Before there ever was a saga, there was a Mama, and Mama Saga tried to impart a whole lotta her wisdom in her daughter. Some of it stuck, some of it didn't, but every once in a while, some of it will pop back up as a very simple tru-ism that needs to be taken to heart. And the 5 Bum Law is exactly that.
The 5-Bum Law:: if you hang around 4 bums, you're bound to be the fifth.
Quite eloquent for it's simplicity, don't you think? Yeah, and it's a whole lot clearer than that whole "birds of a feather" thing. Particularly if you're a 15 yr old know-it-all, whose penchant for selling/smoking weed, dating older boys and hanging out in clubs was beginning to grate on her Mama's nerves. Yeah, for Mara (tee-hee) those words definitely struck a chord. A wrong chord, but a chord nevertheless. She stashed the words in the long-term memory banks, for future use.
jump to now:: and you're wondering why is this relevant? I've been spending most of my time, busting my a$$, in meetings with my coworkers. Not the usual suspects, I'm on a new team, new project, new role. But I'm spending a whole lotta time, with a whole lotta Lifers: folks who have been with theGig for a long time, and look forward to retiring from it. I'm talking 15+ yr folks.
I'm not liking what I'm seeing.
Oh, how to characterize my colleagues, hm? They're...there's a lot of anal retention around here. Some of it for good reasons (protecting the company interests, that kind of thing) and some of it not (retain feelings of superiority and control, shameless and unbridled self-promotion/self-interest, that sort of thng). I mean, there's the typical back-stabbing, back-biting, outright lying and cover-your-a$$ manipulations that surface in the average corporate environment ("Office Space" or "The Office" anyone?). But lately I've been exposed to so much more of it, yanno?
Oh, and flat-out, downright rudeness, the kind that just makes you make the Scooby-Doo face, while you're thinking "rhut da rell?" (that's "what the hell?" for those of you not versed in Scooby-Doo speak). Like, I say hi to colleague, and colleague looks at floor, to avoid responding. Or, I approach a door that a colleague is coming out of, with my hands full, look colleague in the face, hoping they help me out....and they keep it moving. Or, I run into a colleague, that I worked on the same project - under the same manager with in class, say "Hi" enthusiastically, trying to spark a conversation, hoping to find a homework partner, or at least some empathy, and get...a dry "Hey" in response.
*checks breath and underarms for BO. finds nothing. shrugs*
aside:: while I know that *some people* just get down like that, I've never gotten all this *jazz* from people I've worked with before. And I've worked in some shyt-holes before. Trust me.
a minor meltdown:: yeah, I had a lil thing recently. The kind of "pack-up-yo-desk-and-send-out-mass-yet-foolish-email" kind of thing that turns into Internet legend. 'Cept I was intercepted at the pack up yo desk stage by a good friend, and steered toward the local watering hole, to vent. Then, subsequently counseled to take a long, hard look at where I was, and decide what I wanted to do.
The jury's still out. However, I do know that I don't want to end up being one of those obnoxious, overbearing, manipulative a$$holes in 10 yrs, yanno? And there's the rub: in order to survive and (preferably) succeed, you have to adjust. It's funny now, when I hear people say: "Oh you know, since they make more money now, they've changed." Hell, that's what we're all supposed to do. If we make changes in our life, we're supposed to adjust to those changes, right?
'Cept that's not a good look in this case. Picture saga on "The Apprentice". I'd be the new "crazy black bytch they had to get rid of". Yeah, that's not far off my current reality, trust me.
Not the kid, no sir. No matter what I decide, I'm leaving as I came in the door, spirit and integrity intact. I just gotta prep for that exit being hastier than I may have anticipated. Like tomorrow. ;)
