Some people are just annoying

Today something happened that made me feel REALLY annoyed. I have been debating whether or not to blog about this, but since this blog is about stuff that happens in my life today, here goes.

First off, a question: WHY do some people think they should walk up to a complete stranger and suggest they DO something – which, I might add, is something so freaking OBVIOUS to do that it’s not really all that important to even suggest it in the first place?? Or was this lady just trying to tell me what to do? NOBODY tells me what to do! I tell myself what to do! And that’s part of the reason why I was VERY annoyed.

Now, some explanation:

I was running late picking my son up from school today. The reason why is because I had to run to the bathroom first (ugh! Why do I always have to use the bathroom at the WORST possible time??) and, second, I had to spend a few minutes prying my phone out of my preteen daughter’s clutches. (I don’t feel comfortable leaving the house without my pone. I have a knack for being the “damsel in distress” and so prefer having my phone with me in case of emergency.) Well, I finally got to the school to pick Jesse up, but I was 15 minutes late. If I am 10 minutes late, his teacher takes him to the office where he has to wait for me there. Now the office has this GINORMOUS glass wall/doors in front and you can easily see cars parked out front. So what I usually do if I can’t get out of the car to get Jesse is I park in front of the building, honk my horn and he’ll come running out a few minutes later. That’s what I did today. But before Jesse came out of the building, this lady who I DO NOT KNOW came up to my window with her three sons in tow and asked me if I was waiting for someone. I told her “my son” and she said, “Why don’t you go into the office to get him yourself?”

And right about then is where I got angry. I’m talking Incredible Hulk angry! I wanted to scream at her, “I KNOW I CAN GO INTO THE OFFICE TO GET HIM MYSELF, LADY!! I’LL DO THAT ON MY OWN TIME! PISS OFF!!” I mean, really, I was ready to bite her head off.

I DID NOT want to get into details about how I have a bad foot and I try to avoid walking/running on it unless I absolutely have to. (Still need to see a podiatrist! Ack!) And I really didn’t feel I had to share with this woman that I usually wait so many minutes before parking the car and going into the office to get my son. I did not know this woman and I did not owe her a single explanation for anything at all. And I was pretty mad that she felt she had a right to get all in my business and tell me what to do.

Instead, I smiled sweetly, lowered my tone of voice and suggested SHE go into the office herself. She gave me a dirty look and walked off with her boys with this whole “what a lazy mom” kind of attitude.

It took every ounce of resistance not to give her the finger as she walked off.

Well, anyway, I did wait a few more minutes, then decided it was time to go in and see what was holding Jesse up. That was then my son appeared out the door. When he got to the car, I asked him what had taken so long and he explained he forgot to zip up his lunch box and so, when he picked it up, everything had fallen out. (That’s right, folks: He skipped the sandwich his mother had lovingly made for him for lunch, passed on the crackers and apple and, instead, ate the cookie and drank his juice!)

I was really mad at that woman for what she did but eventually got over it. I just really wish SOME people would mind their own business. I do things the way I do them for a reason and, like I said, I don’t owe complete strangers an explanation for anything.

And, anyway, I don’t think I’ll have to deal with people like her again anymore when I pick my son up from school. Jesse starts riding the school bus tomorrow. I just need to make sure I’m not late getting there!

Note to self: Hide the helium!

When my daughter, Jennifer, graduated from elementary school, I bought her a helium-inflated balloon that had “Congratulations, Graduate!” on it. I was smiling at that same balloon this morning when I woke Jennifer up, feeling a renewed sense of pride for my daughter’s accomplishment.

Little did I know that would be the last time I would see the balloon! And never did I ever think a helium-inflated balloon I bought would be something a certain young girl would see as a way to get some laughs or some kind of kicks.

Today, a group of Jennifer’s friends came over. While they were hanging out in her room, I peeked in and noticed they had popped open her balloon. I was upset because I bought that balloon for Jennifer and it’s not like I spend money on things her friends can just destroy. For a while, I was upset over that popped balloon and let them all know I didn’t appreciate it that they destroyed something that was not theirs.

But then I became upset about something ELSE later on, when Jennifer told me WHY her friend wanted to pop open the balloon. Apparently, the girl wanted to inhale the helium!

I practically went through the roof!

I could not believe her friends wanted to do something dangerous, even stupid, like that. I gave Jennifer a VERY GOOD talking to about the dangers of inhaling helium. She told me she was the only one in the group who did not inhale the helium and I told her that was smart of her, but I was still reeling that these girls came over and decided to do something that was dangerous. I told Jennifer that I was responsible for what minors do in this house (these girls are all preteens) and that I could be sued or even arrested if something terrible happened to any of her friends in this house. I am SO GLAD none of them suffered any damage from inhaling the helium and thank God they are okay, but I knew I had to get the message across that inhaling helium is a Very Bad Thing. WHY did her friend see a helium-filled balloon and think, Gee, I think I’ll inhale some helium?? It just really troubles me. I KNOW we do stupid things when we are kids, but this kind of thing is DANGEROUS!  

