Hey, totally new gripe beyond the current coding project (which I could totally say more about, but I think enough's enough on that front - it's bad, you get it)!
People who use all manner of excuses to wave away their being an asshole when you call them on it. Oh, it's not their fault they're being a dick - they have X mental problem or their dog just died or their parents are getting divorced or grandpa's sick. To be more precise, it's one thing to actually be upset about those sorts of things - it happens, it sucks. It's another thing altogether when you use it as your non-apologetic excuse for being a pain in the ass.
I "forgave" the kid that pulled this crap with me, but the whole situation really rankled me. Not that I was completely in the right, but... well... maybe I should break it down some.
Kid was getting out of playing Magic and was selling all his cards on the cheap to help try and get money to buy a car. In the piles were some rather valuable cards - which got mentioned - being sold for much less than they were actually worth. I bought a few of them at the bargain price and slip a few into some of my decks.
Anyway, he still wanted to play with us, so I lent him one these aforementioned decks. And he proceeds to focus on me and try to punch me out of the game. And talking trash the entire time too - like, obnoxiously mean "above the usual trash talk us usual players use" trash talk. While playing the deck I'm letting him use. Finally get fed up with it and say "okay, I'm done" and take my deck back.
So he demands that I give him the cards I bought from him back. I tell him no, I bought them and so they're mine. He pulls the cash back out for them, I tell him they're not for sale. So yeah, I'm not completely in the right here, I get that. During this heated debate, he keeps bringing up the fact that his dog just died and all these things that are apparently going wrong with his life.
Whatever, things settle down, we move on. Everything's good, right?
This happened... summer/fall of last year? Due to my work I haven't been able to swing by as much. Managed this weekend after taking my little sister out to eat for her birthday (and to help cheer her up because she had to put down one of her ferrets
), and I was in the area afterward.
He's there. I think nothing of it until I here him *trying* to covertly whisper about me. How he doesn't want to play with me because I "stole" his cards. I ignore it and focus on the boosters I had bought to see what I pulled. Then one of the other players talks about making room at the table so I can sit down and join since we haven't played in a while.
Again the kid is all "Don't let him play, he steals cards." Considering he'd been doing this nonsense the entire time I was going through my five boosters, I get fed up and confront him on it. His only responses to my corrections are "Why don't you zip it?" (complete with Dr. Evil "lip zip" motion), telling me to "shut the hell up" and leave him alone, and stating that his grandfather just died (which I vaguely remember him saying the last time too, it's been months, after all). Still, I assent to leaving him alone on it if he'll stop spreading lies about me stealing cards.
Funnily enough, I had completely forgotten the entire transaction until he brought up my "card theft." During writing this, I almost forgot that the reason for our argument was him targeting me with my own deck when he was talking smack. Thought he had a deck left over - but no, I distinctly remember he tried to put together a deck from "take-a-penny-leave-a-penny" style box for commons and uncommons to try and "win" the cards back from me.
Anyway, the others still want to play with me and I end up sitting across from the kid. Of course, he's all "Does he HAVE to sit across from me?" I'm basically done with him at this point and just want to play a couple games and then go home.
I don't know if he finally realized how hacked I was with him, my words got through to him, whatever. He then basically unloads about how his parents were getting a divorce back at the time, how this family member or that family member had died. I kinda-sorta empathize with him and we move on.
Still, it really just rubbed me the wrong way, and I found myself grumbling over it on the drive home. Mostly because I remembered him doing it every time he was on the defensive in a situation. Someone or something was sick or had died or something terrible had happened in his life. Every single time, like it they were all "Get Out of Jail Free" cards.
Maybe it's cynical of me, but I've found myself wondering more than once if he's making some of them up just to get pity and leverage. Because otherwise he's, like, the worst-off kid in the world.
But it's not really just him. When people keep making excuses for why it's okay for them to act like jerk-offs, it irks me. If they're apologetic and whatnot, fine, but don't use it as a reason to keep on doing it. It's like the Whale Biologist in Futurama, except not at all funny. And I WILL call you out on it if I'm in a bad enough mood that day (otherwise I'll just do my usual silent grumblings over it).
