Depsicable Line Cutters

[dwayneb236]

So, I was sitting here contemplating the meaning of life, 42 by the way, and my last cruise on the Harmony. 99% of the cruise was fantastic. I only had 2 instances where I got a bit perturbed. Both were line cutters.

 

One day I was standing in line at the counter of Sorrentos. When I mean standing in line I was the only person behind a kid picking up his pizza. As the kid walks away and the pizza guy looks up to me, a random dude just walks up and tells pizza guy he wants two of the pepperoni. I just look at him and say you know I was next right? He just gets this sheepish look, says sorry, takes his pizza and slinks away. He had to go around me to get to where he was going so he saw me there.

 

The other time was at MiniBites. Was a fairly significant line and I was just at the counter with my wife. 2 "ladies", I use this term loosely, barge up in between the people at the nachos/fries area and say they just want one thing. Of course while there they take one of everything. I looked at one and told her that you know there is a line right? We all waited in it.. My wife just told me to let it go and I did but not internally.

 

As Woodrow Call of Lonesome Dove says, "I hate rude behavior in a man, I won't tolerate it." Well my wife made me tolerate it and she's the one with the level head.

 

Just blows my mind people are that thoughtless, and I'm a cop, I see people at their worst all the time. Would be a great world without all the people.

 

Most of the people on this cruise were awesome, just those two instances stick out. I had forgotten about it till now. That's what I get for contemplating.

 

And yes I misspelled Despicable dang it.

Edited March 1, 2017 by dwayneb236

[naughtybuoy]

Because people have a ridiculous sense of entitlement, which is not exclusive to any one generation. People are just selfish sometimes. Thank you for what you do.

[dwayneb236]

Yep, these were not kids, Middle age at least.

 

And you are very welcome.

[voyager70]

I'm glad you at least said something to them. Maybe they'll think twice before they do it again (but probably not).

[dwayneb236]

I think the guy was actually sorry he did it but I don't see how he didn't see me. The females couldn't have cared less what everyone else thought. I was the only one who said anything until my wife shut me down.

 

And my misspelling DESPICABLE is driving me batty.

[theredwoodguy]

I think I would have been more bothered that the employee at Sorrento's gave him the pizza when it appears by what you said that he saw the entire incident. Listen to your wife though...it's not worth it. You can't fix inconsiderate people. :-)

[dwayneb236]

Well, he couldn't have missed it but I'm sure they just don't like any type of confrontation. There was no line so after I mentioned my presence to the guy I got my own pizza and left.

 

My wife is very smart, she's always right.

 

But like I told her, I know I could have taken them. ; )

[dpostman]

Yes, I feel this too. I'm just north of 45, and I was tough to be gallant. It is such a simple gesture. Yet, I feel it is sad to see the surprise on peoples faces here at work when they see any form of gallantry. This should not be the exception, it should be the norm. It just seem to make the other people happier and if everyone made just this little effort to be just a bit more gallant, I believe the general happiness of everyone would jump up a notch. Please do not read this as me just trying to embellish myself, as I do have my moments that I would be ashamed of, but rather just venting what I think would make a huge difference in society... and on cruise ships... just to keep it ON TOPIC;)

 

Thank you Dwayne for your service and also... my wife is also the one that would stomp my foot (with her heel) if I got a little too verbal in that situation. She is a school principle and is much better at deciding what battles should be chosen or just let go :cool:

 

dp

[dwayneb236]

My wife is a cop too but has been doing it a MUCH shorter time that I have. She's not quite as cynical as I am yet.....yet...

[nelblu]

In my neck of the woods, they would haven't gotten away with that easy. The problem is that whether it was the pizza man or some other crew member they can't get involved. Good for you that you maintained your composure and enjoyed the cruise..

[Psycho and Barb]

We all must have wives smarter than us. I'm retired Military and I've had to stand in lines all my life. I just can't let anyone cut in like without saying something...Most of the time my choice of comments are not the best choice. But I can always count on Barb to grab, pinch or smack me...To remind me I'm on vacation and to just chill[emoji30]

 

Let me add our thanks to you and your wife...Being a Police Officer is not an easy profession these days. One of our sons is a SWAT team member and a Narc officer... They don't pay him near enough but he loves what he does and he's always telling me he's making a difference

 

 

Sent from Psycho's iPad using Forums

[dwayneb236]

You're welcome and I must thank you for your service as well. And thank God for our smarter than us wives.