Granted, they were inhaling nonlethal amounts of helium and that kind of thing is usually harmless, but I did some research on the Internet and found in an article info about a girl who died after inhaling helium in a balloon. I showed it to Jennifer and she shared that with one of the friends.

I don’t mind Jennifer’s friends coming over and hanging out, but I DO mind when they do dangerous, illegal activity in my home. I won’t allow it. I only hope that more kids are educated about the dangers of inhaling helium. It’s all fun and games until someone is dead.

Here’s what I came across in my research:

Dangers of Inhaling Helium Exemplified in Oregon Tragedy

Mom warns of dangers of inhaling helium

THE DANGERS OF INHALING HELIUM FROM BALLOONS
 
Inhaling Helium Can Be Deadly

Is it dangerous to inhale helium?

The first rule: Never work without a contract

In May of 2008, my friend, Jimmy, asked me if I would do his sister a favor. She had some kind of "Miss Whatever" job thing going on and had to be out of the country. The problem was, she had a dog and could not take her dog with her. So Jimmy asked me if I would take care of the dog. I agreed. Shortly after the dog was brought over, on May 14, we discussed payment. At first, I suggested $50 a week. (This was my very first pet-sitting gig, so I was not clear on the standard rate.) Jimmy disagreed, saying $100 a month was better. Sometime later, I got an e-mail from his sister, Ruby, saying she knew she had to pay me $100 a month to take care of her dog. Sometime during her being out of the country, she sent me two payments of $200. The first went towards helping to pay for a trip to visit with my family in California. The second one, she made on May 26, 2009. In all that was the total amount of money she paid to me: Just $400 after one year of caring for her dog. And after we both agreed she would pay me $100 a month!

I have tried, for nearly a year now, to be paid the rest of the money that Ruby Solano owes me. But, all for naught. She is convinced she doesn't owe me another cent and she refuses to pay any more. Even after she told me, in person, on May 26, she would send some extra money.

I'm very upset about the whole thing. I trusted her and she ended up betraying that trust. I took care of her dog like that dog was one of my own. Jimmy bought food for the dog once; I paid for the food at all other times. The dog chewed up two of my baby's toys. I also paid for a new dog bed, to have her groomed, and for a new leash and sweater (since the leash they left with her broke).

Ruby lied to me and acted like a two-faced person in the end. And, in the end, she refused to answer any and all e-mails I sent to her. I had to go to her brother, Jimmy, to find out what was up. She talked to him, but she WOULD NOT talk to me. She did not have the decency to explain herself, explain why she lied to me, and why she even thinks she doesn't owe me another dime. Because, obviously, she is very, very wrong. I have the records to prove as much.

But....I don't have a contract to back me up. No agreement whatsoever. So Ruby gets to kick me to the dirt and walk away. She has lost my trust, my friendship, and any kind of positive thoughts I could ever have for her. Not to mention she'll get ZERO support from me and my children (who now know she is a liar) for her future career.

I tried to be nice but now, at this point, I can no longer be nice. I am extremely angry about this. It's even hard for me to organize this blog post in a logical manner.

Anyway. The point is, like I said, I didn't have a contract. I didn't have an agreement. IF I did, then maybe I could take her to small claims court. But I can't. An e-mail don't mean squat in court like a contract or an agreement would.

So. I'm out $800. I feel used and manipulated, but I have had that very same kind of experience in the past with my pal Jimmy. So, what should I expect? You know? I guess dishonesty runs in their family.

I'm bitter because I REALLY could have used the money. The second $200 went towards buying my kids new clothes, which they desperately needed. This money would have helped me to buy them new clothes again, which they once again need (of course!), and also help me pay a couple of bills. But I guess not. My kids will have to wait longer to get clothes that fit them.

This kinda thing, the pet-sitting thing, was just something I did, you know? So that I could have some extra income for my family. This is WHY I did babysitting in the past and cleaning houses in the past. I needed the money for my family! This isn't play money I'm trying to earn. I'm not trying to make money so I can go to Vegas, or something. (Or have plastic surgery, like Ruby did after returning to the States.) These odd jobs I have done have been to support my family. Just as the writing jobs are for supporting my family!

But now I have learned to never, ever, ever, EVER work without a contract. NOT EVER. It doesn't matter if I am working for a friend, a sibling, a friend's sibling, or a friend of a friend. Always, ALWAYS, have a contract or legal, notarized agreement. ALWAYS. Even if somebody is honest, the contract will at least be a reminder that a business deal is in place. And that it has to be honored.

Well, maybe in a perfect world, they would be honored. From now on, I'll never trust so easily again.

Twitter can bring out the worst in people

I recently had to unfollow some people on Twitter. It's not because of harassment or a hundred thousand tweets they made every day (though one of them DID send out a heck of a lot of tweets every day, but that didn't bug me so much, really). No, the reason why I stopped following them is strictly for personal reasons.

Two of them, in particular, enthralled their followers with their ongoing soap opera of a romance. I thought the whole thing was funny, really. It just made me roll my eyes and chuckle. I even poked fun about it with one of them. Then one day, I started to wonder, what is the press saying about these two and their tweeting romance? They ARE celebrities, and I know that journalists use celebrity tweets for information. So what are they saying about these two?

