DarqByte

So I’ve decided that the break room TV they put in here at work is a bad idea. At least, it’s a bad idea until people get some proper TV manners and they potentially make regulations on channels.

Yeah, that totally sucks. Everybody was super-hyped about us getting a nice flat HDTV in the break room to watch while we’re in there. I have to admit, it’s nice to have something to just drool and watch while eating lunch in there, because otherwise there are lots of awkward silences and you have to look at people eating. Haha.

However, there’s a standard decorum and protocols in place for watching TV. At home it’s pretty easy, and at parties, easy. Restaurants control their channels so that’s easy too. But when you’ve got a TV in a break room for a company as diverse as mine, with a remote control readily available… Hell breaks loose.

There’s a sharp divide at my work between left- and right-leaning ideologies. The developers are all mostly left-leaning politically and the business side is mostly right-leaning. This is never really an issue, but it presents itself when you walk into the break room and specific news channels are on… Many a time have I heard my fellow developers groan and make comments when they walk into the break room and the TV is on Fox News.

So there’s issue #1. It’s somewhat helping bring politics into the workplace because news stations frequently bring up political situations. Issue #2 comes from the whole “who has control of the TV.”

For example, the other day I was sitting in the break room watching ESPN. It was on when I got in there, nobody else was in there. I was eating and watching various sports highlights and the like. Two other people come in and start eating lunch too… And one of them walks up, takes the remote, and changes the channel. Without asking me if I was watching that. Remember kids, I was there first. You’re supposed to ask.

Would I have said no to the channel being changed? No. I wouldn’t have minded at all. But they just assumed they could take control of the TV despite my watching it before they got in there.

So yeah… This TV thing is an issue, at least I can see problems arising from it. There needs to be guidelines. People need to use common sense… Such as asking if it’s ok to change the channel when somebody’s already watching it.

Recently, one of my coworkers has been going through a rough time in their life. They suffered a pretty serious injury and have had to see all sorts of doctors, specialists and whatnot, getting put on all kinds of medications. They’re still operating and working, but it’s probably not much fun at all.

At first, I just let most issues with this coworker fly because I know they’re in a great deal of pain. But more and more the last couple weeks, they’ve just been pissing me off. They’re trying here and there to get off of the pain medication they’re on so they don’t develop a dependency (I think), and on those days, they just get really, really bitchy.

Not only that, but I’ve just noticed how bitchy they can get when they don’t want to be bothered. It’s really starting to irritate me and reconsider just how I feel about them.

See, someone else I know has a coworker that’s on medications and just acts like a jerk whenever they please. Their behavior has even been explained away by their managers as a result of their taking medications… Here’s where I’ve got an issue.

Just because someone’s on medications for some reason or other doesn’t give them free reign to act however they want. There’s a certain decorum expected in the workplace and you can’t use a malady as an excuse forever. At some point, you’ve got to return to the land of sanity and act in a reasonable manner to your coworkers. Whenever I’m in pain or what have you, I still act the same to my coworkers as I usually do. About the only time I know specifically that I slip up is when I’m really stressed out, usually about work.

I try to bring the same mood and personality to work all of the time. When I’m sleepy, exhausted or whatever, then I’m usually more subdued, but I won’t act differently to my coworkers. I’m generally a happy guy who likes to joke around a lot and I get along very well with others. I also work hard and do a good job.

In any case, all of this “bad behavior” has gotten me wondering how people really do perceive me. I mean, I think I come across as a happy person, easy to get along with and all that jazz. But maybe I don’t. Maybe I break down and act pissy to people more often than I realize.

Now I’m going to end up thinking a lot more about how I act towards people and publicly. I know I’m a goof a lot of times and potentially embarrass myself or Laura in the process, but I’m talking about “bad behavior” that pisses people off, or just jerkish behavior in general.

Really, I just wish people would be more conscious of how they’re acting and not use medication as a crutch. Like if you’re really busy with something and I’m interrupting you with a lame joke, and it’s not obvious you’re busy, then maybe you should just be nice and say “Sorry man, I’m kinda busy right now” rather than acting like what I have to say is totally not important and trying to start ignoring me by putting your headphones back on while I’m still talking to you.

Oy… Also, I know that I previously said I didn’t want to touch on work, politics or religion here on my blog. But this wasn’t really about work, it was more about behavior to other people. . Actually, I can’t really find a place where I said I was going to try to avoid those topics, so… Now you know.