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Bad Manners and Brimstone
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#Post#: 6046--------------------------------------------------
Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: TootsNYC
Date: June 19, 2018, 5:40 pm
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I took my kid to the passport office today (he needed me for
identity verification, because he doesn't have a driver's
license and his child passport was too long ago for them to
trust the picture).
The line was really slow moving.
The couple ahead of me got to the front (they were getting a
passport for their little baby, I think. There was some problem
with their paperwork (different last names, or something?), and
suddenly the clerk said, "You can't talk to me like that. I
won't help you if you attack me like that, you need to leave.
I'm calling security."
Later she said to one of her colleagues that he'd gotten mad
over the paperwork problem and said, "We've been waiting for two
[effing] hours!"
#Post#: 6065--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: OnyxBird
Date: June 19, 2018, 8:32 pm
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Wow. :o I really hope there was more to it than that, or that
seems like a serious overreaction.
A clerk shouldn't have to tolerate being sworn at, but a single
swear word, apparently directed at the situation, not the clerk,
seems like it calls for a warning of "Please do not swear at
me," not immediately calling security and threatening to kick
them out. If the first thing overheard/noticed (by the very next
person in line) was the clerk's response rather than the
original offense, then that implies the man was not shouting or
acting physically threatening. And the fact that the offense she
chose to describe was a complaint about "two [effing] hours!"
implies that that was the worst of his statements, i.e., that he
didn't say anything threatening or make offensive statements
about her as a person.
The fact that she threatened to throw him out, in response to a
complaint that was specifically about wait time, makes me wonder
if she was already trying to send them away and that's why he
felt the need to emphasize the wait time. E.g., if they showed
up with what they understood to be the correct paperwork, had a
surprise requirement sprung on them (whatever was happening with
the names), and prospect of them having to come back another
time and wait in line again was treated cavalierly, then I could
totally understand why he'd be wanting to emphasize the wait
time. If she'd just said: "The names have to match, so you need
to fill out Form Thus-and-Such and come back," then I could
understand someone reacting with "We've been waiting for two
[effing] hours!" without intending any "attack" towards the
clerk, even if the more polite/productive statement would have
been "We've already waited in line for two hours because the
online instructions didn't mention that requirement. Is there
any way to complete this before we leave, or at least a way to
turn the paperwork in without waiting another two hours in
line?"
#Post#: 6071--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: lakey
Date: June 19, 2018, 9:13 pm
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Of course, you shouldn't use that word to people who are waiting
on you. However, if he wasn't raising his voice, making him
leave after he'd already wasted two hours in line was
unreasonable. If I had to wait two hours, with a young child,
yet, I'd be a bit peeved.
The last time I went to the post office, not only was there a
long line, but it was a hot day and the air conditioning was not
on.
What annoyed me was that all I needed was some stamps, and they.
don't. have. a. stamp. machine. All they had to do was put a
machine where you feed in money and get back stamps. Instead I
had to wait behind people who were getting packages weighed,
discussing insurance, discussing the different kinds of mail. I
was annoyed, but when I got up there I put a smile on my face
and bought my stamps. It's really not the employee's fault if
the place is badly run.
#Post#: 6074--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: TootsNYC
Date: June 19, 2018, 9:32 pm
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She didn't just threaten to throw him out--she DID throw him out
Your reactions are interesting. I didn't think of her as
overreacting. I think at first I assumed he had been
particularly nasty, or said something threatening.
I'll also say, when we got up there, with all sorts of
documents, etc., I found myself struggling to communicate with
her.
My son was getting his child passport replaced w/ a grownup one,
and it was his third trip (the first, he never even got on line
bcs he forgot his photos); second trip to the counter.
They didn't want to accept his earlier passport because she
said, "it's expired." I pointed out that the website said they
would accept that as proof of ID. (What she DIDN'T say was, "His
photo is too old, he looks too different now"--I thought he
looked just the same only older. But OK, they have to decide
whether it's credible--but she didn't say that.)