[Ashland]

Because people have a ridiculous sense of entitlement, which is not exclusive to any one generation. People are just selfish sometimes. Thank you for what you do.

 

 

This is especially true regardless of where or the circumstances it happens in.

[Kikkib]

We were on the Harmony 3 weeks ago and the same exact thing happened at Sorrentinos. I was standing with my son just about to say what we wanted when a guy came up next to us and said 2 slices. I was more shocked that the crew member gave it to him and didn't acknowledge that we were there first. I reached my breaking point while waiting on the ice skate rental line with my son and vouchers in hand. A woman pushed my son out of the way and starts pulling 6 of her family forward. I confronted her and she pretended not to understand English. Once again the crew member behind the counter saw this and chose to not say anything. My husband is a Police Officer and I'm a Registered Nurse so we both deal with difficult people but I hate trying to relax on vacation and dealing with this. Don't even get me started on the elevator etiquette!

[grouchomarx]

The world is full of dirtbags, The are everywhere. The trick is to not let them get to you. I often enjoy observing bad behavior and laughing at those people, you must feel sorry for them being the hated losers of the world. For me the worst behavior that almost makes me explode and go insane is when you're in a line and the person behind you is pushing up against you, touching you with themselves or their tray or whatever. I just want to shout, DON'T STAND SO CLOSE TO ME!

[dwayneb236]

We were probably on the same sailing as you.. Feb 11?. And I remembered another incident that was pretty pathetic. We're in a fairly small line to see Columbus. Lady in front of us has her and 4 or 5 kids with her. She's trying to get in, the girl scanning cards and such asks her if they have reservations. She said she didn't know reservations were required. Now I'm just a simple boy from Texas but I'm fairly certain she knew they were required to get in and they would have to wait to be allowed entrance. It was the sixth day of sailing and I would think she would have known by then reservations were required if she didn't know before the cruise started. The girl scanning was very cool and leveled headed and just let her and her horde in. Was plenty of seats so there were no problems. Just can't figure people out.

Edited March 1, 2017 by dwayneb236

[nelblu]

We were on the Harmony 3 weeks ago and the same exact thing happened at Sorrentinos. I was standing with my son just about to say what we wanted when a guy came up next to us and said 2 slices. I was more shocked that the crew member gave it to him and didn't acknowledge that we were there first. I reached my breaking point while waiting on the ice skate rental line with my son and vouchers in hand. A woman pushed my son out of the way and starts pulling 6 of her family forward. I confronted her and she pretended not to understand English. Once again the crew member behind the counter saw this and chose to not say anything. My husband is a Police Officer and I'm a Registered Nurse so we both deal with difficult people but I hate trying to relax on vacation and dealing with this. Don't even get me started on the elevator etiquette!

 

 

Don't get me started on elevator etiquette.

[Scottee25]

First of all let me thank you and your wife for your service to the community.

 

As a police officer, I have no doubt that you see all kinds of people. I am sure you see some more often than others. Hopefully you wife does not become cynical like you :) I am sure you know that change is very hard for people otherwise they would learn from their mistakes and quit breaking the law. However, a great many people are not wired for that. This is where I feel women sometimes make better police officers because they are better at the psychology of people. While I am not a mental health professional, I learned a great deal seeing a psychologist during my divorce. I learned that if I go through life expecting people to behave like I would, I am always going to be disappointed :)

 

I know the natural thing to do is to speak up when someone cuts in front of you. Their behavior is rude and many people feel they can make others see the error of their ways (spoiler alert, you can't change them!). For instance, the first guy seemed like he was sorry he cut in front of you. You feel he should have saw you. However, try to look at it this way... perhaps the guys is just oblivious to his surroundings. He is not intentionally being rude, but he comes across that way. Calling him out for cutting in front of you is not going to make him any less oblivious. As far as the 2 ladies, they seem like they have a sense of entitlement. They will most likely always feel that sense. People calling them out will not make them change that sense. In fact, it may only embolden them to act even more entitled. The thing to remember is, change needs to come from within.

 

I always like to use a quote from Mia Farrow: ?I'm going to take the high road because the low road is so crowded.?

