The Conclusion to Gettin' Hit While Down

About 10 days ago, this blog focused on a situation at my job where complaints had been leveled against me to our HR department resulting in a 'coaching' session with my department manager. 



Today, the more specific information I asked for finally came to light.  Frankly, I'm beyond pissed about this situation and frankly shouldn't be surprised at how low some people can/will stoop.



As you may recall, one of the complaints was that I was "consistently violating a written policy against visiting other departments despite the council of 'several' managers." 



Well, that turned out to be untrue.  The former friend complained to his boss the day after our last falling out about my presence in his department, talking to a mutual friend of ours.  Actually, I had told her via text and FB what had gone down the previous day, and only was talkin' to her that I was OK. 



He decided to take that as my defamin' his character, and told his boss that.  So, what were a total of two (or three) visits by me to the co - worker turned into numerous violations of the poilcy. 



And how did his manager handle the situation?  By puttin' a hard copy of the policy on my desk, with the paragraph pertainin' to banned visits highlighted.  No accompanyin' email, nothin' attached to it to indicate where it came from.   Hell, I figured it was just somethin' we were ALL gettin', just as we'd received hard copies of the revised dress code!  



(Incidentally, the HR person agreed that the manager could've addressed the issue a Hell of a lot better than she/he/it did.  Of course, the manager wanted to 'spare me the indignity' of bein' singled out!  Puh- leeze!  That was one shitty way to 'coach' a person about violatin' a policy!  Can we be any more vague????  And that's considered multiple coachings????)



Well, it gets better when you come to the part about defamin' the poor little innocent thing's character and bringin' personal issues to the workplace!  Due to the fact that we shared a common friend, one of those three non work related visitations had to do with assurin' her I was OK given the situation.  He misconstrued that in his complaint that I was defamin' his character to his co - workers.  Because I chose to pour my heart out via this blog, as opposed to tellin' everyone with ears the sad story and referred folks to the blog when they asked what was goin' on, I then became guilty of solicitin' my blog on company time! 



Seriously?   Since when is tellin' people 'I don't wanna talk about it, but you're welcome to read my blog' solicitin'?  It's not like this little epistle puts money in my pocket, for cripe's sake!    If that were the case, I'd be bloggin' every frackin' hour!


Well, at least I had my suspicions confirmed.  He claimed that my visitin' our mutual (and now my former) friend, it was makin' him uncomfortable in his own workplace.  Never mind that he didn't get stink eye, or that I even acknolwedged his existenance when I made those three little visits. 


Notice his discomfort level didn't keep him from goin' over to MY department in order to 'help' former team mates.   I didn't bat an eye about it.   Until today's meetin', then I said somethin' about it.  If there's gonna be a policy, then uniformly enforce it, don't pick and choose who gets levied fines for disobedience and who doesn't.  


After this meetin' with the HR person, my manager and his assistant, I accepted the coachin', but added that I only accepted it because it now more 'accurately' reflected the sins committed as opposed to relyin' on generalities. 


It will be a part of my personal file for the remainder of my career there. 


It could be worse.


Certain things that came to light during this meeting, made some behaviors on the part of the former mutual friend made more sense.   It was never my intent nor desire that she find herself between the proverbial rock and hard place.  Apparently, she has chosen to align herself with her 'department bud'.  She is no longer on my phone contacts or my FB friends.  We have mutual work related friends, the former male friend is one of them.  He's been long gone since the first 'Gettin' Hit While You're Down' blog was written. 


Am I angry and upset by all this bull shit?  Hell yeah!  Ninety percent of what he claimed is total manipulation of the events to make himself look like the innocent victim of a psycho biker chick.  


There are a few truths.  Yes, I did not immediately obey the center directive, and violated it a total of three times.  So have many other people from other departments and with more occurrances than myself.   Yes, I referred inquirin' minds to the blog.  I felt it was better than cryin' on other people's shoulders in the workplace about the former male friend's behavior and creatin' furor in the worplace.  


Though my soul wants vengance, there is a smarter part of me that knows yours truly will be the FIRST to be suspected of doin' any dirty deed that befalls him - whether the deed occurs on the job or not.   Frankly, I feel that if I breathe the wrong way and he doesn't like the sound of it, he'll make a report to his boss - or the ethics line.