So we got out his college ID and discovered that his father
had screwed up the scan--he'd chopped off my son's last name.
AND he hadn't photocopied the back of it, just the front. So we
couldn't use that.
No sweat, I said, "Let's just pretend we don't have that, and
we'll use his Social Security card, and the affidavit I'm here
to sign that says I know who he is."
She reacted to the "pretend," and said, "I'm not pretending
anything." Yikes! I'm like, "No, it's not pretending,
really--it's just deciding to not use it. Are the SSCard and my
affidavit enough? He doesn't have anything else."
She couldn't answer that question at all and had to go get
someone else.
I had some sympathy for her; it was the end of the day, and I
think everyone in front of us had some sort of "you have the
wrong documents /filled out the forms with blue ink," etc.
If you're doing passport stuff, follow the directions online to
the very letter.
And check your photocopies--front and back, separate papers for
everything, nothing obscured. (DH also photocopied my passport
and my passport card, but he put them on the same piece of
paper, which ALSO slowed things down--so don't do that either)
#Post#: 6075--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: TootsNYC
Date: June 19, 2018, 9:35 pm
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--- Quote from: lakey link ---
>
> What annoyed me was that all I needed was some stamps, and
they. don't. have. a. stamp. machine. All they had to do was put
a machine where you feed in money and get back stamps.
--- End Quote ---
Isn't that annoying? They used to have them.
But I *think* that you can buy stamps at the freestanding "mail
a package" machines. I'm pretty sure I've done it before. They
aren't particularly pretty, but they work.
There were times that my post office would have a person
watching over the floor area, and they'd say, "How many are
buying stamps only?" and then designate a window to take care of
them.
#Post#: 6082--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: NFPwife
Date: June 19, 2018, 10:50 pm
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He didn't swear at the passport lady. He swore in her presence.
There's a huge difference, IMO. Based on what you described, I'm
impressed that you didn't swear, too. ;D Frankly, she seems
rigid and power-trippy.
#Post#: 6085--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: MOM21SON
Date: June 19, 2018, 11:52 pm
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My goodness, at my last job if I was allowed to get rid of the
swearers, my day would have been super boring. Now, if I was
allowed to get rid of the ones that swore AT me, that would be
different.
I think he was just frustrated. Used the wrong word to express
that though.
Once I had a email from a customer at work that went like this.
I AM TIRED OF WAITING FOR MY ORDER! WHERE IS
IT?????????????????????????? THIS IS
BULL@@@@!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My coworker at another site responded to him.
Dear Customer,
I am sorry to see we can't communicate in a professional manner.
Thanks for shopping with us!
Signed incompetent coworker.
So, I had the pleasure of responding to his response, which had
the first statement along with a few more swear words, didn't
offend me at all. He NEVER called us names or berated us. The
service he received, yes, but not at us directly.
The lady at the office when you took your son overreacted.
#Post#: 6102--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: Moose
Date: June 20, 2018, 7:33 am
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I agree the lady overreacted and I also agree with a previous
poster who said she seemed rigid and power-trippy.
Of course, I work at a job where I am regularly, daily, sworn
at, called names and have abuse heaped on me by the people who
call, so my perception about someone swearing about a situation
in my general vicinity may be a bit skewed.
#Post#: 6108--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: Hmmm
Date: June 20, 2018, 8:40 am
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I agree she over-reacted. I've encountered others in the service
industry that seem to have encountered such abuse that they are
always on high alert and are just downright surly to everyone.
They take every issue as a personal attack and really act
unhelpful.
#Post#: 6117--------------------------------------------------
Re: Don't swear at the passport lady!
DIR By: oogyda
Date: June 20, 2018, 9:27 am
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She was going to be "kicking them out" anyway since they didn't
have all the appropriate paperwork. I guess she saw the
opportunity to remind him to check his language while she was
at it.
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