Passive Aggressive

I just realized today where I mastered my passive aggressiveness from....

Working in call centers.

I have worked in call centers off and on for 5 years. Its not something I'm proud of, in fact I hate working in call centers, but when you have too much credit card debt and too many car payments and a mortgage payment that kept going up because your escrow keeps being short because of taxes; you gots to do what you gots to do.

And as luck would have it, or well maybe not luck, but just life maybe...I don't know, but anyway I'm actually quite good at customer service. I have a great phone voice, I communicate effectively, I speak proper English and I can even stumble my way through a Spanish call enough to get a phone number and politely say good-bye so that someone somewhere can help the person.

But alas, I realized that, through no fault of my own, working in call centers actually helped me perfect the art of passive aggressive behavior. And additionally it has also helped me to become one of the most sarcastic people I know with some of the driest humor. Which I have also found is not a favorite personality trait of mine...

Below you will find an excerpt from a Gmail chat from earlier today with a friend and former co-worker at said call center:

Couple of things. 1. Nic's thing refers to a birthday party. 2. ;alsjdfl;jwoeifjasldkfjeo or anything that looks similar is our version of LOL, we think it is more fun and the longer the a;alksjfowiefjasdlkf is the funnier we thought it was....so al;skdjf s is just a chuckle but a;slkdfjwoiefjaslkdfweofjasldfj eo would be like ROTFL. 3. Oh snack is the same as oh snap!

Steph: what time is Nic's thing?

me: IDK...lemme look
Sept. 11th 7:30pm at Kim's House
Sent at 1:20 PM on Friday

me: are you gonna go there by yoself or did yo want to go with us?
we probably won't stay long btw...cuz we'll be takin fletch

Steph: i can't stay late i have to be at XPS in the morning, and i'm so tired
all the managers are standing around staring at Melissa; i think they're going to sing happy bday to her, but no one will start
they look stupid

me: they are stupid
yer mom's stupid
Sent at 1:29 PM on Friday

Steph: pish
they finally started singing, and i was on a call and the lady was piiiisssseed

me: cuz she could hear them?

Steph: yep
sounds like your business is having fun today while I'm getting collection calls from you people for a unit i no longer rent
'a;sldkfj;asdklj;asdf

me: well maybe you wouldn't get collection calls for a unit that got auctioned off if you woulda paid your bill

Steph: on snack

me: i probably woulda said that to her too but i woulda said it in a round about nicer way...so that i couldn't get in trouble, but so that she felt like a dumbass
i loved doing that to people...then she woulda hung up on me...and i woulda under my breath called her a fucking bitch after she hung or after i pushed mute Sent at 1:36 PM on Friday

Steph: ahh lynnette, i love how you think

And that is honestly what I would've done. What is wrong with singing happy birthday to someone? Is that really considered having a party? Seriously lady, do what I do when collectors call...don't answer.