right without her. Can't help but feel guilty about mentally floundering any time wedding plans are discussed - I want to help, my mind just goes so blank I might as well be stuck in a room full of people who want to talk about cricket, only not as bored and astounded at how anyone could possibly find the subject matter worth discussing.
I must be becoming mentally ill since I have started to find the cuteness of children outweighing the annoyance and stress.
Out.