... So yeah, that's my rant/vent over THAT particular matter.
People who use all manner of excuses to wave away their being an asshole when you call them on it. Oh, it's not their fault they're being a dick - they have X mental problem or their dog just died or their parents are getting divorced or grandpa's sick. To be more precise, it's one thing to actually be upset about those sorts of things - it happens, it sucks. It's another thing altogether when you use it as your non-apologetic excuse for being a pain in the ass.
I "forgave" the kid that pulled this crap with me, but the whole situation really rankled me. Not that I was completely in the right, but... well... maybe I should break it down some.
Kid was getting out of playing Magic and was selling all his cards on the cheap to help try and get money to buy a car. In the piles were some rather valuable cards - which got mentioned - being sold for much less than they were actually worth. I bought a few of them at the bargain price and slip a few into some of my decks.
Anyway, he still wanted to play with us, so I lent him one these aforementioned decks. And he proceeds to focus on me and try to punch me out of the game. And talking trash the entire time too - like, obnoxiously mean "above the usual trash talk us usual players use" trash talk. While playing the deck I'm letting him use. Finally get fed up with it and say "okay, I'm done" and take my deck back.
So he demands that I give him the cards I bought from him back. I tell him no, I bought them and so they're mine. He pulls the cash back out for them, I tell him they're not for sale. So yeah, I'm not completely in the right here, I get that. During this heated debate, he keeps bringing up the fact that his dog just died and all these things that are apparently going wrong with his life.
Whatever, things settle down, we move on. Everything's good, right?
This happened... summer/fall of last year? Due to my work I haven't been able to swing by as much. Managed this weekend after taking my little sister out to eat for her birthday (and to help cheer her up because she had to put down one of her ferrets
), and I was in the area afterward.He's there. I think nothing of it until I here him *trying* to covertly whisper about me. How he doesn't want to play with me because I "stole" his cards. I ignore it and focus on the boosters I had bought to see what I pulled. Then one of the other players talks about making room at the table so I can sit down and join since we haven't played in a while.
Again the kid is all "Don't let him play, he steals cards." Considering he'd been doing this nonsense the entire time I was going through my five boosters, I get fed up and confront him on it. His only responses to my corrections are "Why don't you zip it?" (complete with Dr. Evil "lip zip" motion), telling me to "shut the hell up" and leave him alone, and stating that his grandfather just died (which I vaguely remember him saying the last time too, it's been months, after all). Still, I assent to leaving him alone on it if he'll stop spreading lies about me stealing cards.
Funnily enough, I had completely forgotten the entire transaction until he brought up my "card theft." During writing this, I almost forgot that the reason for our argument was him targeting me with my own deck when he was talking smack. Thought he had a deck left over - but no, I distinctly remember he tried to put together a deck from "take-a-penny-leave-a-penny" style box for commons and uncommons to try and "win" the cards back from me.
Anyway, the others still want to play with me and I end up sitting across from the kid. Of course, he's all "Does he HAVE to sit across from me?" I'm basically done with him at this point and just want to play a couple games and then go home.
I don't know if he finally realized how hacked I was with him, my words got through to him, whatever. He then basically unloads about how his parents were getting a divorce back at the time, how this family member or that family member had died. I kinda-sorta empathize with him and we move on.
Still, it really just rubbed me the wrong way, and I found myself grumbling over it on the drive home. Mostly because I remembered him doing it every time he was on the defensive in a situation. Someone or something was sick or had died or something terrible had happened in his life. Every single time, like it they were all "Get Out of Jail Free" cards.
Maybe it's cynical of me, but I've found myself wondering more than once if he's making some of them up just to get pity and leverage. Because otherwise he's, like, the worst-off kid in the world.
But it's not really just him. When people keep making excuses for why it's okay for them to act like jerk-offs, it irks me. If they're apologetic and whatnot, fine, but don't use it as a reason to keep on doing it. It's like the Whale Biologist in Futurama, except not at all funny. And I WILL call you out on it if I'm in a bad enough mood that day (otherwise I'll just do my usual silent grumblings over it).
... So yeah, that's my rant/vent over THAT particular matter.
~