Since the 22nd of May, when he showed his ass for the second  - and last - time, I've ignored him.  No emails, no lookin' his way, not talkin' about him to anyone else.   He's aware of this blog; he's spoken ill of it several times to co - workers.  He also made sure that the HR person got a copy of the blogo that referred to him.   Well, if you're readin' this particular missive, my dear, then start printin', cause this one is definitely about you. 


And incidentally, copy/pastin' the truth is NOT defamation.  One can't turn one's back on their own written words.   Consider yourself lucky that no names were named.  Even then, copy/pastin' the actual words doesn't constitute defamation.  



What IS defamation is goin' around to co - workers and makin' derogatory comments about me.  So is boastin' about usin' the corporate policies and ethics line to get even.   Yeah, that kind of thing does get back to me.  Just because I don't confront y'all with it doesn't equate to blissful ignorance.   


But y'all failed.  I'm still workin', bloodied but unbroken.  And you're just gonna have to accept that fact.   One of these days, your gossip and bad mouthin' others will come back to bite y'all in the ass.  I hope it takes a really bite out of ya. 


Can't think of a more deservin' person. 

The one thing that does sadden me about this whole thing is that the young lady who was stuck in the middle felt it necessary to make a decision about who she wanted to be associated with.  It didn't take too many unanswered texts, ignored verbal greetin's, and/or ignored FB postin's to get the message.  


Amazin' how people who CLAIM to love another person - be it filios, agape, or eros love - can turn that emotion on/off on a whim. 


And thank GAWD there are people out there who are real enough to acknowledge that people make errors.  It's human nature.  One can either learn from it or not.  

The Devil Wouldn't WANT to Go on This Ride!

Gonna take a little detour from the road this blog's been takin' the last few weeks to wax poetic about a Spring 'reality' program on Discovery Channel called 'The Devil's Ride'.  I had a bad feelin' about it when the commercials touted this show as "The real life Sons of Anarchy." 



Whiskey - tango - foxtrot????? 



It never looks good when another program believes it is necessary to hitch a ride on the back end of a very successful drama series!  And a fictional one to boot! 



I suspect that some marketin' genius at Discovery came up with the idea as Executive Producer/Creator of SOA, Kurt Sutter, had made a documentary called 'Outlaw Empire' which Discovery is also runnin' this month.   May the fleas of a thousand camels make a home in that asshat's armpits!  Bad marketin' idea, people!  Very bad. 




Basically, 'reality' programmin' is a wee bit misleadin'.  Sure, the program is unscripted, and there are camera crews tapin' every second of every day.  BUT, and this is a very important BUT, there's thousands of hours of material that winds up on the cutting room floor and may only see the light of day on the DVD as a bonus feature.  




Some of the worse offenders in this genre, IMO, are 'Bridezillas', 'The Real Housewives of _______"  (real housewives my ass!  Even the Desperate Housewives series was more real that the 'real housewives of _____',  Survivor, Amazing Race, Real World, Bachelor/Bachelorette -- these so called 'reality' shows are anything but. 




For my money, the recently cancelled Dog the Bounty Hunter, Airline, Family Plots, Parking Wars and Animal Cops are a lot better.  They are in the same genre, but compared to the rotten apples listed earlier, these are sweet, tangy, refreshin' oranges.




Add to the list of bad apples 'The Devil's Ride'. 




If all y'all haven't figured it out already, I have serious issues with this program.  Sure, I watch it, but it's because it's like watchin' a train wreck.  You know it's gonna be bad, but you keep watchin' to see HOW bad it's gonna be. 




Why on Earth would any self - respectin' MC - especially a 1% MC - allow ANY camera crew to follow 'em around and tape Church sessions (though the Laffing Devils MC <LDMC> refers to it as 'rumble') or anything else that has to do with club business?  Were they thinkin' to make MC's more palatable to the general public? 




Can you heard us laffin', Laffin' Devils?  We KNOW the difference between real life bad asses and the fictional badasses on SOA.  The public ain't dumb, no matter what the ratin's might tell your bean counters.  



