Tweet
Tonight, I got to experience the fabled 'I'm going to report you for doing your job' moment.
It was quite satisfying.
Background: I work as a lifeguard, on Mondays and Wednesdays, we don't have a closing head guard or supervisor (Which is against regulations, and makes the managers do more work, and they could fix the whole thing by promoting me to a position where I'd make a single dollar per hour more than I do now. No, I'm not bitter.) This means that I, as the senior guard on duty (I've been there since June, this is sad), am basically in charge on Monday and Wednesday nights once the managers go home.
Cast:
S: Friendly neighborhood lifeguard
AM: Assholish mom (Thank god not mine.)
LP: Little Pwecious
So I'm hanging out doing my job in our recreation/lap pool when it's time to rotate, and one of the girls I'm working with takes the buoy from me, and takes the stand. I walk into our Therapeutic Pool, and before I get to the stand, I see a rules violation. There is a somewhat regular patron with her son, doing aerobics in our pool, which is fine, with our water-weights (Essentially buoyant objects on either side of a hollow bar to act as dumbells) which is fine, with her son doing them too which is not fine, since we have regulations that do not permit us to allow children to handle the water-weights.
So I walk over to the other side of the pool, where they are, and get the kid's attention, signaling him to come over, since I don't like making a big deal out of these things in front of the whole pool unless it's a repeat offense and I'm kicking them out, in which case they get to walk the walk of shame.
S: "I'm sorry, sir, but I can't let you use these. You're too young and the Y's rules say you can't use them yet."
LP: hands me the weights and smiles, saying softly "Sorry."
AM: "Even with me? He cannot use even with me?"
S: "Sorry, ma'am, but I can't let him use them."
AM: "How old does he have to be to use them?"
S: "I'm not clear on that, ma'am, the wording of the rule is very vague, but it says only adults can use them, so I assume 18."
AM: "I think you are lying. Other lifeguards let him use weights with me."
S: "Ma'am, I don't know what my co-workers do or do not do, but without my manager telling me to, I can't allow you to break our pool rules, and my manager has gone home for the day."
AM: "I think you are lying."
S: "I'm sorry you feel that way, ma'am."
So I walk away, and before I even make it back to the stand, I see her hand her child one of the weights she was using and start doing one-armed exercises with him. I snarl, and walk back, kneeling down at the edge of the pool next to them.
S: "Ma'am, he cannot use those, end of story. If I have to come over here again, he's coming out of the pool."
AM: "Other lifeguards have let him use them with me! You are lying!"
S: "I'm sorry you feel that way yet again. However, those are our rules, I didn't make them, but I have to follow them. Do. Not. Give. Him. The. Weights. Again."
AM: "You are LYING!"
S: "If I see it again, he spends some time out of the pool. Goodbye."
AM: "I think you are lying, so I will fill out a complaint against you."
S: "They're at the front desk. Enjoy."
I didn't have another problem with her, but I warned both the girls I was working with to take the kid out of the pool if it happened again. I told them to tell me if she gave them crap, and I'd take care of it, since I am effectively the supervisor while there tonight.
My least confrontational co-worker told her that her kid wasn't allowed to climb on her back while she worked out, either, and by the next time after that that I went into the theripudic pool, they were gone.
Also, this is another story entirely, but about two weeks ago, one of our regulars brought his wife in, and when I gave him the 5 minutes till closing warning, he gave me this gem:
S:
RM: Regular Man
RW: Regular's wife
RW: "Maybe we should leave, it's getting late."
S: (thoughts) Thank you
RM: "OK, we'll leave..."
S: Thank you god!
RM: (After giving it just long enough to get my hopes up) "... In 5 minutes."
RW: Gives me sympathetic look.
S: ah, well...
Sorry I don't have many to report. Most people don't question me when I yell at them, and don't interact with me otherwise. Although I do have a story about my ex-sup being an SC to our delivery guy a while ago, if anyone wants to hear it.
