The Occasional Rant

Today I am enrolling for a class at the local community college.

It is refreshing and energizing to be hanging out around mostly young people, eager to embark on a new journey in their life, and ready, hungry even, to learn. I too am excited by the prospect of the class in which I am enrolling. But I think my age is showing – and not just in my gray hair.

I find myself far too impatient to wait in line. Don’t get
me wrong – the lines aren’t even that long, but I am still frustrated about it. And I have a theory about it.

I can’t fault the young folks – their life experience level just hasn’t taught them yet that there are ways around waiting in line. But there are older people too – ones that either also haven’t figured out they could avoid lines, or they don’t value their time enough to avoid wasting it in a line.

I do work for places who pride themselves on reducing the time spent waiting in line. One of their mantras is, “a convenience fee shall apply.”. Maybe that is what’s needed here.

Time passes…

Ok, I just got to the front of a line. I explained what I needed, and offered the information I thought might be required. The worker at the front of the line was very happy to help: “Wow! Someone who actually came prepared with the information required!” was how she put it.

Now another line is required. This one too is moving fast enough, but still irritating. Almost to the front. Time to wrap this up.

This post brought to by (and composed entirely while standing in) the lines at Glendale Community College enrollment center!

FH

P.S. For those of you wondering why I am tolerating lines, when there ARE ways around them, all I can say is that I did everything I could without showing up in person and waiting in lines, but there was a requirement that was best done in person. And the college’s IT system conveniently eliminated EVERYTHING I had done, so it had to be done AGAIN. Thanks for that.

Doing things twice really bugs me too, but that’s another post.