The whole thing where the foundin' father, Gipsie (sp?), decides to step down as President, by the way, is such a FUBAR of record porportions!   The man opted to give up the Prez patch, but that shouldn't have forced him to resign his cut!  If the new Prez, Billy the Kid (and lemme tell y'all somethin', that moniker don't inspire much respect, even if named for the infamous Western outlaw), can't garner enough respect for his office on his own, does he think drummin' out the foundin' father/past Prez is gonna help that?  


And why does he get a chip on his shoulder every time Gipsie shows up in or around the club?  Is he supposed to forget that he has friends in that club?  He wasn't listened as 'dead' to the club, for cryin' out loud!  It's not a wonder that he's puttin' his own club together.  Billy the Kid is complainin' about bein' disrespected, yet he's the one doin' the dissin' in the first place! 


For example, Danny Boy had a charity run in his daughter's memory.  Lots of bikers showed up.  So did the former Prez.  Everyone had an opportunity to tell him that he was welcome to ride, and thanks for the support, but don't come to the club after.  NO ONE said such to him.  Then current Prez gets his drawers in a wad about the past Prez' presence, sulks and stews and storms about the place like a cock protectin' his henhouse so that the former Prez decides to leave. 


Puh - leeze!   It's calle communication, dumbfucks.


Tank, the former prospect's wife, kinda rubs me the wrong way as well.  OK, I'm a wife, and I'm a lone wolf rider.  Have no affiliation with any ridin' group or club.  BUT, I show respect to all riders, and get such in return from them.  Were my husband along with me, I would expect him to show the same respect to all riders.  That bein' said, while I can sympathize with havin' a night out interrupted by club business, it's not different than a doctor or a minister bein' called away at the last minute.  It happens. 


Frankly, she should've expected an interruption since Tank was still a prospect at the time.  Prospects, regardless of their marital status, are 'on call' to the club 24/7.  The sooner the wife gets used to that, the happier she's gonna be.  As the fictional Gemma Teller Morrow put it, 'You love the man, you learn to love the club'.  (Credit to SOAFX/Kurt Sutter/FHE for that quote).



Then Discovery decides that this is lookin' a little tame.  Hello, McFly!  Anyone home?  Tame is right.  So, we have this little scenario with 'Tony the Hangaround' who raises everyone's suspicions because. . . (wait for it). . . He dosn't ride a bike! 



Um, pardon me, how in Hell can you be elevated to Hangaround in an MC and NOT RIDE????? 


Tony eventually turns in his hangaround cut, but the MC gets visited by a cop.  That makes the MC more suspicious of Tony.  After Tank gets patched, we see him, another patched member, and the Prez get on a boat.  Tank and the patched member drag out a body wrapped in plastic and duct tape. 


OMG!  


Wrong.  First, Discovery's legal department would've NEVER allowed the channel to put themselves into the position of bein' part of a murder.  Anyone with any grey matter between their ears is gonna know that.  Secondly, and this goes back to my original point, were that an actual body, no MC worth its' colors is gonna allow a camera crew to film them gettin' rid of evidence!  


In other words, it was fake.  A big ass joke on the Prez.  And the audience that was reeled in (picture Wayne and Garth holding their hands against their faces imitatin' gills and cryin' 'Reel 'em in!').   


Pathetic.


Speakin' of pathetic, the SAA to be for the ECC charter, Sandman, is a joke in my estimation.  Not because he's nothin' like his SOA counterparts Tig, Kozik, and Liam (to name three).  He's not a bit like 'em.  Anyone who can let a mundane/citizen get his ire up for tauntin' the club is NOT good SAA material.   C'mon, the driver of that van was bein' a fucktard.  Fine.  Tryin' to fight him is NOT a good idea when you're not wantin' to alienate your business district neighbors.   And this is the guy that the prospective ECC Prez wants to maintain order? 

<SMH>



If THIS is Discovery's idea of a 'real life Sons of Anarchy', I'll take the fictional program on FX any day of the week! 


Frankly, though there's a sayin' that 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery', I can't blame Kurt Sutter for bein' upset over the way 'TDR' hitched onto the juggernaut that is SOA.   He feels that the only reason Discovery optioned 'OE' is because of their biker ahow.   (See WTFSutter S5 on YouTube). 



I have a bad feelin' that he's right.