It was quite satisfying.
Background: I work as a lifeguard, on Mondays and Wednesdays, we don't have a closing head guard or supervisor (Which is against regulations, and makes the managers do more work, and they could fix the whole thing by promoting me to a position where I'd make a single dollar per hour more than I do now. No, I'm not bitter.) This means that I, as the senior guard on duty (I've been there since June, this is sad), am basically in charge on Monday and Wednesday nights once the managers go home.
Cast:
S: Friendly neighborhood lifeguard
AM: Assholish mom (Thank god not mine.)
LP: Little Pwecious
So I'm hanging out doing my job in our recreation/lap pool when it's time to rotate, and one of the girls I'm working with takes the buoy from me, and takes the stand. I walk into our Therapeutic Pool, and before I get to the stand, I see a rules violation. There is a somewhat regular patron with her son, doing aerobics in our pool, which is fine, with our water-weights (Essentially buoyant objects on either side of a hollow bar to act as dumbells) which is fine, with her son doing them too which is not fine, since we have regulations that do not permit us to allow children to handle the water-weights.
So I walk over to the other side of the pool, where they are, and get the kid's attention, signaling him to come over, since I don't like making a big deal out of these things in front of the whole pool unless it's a repeat offense and I'm kicking them out, in which case they get to walk the walk of shame.
S: "I'm sorry, sir, but I can't let you use these. You're too young and the Y's rules say you can't use them yet."
LP: hands me the weights and smiles, saying softly "Sorry."
AM: "Even with me? He cannot use even with me?"
S: "Sorry, ma'am, but I can't let him use them."
AM: "How old does he have to be to use them?"
S: "I'm not clear on that, ma'am, the wording of the rule is very vague, but it says only adults can use them, so I assume 18."
AM: "I think you are lying. Other lifeguards let him use weights with me."
S: "Ma'am, I don't know what my co-workers do or do not do, but without my manager telling me to, I can't allow you to break our pool rules, and my manager has gone home for the day."
AM: "I think you are lying."
S: "I'm sorry you feel that way, ma'am."
So I walk away, and before I even make it back to the stand, I see her hand her child one of the weights she was using and start doing one-armed exercises with him. I snarl, and walk back, kneeling down at the edge of the pool next to them.
S: "Ma'am, he cannot use those, end of story. If I have to come over here again, he's coming out of the pool."
AM: "Other lifeguards have let him use them with me! You are lying!"
S: "I'm sorry you feel that way yet again. However, those are our rules, I didn't make them, but I have to follow them. Do. Not. Give. Him. The. Weights. Again."
AM: "You are LYING!"
S: "If I see it again, he spends some time out of the pool. Goodbye."
AM: "I think you are lying, so I will fill out a complaint against you."
S: "They're at the front desk. Enjoy."
I didn't have another problem with her, but I warned both the girls I was working with to take the kid out of the pool if it happened again. I told them to tell me if she gave them crap, and I'd take care of it, since I am effectively the supervisor while there tonight.
My least confrontational co-worker told her that her kid wasn't allowed to climb on her back while she worked out, either, and by the next time after that that I went into the theripudic pool, they were gone.
Also, this is another story entirely, but about two weeks ago, one of our regulars brought his wife in, and when I gave him the 5 minutes till closing warning, he gave me this gem:
S:
RM: Regular Man
RW: Regular's wife
RW: "Maybe we should leave, it's getting late."
S: (thoughts) Thank you
RM: "OK, we'll leave..."
S: Thank you god!
RM: (After giving it just long enough to get my hopes up) "... In 5 minutes."
RW: Gives me sympathetic look.
S: ah, well...
Sorry I don't have many to report. Most people don't question me when I yell at them, and don't interact with me otherwise. Although I do have a story about my ex-sup being an SC to our delivery guy a while ago, if anyone wants to hear it.
Comment