 

I also like to use the following line my therapist used to use on me (and I use on my friends when they ask for advice): "Do you want to be right, or do you want to be happy?"

[dwayneb236]

I have a theory and I could be absolutely wrong about the line cutters as I am in no way travel wise. The farthest I've been from home is Hawaii.

Both line cutters spoke with a European accent. But again, I don't know anything about lines and how they work in countries I have not been to, but thought maybe this could have been a factor.

The lady at the Columbus show was 'Merican all the way. ha.

[PAcruiser19372]

Thank you for you and your wife's service, I don't know how you do your job these days. BTW, I love mankind but i can't stand people!

[GTO-Girl]

In January we were on the Oasis and chose to do self assist. We got up extra early and we were in line by 5:45am. There were already at least 50 people ahead of us and by 6:15 the line stretched way past us and all the way into the dining room

 

The place in line where we were waiting was right next to a large column and as we stood there a man came off the elevator with his luggage and backpack and proceeded to place them up against this column and then walked away.

 

Sure enough.....when the line began to move at 6:45 he strolled up to the column, picked up stuff, broke in line ahead of us and walked out.

 

Made me so angry....but I am sure he must do this all the time because it sure didn't bother him!!

[Goodtime Cruizin]

Well, he couldn't have missed it but I'm sure they just don't like any type of confrontation. There was no line so after I mentioned my presence to the guy I got my own pizza and left.

 

My wife is very smart, she's always right.

 

But like I told her, I know I could have taken them. ; )

 

My style is to look directly at the employee and say w/o hesitation, w/o interruption, in a kind way, but in a very firm tone, "Excuse me! I was next in line and I would like two pepperonis now... please." If the employee does not respond. I firmly repeat myself. If the person cutting the que says something to me directly (very doubtful) I simply say, "I'm speaking to him/her. The line forms behind me." I repeat myself again if needed. I to do not tolerate rude behavior.

I also believe the employee has a level of responsibility in this type of situation as well.

[Scottee25]

Made me so angry....but I am sure he must do this all the time because it sure didn't bother him!!

 

All you can hope for is that Karma pays them a visit. I remember years ago flying back from overseas. Was in line for Customs when a guy decided to cut in front of me and my (ex)wife. Not sure if it was random or what, but once he got up the agent, he was asked to step aside for further screening. Hopefully it was Karma paying him a visit!

 

My style is to look directly at the employee and say w/o hesitation, w/o interruption, in a kind way, but in a very firm tone, "Excuse me! I was next in line and I would like two pepperonis now... please." If the employee does not respond. I firmly repeat myself. If the person cutting the que says something to me directly (very doubtful) I simply say, "I'm speaking to him/her. The line forms behind me." I repeat myself again if needed. I to do not tolerate rude behavior.

I also believe the employee has a level of responsibility in this type of situation as well.

 

 

I fail to see how reacting to rude behavior with a passive aggressive response is any better?

[TubbyMrT]

Many cultures do not have the same unwritten rules of standing on line etiquette that Americans have.

 

In many cultures, it is perfectly acceptable and expected that you will to do whatever it takes to be the next person serviced. If you leave a gap, they will immediately fill it with their body. It is acceptable behavior in their culture. It is very offensive for others.

 

They do not even realize that what they are doing is unacceptable as it is an acceptable practice in their culture. They have no idea why you would get mad.

 

I often get stares and private whispers from people of other cultures when I eat with my left hand. It is very offensive and gross in their culture as that hand is exclusively used for wiping and never used for eating. Because I am a nice guy, I will go out of my way to hand them a piece of yummy bread! Just kidding.

[island lady]

I am another one that despises "line cutters"...but in this "me first world" (which is

for some reason is getting worse) it seems to be the norm now. :(

 

One of the worst line cutting cruises I have been on was Serenade last week.

Wow...it was unreal in the WJ. People just shoving their way in front of me

all the time. One morning at breakfast we sat with a nice couple in the MDR

and they told us they refuse to use the WJ on our cruise since the lady was

so tired of being shoved around in there.

 

How were these people (and I am talking older generation demographics on

this cruise) raised? Surely not the way their parents taught them. BTW...I am

from that generation also.

 

Witnessing their boorish behavior just made me more aware of trying to be

even more considerate to compensate in my own way for these rude people.

Shame on them.