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This has been an interesting trip.
Yesterday I had an older couple board my plane. They were grumpy, sour people. They both sat in the wrong seat and then complained about it.
"We didn't ask to sit here!"
When I discovered the error, I asked them to please move to their assigned seats because the man who did ask for that row has long legs and needed the extra space in the bulkhead.
Grumble, grumble...
After my duties were finished, I poured myself a cup of coffee. I considered pulling out the magazine "Budget Travel, Italy" that I had just purchased, but instead settled on engaging my grumpy couple in conversation. They looked bored.
"So, you've had a rough day, huh?" That's how I usually start my plan of attack. I get them talking about what a terrible experience they've had flying around. Sympathy works well. In this case they were tired and were looking forward to going home after a family reunion. Oh! that explains it! Of course everyone is tired...but a family reunion is enough to drive anyone past the point of no return.
We ended up talking the entire flight and it turns out that they are practically my father's neighbors. Small world.
My evil plan worked. hahaha. By the time they left my plane, fits of laughter trailed behind them. I won the challenge! Victory is sweet.
posted by Kathy at 10:53 AM
3 Comments:
And the best part? So did they. Kathy, do you ever wonder why I keep reading your blog, given that we don't know each other IRL, and, on the surface anyway, we have little in common? (Although I may yet be crying on your shoulder as my daughter becomes a teenager.)Because you spread love wherever you go: you look for the best in people, and you generally find it. If it were possible for me to be a Christian, I'd like to be one like you.
Many years ago I worked one summer as a waitress in a fairly downscale restaurant. All kinds of people came in, most of them pretty nice, a few a bit scary, a few downright strange (especially on the graveyard shift). One couple in their 50s, I would guess, came in every night around six or so, ordered about $10 worth of food (see above: downscale, many years ago), and found any fault they possibly could with their waitress. You had to bring them coffee as soon as they sat down and materialize before them with a pot just as they were getting ready to ask for a refill; you had to steam their rolls without being asked. Heaven help you if you got sent on break in the middle of their meal. They always ordered pork chops, which took about 15 minutes to cook, no ifs, ands, or buts, and complained about how long it took their food to arrive. If anything was not to their liking, they would leave nothing; if the service was impeccable, they would say nothing and leave a quarter. On my last night working there I considered explaining to them that no sane human being would sweat that much for a quarter, but I didn't do it. Anyhow, the point of this tale is that now I wish I'd sympathized with them; maybe they had a good reason for being ticked off at life, and their only outlet was tormenting a waitress. Pretty sad, now I think of it that way. Odds are good I wouldn't have gotten anywhere: it takes a certain sticktoitiveness to be nasty every single night for two months. But it would have been an interesting experiment.
7:32 PM
lucia,
Thank you! That's about the best thing anyone could say to me. I'm sure we are much more alike than different.
11:20 AM
You're welcome. I'm sure you're right, in fact I devoutly hope you are, so let me rephrase something: I admire you a lot, and I want to be more like the person you are.
For starters, the next time I have to deal with someone who seems a bit surly, I'll try a smile on them. (I've actually done this before, and been amazed how many people smile back. Thanks for the reminder.)
2:26 PM
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