A Rant: Today's Youth

I know I've written about this before*, but I'm in a new environment now, and the young people I spend the day with are annoying me in different ways!!

I've spent the last two weeks in a classroom environment, being trained for my new job, with people of various ages. I am, without a doubt, the oldest. The youngest are in their early 20's. And they're driving me crazy.

If you're normal, you gain a lot of wisdom over the years. The more years, the more wisdom. I like to think I'm normal and, therefore, wise. These young people are smart, but they are far from wise. For example, regardless of the dress code, they want to wear what they want to wear. We were given an extensive description of several styles of "flip-flops" on the first day. These kids still are wearing flip-flops to work (class). Same with their clothing. These young women are not bashful, and there is far too much cleavage in the classroom. We were also told "no cleavage" - no breast cleavage, no butt cleavage. I've seen too much of both.

These people will be talking over the instructor, who tells them to be quiet. They will stop talking for a couple of seconds and then continue until the instructor has to be mean about it.

And there are those who think they know everything and want you to know they know everything. They don't wait for the instructor to call on them - they just blurt out the answer. Today I asked the instructor a question and one of the students started to answer it. This made both of us angry (the instructor more so than me). Later I was trying to find something on the computer and one of the other students was "helping" me. I knew where to "click" but was not ready to "click." The other student kept saying "top link, top link, top link" until I made a gesture (no, not THAT one) that got him to stop.

Because of the environment (a lot of personal information), we are absolutely forbidden to have a cell phone out. It must be turned off and put away in a pocket or a purse or wherever. But guess what. As soon as the instructor leaves the classroom for a few minutes or we go on break, there are a half-dozen cell phones on and playing music or ringtones or whatever. No one is making calls, but the cell phones are out and turned on. Today, the ninth day of class, the instructor had to get angry and reemphasize that their cell phones will unequivocally be confiscated if she sees them out and turned on. And God help the student who is caught taking pictures (which one of our students did early in the course).

I have to tell you this, though, in all fairness. First, I am certain that 22 years of military life has made me a little less tolerant of the lack of discipline than your average older person. Second, I see flip flops and cleavage out on the floor, too, where the actual work is being done by people who have been here since the site opened (over one year ago), so that takes credence away from anyone trying to teach or enforce the rules.

Still, I am irked.

*at least, I think I did, but I can't find the post

In Other News

I am fairly certain that I am going to do very well in this new job. I know it will be extremely stressful the first couple of weeks, but I have been assured by everyone I've spoken with that the stress will pass. I believe them. I have sat side-by-side with people who are actually doing the job and in each case my thought was, "I'm going to be better than this person." I know that because I know myself. I like to be the one who can answer the hard questions - the one you go to when no one else knows the answer, or the procedure. I did that at Wal-Mart. I did it at Walgreens. I will do it at Convergys.

Cute Boys*

Our primary instructor was out for two days with a sick child. Our substitutes were two young guys from Canada. They were fun and not at all bad on these old eyes! They kept trying to tell us they didn't have an accent, but it lept at us every time they said "out" or "about," or when they said a word like "package." It came out "pah-kage." We had fun those two days, but we still learned what we were supposed to learn!

*I'm 55 years old. They were in their late 20's. I can call them "boys." (Although that puts a robbing-the-cradle sort of slant on the story.)

The End

I'm going to go eat a bowl of strawberry cheesecake ice cream and then go to bed.