journal-07/30/00

07/30/00

in addition to having a bad day at work friday... my last call was to a girl who had reservations for 5 people... both of the reservations had expired. i ended up being on the phone with her for an hour just trying to reclaim the reservations that they had had... and reclaim the fares (three of the reservations had fares from a database that i haven't been trained to use yet, so i had to get help).

i ended up just getting her off the phone at about 7:55pm (my train leaves from south station at 8:10 and it's a 12 minute walk). but i still hadn't reclaimed the reservations for 2 of the people in her party. i called my supervisor over in a panic, very upset because if i miss the 8:10 train then the next one (which is also the last one) doesn't leave the station until 10:30pm. i was NOT going to wait around until then..... she sat down and tried to do it.. i explained my commuting issue and she let me go.

i ran to the station (i didn't leave until 8:03pm)... nearly the whole way (it's probably about a mile, and keep in mind, i have asthma)... made it there in somewhere around 7 minutes. i ran through the station and to the commuter train... which took off less than a minute after i plopped down in the seat. it was too close....

i was hot and sweaty and out of breath... but totally unprepared for what i was about to witness.

there was a family-- a couple (don't know if they were married-- thank god i wasn't close enough to be able to see wedding bands) and a 7 year old boy. at the beginning of the train ride i could tell that the couple was having some sort of argument, but i couldn't tell what it was about. i did hear the man call the woman a "fucking fat-ass." yes, she was kind of large... but i don't care-- you just don't say things like that, especially in front of a child... especially in public... but most importantly-- to someone you supposedly love or at least care about a great deal.

she was obviously angered by his comment and didn't talk to him for several minutes. then, it seemed like they made up (up until this point she had been sitting across the aisle from the man and the boy)-- but she was the one who initiated by going and sitting next to the man and talking to him in a very low voice. then they exchanged smiles and those "lover's looks" and she kissed his ear.

at this point the little boy wanted some attention so he started talking loudly and trying to get the couple's attnention. mom looked at the little boy and said in a very calm voice, "just a minute honey, mom and dad are talking right now." i guess this wasn't good enough for the little boy so he asked for something (food) from the bag that mom had. she said he could have some when they got home... he grew increasingly insistent and then dad stepped in and very sternly (and too loudly) said, "shut up! you heard your mother! get off me! leave us alone for just one minute!" and he pushed the little boy over in the seat closer to the window.

the boy slapped his father upside the head twice and started crying, screaming, and in general, throwing a monster of a tantrum. after trying to quiet the boy down by talking in a low voice-- mom decides that this isn't working (dad was egging on the boy by saying things like, "yeah, cry! go ahead and cry, you big baby!" and "what the fuck are you thinking, slapping me upside the head like that? twice! who does he think he is?!" etc)...

the mother then told dad to get up and sit across the aisle. he refused. she took hold of his arm and told him to move again, as she pulled on his arm to nudge him out of the seat. then she sat down next to the screaming and crying boy and spoke very soothingly to him.

the whole time-- the mother never lost her cool. i found that truly amazing.

i was sitting about 10 rows away and i had to use all of my self control to keep my ass pinned in my seat so i wouldn't run over there and punch that asshole in the face for being such a dickhead to his son... and his wife. anyway. the boy continued to cry and scream and the father said (looking around at other passengers on the train, yelling very loudly) "shut the fuck up! you're 7 years old and you're crying and screaming and carrying on just like a fucking baby!" and then a minute or so later he yelled again-- "this is embarassing! a 7 yr old boy crying like a fucking baby!"

the mother turned around to him and said "you be quiet, you're not helping the situaton." the rest of the way until my train stop (which they happened to get off at as well) the man was quiet and the boy quieted down as his mom spoke very calming words to him.

i don't really know what this was about-- all i know is that i got so incredibly angry at that man i wanted to punch him out. and with the emotions that were running through me i know i could have done it-- on top of the fact that my whole day sucked, too...

it really bothered me... what a horror to witness... the fact that there are people in the world who really treat their loved ones like that makes me sick. absolutely sick.

the last straw was getting to my car to see something under the wiper blade...... an envelope captioned "did you forget to pay?" which instructed me to put $1.50 in the envelope and deposit it in a certain place at the parking fee collection box. i know i paid.. i know i put the $1 in the right slot.... i was so aggravated... at that point i just broke down sobbing. the day had just built up on me and that was the breaking point. i sat alone in my car, alone in the parking lot for a while, just sobbing my heart out.

but i didn't really feel better afterwards...

there are so many things in this world that i can't control. in reality, i shouldn't worry about these things. but ... i worry anyway.