I decided to do a Google search to find out. One article made my jaw drop. Some of the tweets by the female in this whole affair were pretty graphic, if not a little over the edge. What's worse is that she publicly acknowledged she was sleeping with a married man. (Shame! Shame! But then again, she IS an actress living in Hollywood. Hollywood has no shame.) As I read her tweets, some of which she later managed to delete (I thought you couldn't delete your tweets??), a thought struck me: I never knew she was such an s-word.

Wow. Seriously. I never realized their sexcapades were THAT obscene. And it was a huge turn-off how she kept tweeting about her sexual adventures with two men. TWO! (Ugh.)

I mean, show a little restraint, people. Good grief. I know there are nymphos in this world, but do they REALLY need to share that stuff on Twitter?

Well, I don't follow people just to read about their (disgusting) sex life. That stuff is NOT for public knowledge! Sex is something special and sacred to be shared between a couple, not something to tweet about. I really don't care for women who spread their legs for several men. I had already grown weary reading her tweets and this was the last straw. I unfollowed her, and I don't think I'll refollow her because now I know her wild side and I don't like what I'm seeing about her. Some people just can't control themselves or actually LOVE bragging about their sexual exploits. Well, I'm not interested.

And as for the other one, I unfollowed him, too. Now that I knew HIS wild side, I'll admit I lost all respect for him, mostly because EVERYBODY talks about what a "gentleman" he is but now it's obvious to me that a gentleman is something he is NOT! He'd rather bed a woman instead of making a commitment to her. And there ARE men like this, too. I was sad to see that he is one of them, but at least now I know the truth about him. I guess he has no qualms about sleeping with a woman he KNOWS is also sleeping with a married man. Let alone the three of them participating together. I guess nothing is sacred or special to him when it comes to that sort of relationship with a woman.

This whole thing reminded me of how celebrities and even famous authors were tweeting about things they shouldn't in the past, and how the press picked up on all of it. The press would catch something and, in the blink of an eye, it was all over the Twitterverse. One famous author, for example, ranted about a bad review she received for her book. After her public shame and ridicule, she was forced to delete her Twitter account.

People SHOULD be careful what they tweet about, because it WILL come back at them, especially if they are a celebrity. After I unfollowed this woman (who I will NOT call a lady), I went back to her page the next day to find her ranting about journalists who use Twitter as a source and telling them off and, oh, gee, "guess I should be careful what I tweet about."

Ya think???

I am not being fooled by those rants. I seriously doubt someone hacked into her account and made all those tweets about her affairs with two men. And, anyway, her whole admission of how she should be more careful with what she tweets about is the dead giveaway that those particular tweets used by journalists did indeed come from her.

Now, I am not prudish, but I AM a Christian with certain principles. And while I KNOW there are people out there who have no problem with the fact that they sleep around or have no shame in admitting they commit adultery or even a sex crime, I have certain limitations in what kind of tweets I want to read about. I don't want any association with them. I'm not following people on Twitter to get my jollies from their adventures or to live vicariously through them. And if they think that tweeting about their sex life or about being someone with a questionable character, then they've really lost my interest in them altogether.

People who like to pass judgments on others

If there's one constant I have in my life, it's that there are people out there, including certain members of my family, who like to get up on their high horse and pass judgments against me. They think they've got me ALL FIGURED OUT through their little detective work, without any input from me, and decide to cast me as this horrible, heartless, bitter, evil person. I have tried for the longest time to shrug this off, but the more it keeps happening, the more annoying it gets. And it seems people who don't even know me, have never met me in person and only know me through Internet activity, take everything they read and draw some kind of conclusion about the kind of person that I am.

Here is a little tip for people doing that: STOP doing that. You won't know the REAL ME through the Internet. Not ever.

I wish some people would get it into their heads that you can't just pass judgment over someone without getting the FACTS from them first. I guess they decide to be closed-minded or paranoid. I guess they want to live in their shells while pointing fingers at everyone. How sad. What a lonely world they must live in. I guess they are too afraid to REALLY know people and so they use their WRONG judgments and delusions of others as some kind of a security blanket. They use this to tell themselves that ALL kinds of these people are BAD and they are GOOD.

Talk about being delusional.

You may think that there can't really be people like this, but I know for a fact that there are. I know them and have interacted with them. It's painful when this kind of treatment comes from people I care about (or should I say, USED to care about). I have gotten to the point where I don't want to waste my time with people who are like this anymore. It is too painful to put up with constantly or always being judged by others who don't even know me or know where I am coming from. I would love to just say "if you've got something to say to me, say it" or "stop hiding behind your delusions about me and get to know me instead!" But I really doubt such efforts would produce any change from them. Because, like I said, these people prefer to get up on their high horse and decide what kind of person that I am (even when they don't know me) no matter what I say or do. And always that judgment is going to be negative.

I have no room in my life for these kinds of people, nor will I make any room.

Perhaps this blog post is dramatic. Perhaps it is a whine. But I'm tired of having to deal with people like this, and I need to come forward and say, "You know what? I'm done with you." I am not a stickler for taking this kind of grief from others. They won't hurt me anymore.

I needed to say all of this and now it has been said.