You Use Honey, Not Vinegar, Moron

Today is one of those days where no one needs to piss me off.  I'm tired.  Scratch that.  I'm exhausted.  The Littlest One wanted to nurse for over an hour just off and on.  She couldnt' sleep and was super cranky.  That means I couldnt' sleep and am super cranky.  Then, because out of desperation for some sleep, I nursed her laying down, she is all gassy today.  (I have found that I have to nurse her in an upright seated position or she gulps down too much air and has a bad belly.) So, on top of tired and cranky, I feel bad because she is all gassy now.  And of course, her being all gassy means she is having a bad, hold me, kind of day.  It's just not working.
So, as the day is, she is crying and I take her to my room and try to lay down with her.  Then I decide that maybe I should try to comfort nurse her to sleep.
As she is nursing, and I get a moment with no crying, the phone rings to break the peace.  The caller ID comes up as Anonymous.  Now, normally, I wouldn't answer that.  Actually, normally I have an anonymous call blocker on my phone.  However, we learned that now when my husband calls from the ship, where is presently is, the ID shows up that way.  So, I unlatch her, put her down, and grab the phone.  Of course, it is someone wanting money.  It was a cancer charity and he told me they were making gift baskets for children with leukemia.  I was waiting for him to take a breathe so I could tell him I needed to go, but apparently he knew better and just kept talking.  So, I interrupt him, and tell him I can't talk.  At that time, I have the phone on one ear, and I pull The Littlest One back up to my other should, with her now crying again.  I hadn't even put the phone down yet, because I was tyring to get her first.  Then in my ear, I hear "Oh yeah.  Go ahead and put the baby right up to the phone so that is all I an hear" all nasty.  AS I was about to respond, he hung up.
Now, let me assure you that I was not putting the baby up to the phone.  She was legitimately crying and I was picking her up.  It was no ploy to get out of talking.  I wouldn't have gievn them any money today even if she had been calm.  The only thing he managed to do, is ensure that I get all pissed off, and try to write a letter to his charity to tell them why I will never given them money.  You see, this is not the way to act when you are asking for something, even if I had done it on purpose.
So, to the guy who raised my ire on a day where it needn't be raised, my 5 week old daughter was crying, and I thought you were my deployed husband calling.  I'm sorry this all added up to pissing you off because you had to hear a moment of it.  I live it.  Get over yourself.  If you don't like your job because people do crappy stuff to you all the time, then quit.  I worked in a call center for years, and believe me, I do know what people do.  If you want to complain about them, at least have the courtesy to hang up first, and then turn to say your smart ass remarks to the person in the cubicle next to you.  You have succeeded in making my day a little worse.  I hope you happen to call again one day, because I do remember your name.  Oh, and I totally take back that, "have a nice day" I said after I told you I couldn't talk.

No kids, No Rocket Cart For You

My little one and I went to the grocery store today. I do believe that this is the first time I have taken her to the store alone, with out her sister, or my husband, since she began to walk and talk. Yeah. Its been a while. It had to be done, though.

Anyway, we go, and as luck would have it, there was one, just one, Rocket Cart there at the store. Just about every grocery store has those special shopping carts (or buggies for those reading this back home) that are meant just for kids. They are usually little plastic car looking things with a cart attached to the front. Our grocery store happens to have the coolest ones ever that look like a space shuttle! They have two separate baskets, a small one up high and a larger one down low. Of course, my oldest had no idea what the space shuttle was the first time she saw it, and they became the Rocket Carts.

I nearly run to the cart, and my daughter gets excited as soon as I put her in. She starts driving and pretend hoking that thing like crazy. We go on about our shopping, with her honking an beep beeping up and down the isles. People are laughing at her and her cute little "vroom vroom"s.

We start to turn at the end of the cheese isle, to go toward the bread and deli section, and there is a womyn with her back turned towards us, with a rocket car, sort of blocking the way. Right away, I see there is no child. He must have hopped out, gone with Dad, or something. Right?

Nope. As we pass, I see she has filled the place for the child with all kinds of crap, including her bag.

I actually uttered "I know she didn't..." out loud before I caught myself. I was probably blocking other people in the isle behind me, because I was caught so off guard, I had to stand there and stare for about a minute.

You know, these carts are both good and bad. For actual shopping, they kind of suck. The baskets are both small, and you can't fit much in them. You get far, far less than you would with a regular shopping cart. They are much less maneuverable because of the longer length, the weight, and the general design. They are also usually pretty dirty. I mean, your putting kid after kid in them. The only good thing about them is the sheer entertainment value they posses for your child. Between the shopping cart and a box of raisins, she was occupied the entire time.

So, why would anyone take one that didn't have a child??? I think there should be a law against that. The grocery store police should give you a grocery store ticket if they ever see a person who clearly has no child using one of those carts. In fact, if my husband goes, I send him on ahead of us while I get the girls out to scout one of those crazy things out. There have been days where I nearly cried because the kids were being a pill, we had to go to the store, and we could only get a regular cart. It makes that much of a difference sometimes. See, people with no kids, we NEED them. It isn't just about the rocket, it is about our sanity.

So, to the lady who was browsing the specialty breads today, using a Rocket Cart with no child, you, ma'am, are not a very nice person. For shame. Taking away what could have been a mom's desperately needed piece of sanity today. I hope someone else says something more than I did. May you over priced loaf of artisan bread mold very fast. Harumph.

I admit it. I am the meany.

It is true. I am a mean person. Yet again, I blame this election cycle. It has really taken a toll on my ability to be nice.

The other day, I called someone ignorant. And I meant it. My thought process is this:
If you don't have a well informed opinion, don't interject into a conversation that requires one with nothing more than a sophomoric attempt to slander the other side. Your opinion won't be welcome. Furthermore, if you choose to call someone who does have a well thought out opinion foolish, you should be prepared to be called out, and perhaps, or even certainly, called ignorant.

Now, that doesn't mean that you are stupid. Nor does it mean that you are in general ignorant, but it does mean that when it comes to the political realm, you have not taken the time to truly educate yourself on what has and is happening in the world around you.

What's even worse is that I have to keep telling people I called someone ignorant. It's like I have to offend people before the conversation even starts. Why you all need to know, I don't know. What I do know is that this has really affected my ability to speak to people.

So, please, before I end up getting kicked off some of my favorite message boards, I urge everyone out there to take the time to educate yourself. Don't just do it for me and my Internet addiction, though. Do it for yourself, so that you can really participate in being a part of this great process.