PVCC Puma Press: October 2002 Opinions

On the evening of August 26, my best friend and I went to our usual hang-out, Perkins. It's a restaurant that is located on Third Street and Bell Road. We walked in about 10:30 p.m. and sat with a few buddies.

After 10 minutes I was ready to place an order. The rodeo burger being promoted made my mouth water, and the Oreo cookie shake advertised made my heart flutter with desire. But my jaw dropped in disappointment when the server told me they were out of ice cream until delivery next morning.

About a half-hour went by until the manager came by to ask one of the guys who had worked for them in the past to do her a favor and walk to Safeway because they were out of salsa.

I chuckled and made a statement about their running out of salsa and ice cream. She gave me a puzzled look and said, "We're not out of ice cream."

With a huge smile on my face, I replied, "The waitress told me you guys had run out of ice cream and that an Oreo shake was out of the question."

The manager then said that the waitress would have to make me one and, when confronted, the latter gave an embarrassed smile with no remorse.

I said to the manager that I should get the shake for free. To my surprise she disagreed with me and stated: "You've never lied to a customer before? She just got caught and now she has to make you one."

I told her that I don't lie at my workplace and that I had no reason to do so. I was disgusted with her reaction because she defended the server and seemed to be saying that I was a liar.

I told my friends that I would not pay for the shake. However, I never received the shake in the remaining two hours we were there. The server didn't even come by to refill our water. The only part I felt guilty about was paying the bill. But I didn't want them to call the cops for $7.

Call me naive but I can't grasp the idea that there is actually service like this in the marketplace. One would believe that the manager would have gone out of her way to make a shake and offer it free for the embarrassment and offer an apology as well.

One of the guys said that shakes can be a burden to make. So what? Employees are required to follow rules and regulations that go with the job. If one doesn't like the specifications, one should look for another job.

Dishonesty is a dismaying trait. It hurts the feelings of others and trust is lost within. There is no reason to lie, whether a child lies to its mother about a cookie jar incident or the government misrepresents alien sightings.

Maybe I was raised wrong to think that honesty pays. Maybe it's cool to be untruthful and join society's trend. What do you think?

Procrastination payoff the last minute, rush


Heather Riley Editor-in-chief

Late night. Blank screen. Deadline.

I've known about this assignment for weeks, even months. How hard can it be? Sit down, throw a few words together. There you go. Done. But, it's not that easy.

It's a deadline. And regardless of my time allotment, here I am, the night before deadline, in the dark with only the white glare of my computer screen.

Why? Because after much contemplation, denial and fear, I must admit that I...am...a procrastinator.

I count on the last minute scramble. Make it acceptable. I don't like it, but I do it. I hate knowing that in a few hours I will wake my son for school, and I will begin my workday, tired, cranky and cursing the very thing I love—writing.

If I hate it, why do I continue the pattern? According to Dr. Phil McGraw, I'm "doing it for the pay-off." I must reap some benefit that is greater than the pain of staying awake all night. Consciously or subconsciously I'm a getting a pay-off for my procrastination. There's purpose out of the nonsense. And if I search for it, I can find my pay-off.

Maybe, the pay-off satisfies the part of me that thinks I'm not good enough, "unqualified." Rather than face the truth of my inadequacy, I can chalk up my failure to "waiting until the last minute." It's not my inadequacy, it's my lack of time. Therefore, the pay-off reinforces my belief about myself.

Maybe, the payoff is the rush. The rush of getting it done, just in time. The facade of competence felt, when down to the wire, I can always pull through.

Maybe, the pay-off is in the waiting for inspiration to hit. The mood will hit and the words will start to flow. I'm sure if I sit in front of the screen long enough, something will happen. I don't have to work for words. The pay-off satisfies the lazy part of me.

Whatever the pay-off, I am tired. I want to change. I am sick of the anxiety.

I write.

It's clumsy, awkward and messy. But, it's out. Done. Deadline met.

I breathe. Relief, for a moment.

My next assignment is due. I vow to get started now.

Right after I get some sleep.

Parking lot requires manners


Mercedes Gunter Sports Editor

The parking lot here at PVCC can be a real mess. With so many students, it's not surprising. What is surprising however, is the way that some people on campus behave. Here are some circumstances that really boggle the mind...

PARKING LOT NO-NO'S
Handicapped Spaces—You know that when there's a yellow line, and a blue square with a white stick figured person in a wheel chair in it, you don't park there. Whether you're planning on going inside for two minutes or two seconds, unless you have that same little stick figured person on your license plate or a decal hanging from your rearview mirror, you have no excuse for parking there. Just because you have a relative's old handicapped decal, you don't have the right to park, especially when you have two perfectly good legs to walk yourself that extra 10 feet to class.

Crooked Parking—While on the subject of actual parking, let's not forget the kinds of people we all know and love, those very special people who tend to take up not one, but two spaces. And to make things so much better, these special people love to park as close to the front as they can get. For you special people out there, you know you have a nice car, and we know we have a nice car, but there's no need for your nice car to take up two parking spaces just so no one will park next to you. If you're so worried about people parking next to you and scratching your car, then either park in the very back spaces in the west parking lot near the J building or leave your car at home and take the bus.

The Friendly Birdie—This is an all time favorite. Mr. Jack is five rows away and sees someone pull out and leave. He then hurries and drives like a bat out of hell to get to that spot. Unfortunately, Ms. Jill, who was in the row over, also sees the same person leave. Since she's closer, she reaches it first. Mr. Jack, in his frustration, decides "to give Ms. Jill the finger." We understand that you may love this finger, but there are those of us who really could care less about seeing it.

Follow the Arrows—If you look on the ground in the parking lot, you will notice that there are white arrows painted on the asphalt. These arrows are there to show us the way to go. If you find yourself travelling in the opposite direction, you're making a bad decisionæ because who knows if Mr. Jack is driving the right way down that same row?

12:20 and All's NOT Well—It's 20 past the hour and you see someone walking to his car, and just your luck, he gets in and looks like he's going to leave. The key word in that sentence is "look." The person then sits in his car, pulls out a cell phone and starts talking. Meanwhile, you sit there and wait, watching the minutes go by. You don't want to leave because you know that as soon as you do, he'll leave. If you're that person talking on your cell phone sitting in your car, or if you're fixing your hair or make-up, be kind and courteous. Pull out and let the person who is obviously late to class, park in your spot.

Pedestrians—Drivers aren't the only problem when it comes to the parking lot on campus. As you're walking to your cars with friends, please don't walk in the middle of the road. It's quite annoying when you're trying to park but you can't get past because a group is blocking the way. Also, when you see someone you know driving, please don't stop her in the middle of the road and start talking.

Following a few simple rules of etiquette will make everyone's parking experience more pleasant.