Growing up, my parents were very “old school” with myself and my older sister. If we got a gift, we said “thank you” (gasp!); if we disobeyed or disrespected at school, we faced punishment at home (Gasp!); if we made a mess, we had to clean it up (GASP!); and if we did something very wrong that we knew better than to do, we were (hold on to your mittens…) spanked.

And you know what? I’m glad for all of it. That’s not to say that I loved every second of the punishment part (what child does?), but it taught me that I have to learn a respect for the rules, for other people, for authority, and personal responsibility.

Each of these characteristics seems to be sprinting full-speed out of the collective memory of most people I have come in contact with as of late.

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, the graduating class (college) of 2009 is facing the toughest economy and job market in decades. Being a member of that prestigious grouping, I have found myself exercising my fresh-from-the-classroom bachelor’s degree working as a cashier/receptionist (more cashier than anything) for minimal pay and no benefits. I babysit a waiting room, essentially.

I’m serious, I know of kids still in high school that get paid as much as I do. Its just not right.

Anywho, the view from over the counter at work is pretty bleak, but oftentimes can produce some entertaining people-watching subjects. (I’m sure I’ll share more about the characters I’ve met at a later time). Mostly, what I’ve found while looking over the counter has been utterly infuriating. Which causes me to ask the question of the decade: WHEN DID GOING OUT IN PUBLIC BECOME AN EXCUSE TO LEAVE ALL SENSE OF PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY BEHIND????

An alarming number of people seem to be of the mindset that when they go out to a store, or restaurant, or any public place at all, that they no longer need to worry about trivial things like respecting others, picking up after themselves, etc. Its almost as if the moment they step off their porch, they consider themselves to be godlike, above such societal rules and courtesies that plague us “commoners”.

Some of the things I have seen more often than not are:

1. People spilling drinks or other things and doing nothing to clean it up.

2. Taking a ridiculously lengthy cell phone call when in a crowded room, taking great care to talk AS LOUDLY AS YOU CAN POSSIBLY MUSTER while shooting dirty looks to anyone else in the waiting room that tries to talk to the person next to them. Almost as if the other person is rude for daring to interrupt the phone call from across the room.

3. Parents encouraging their children to play with the courtesy books or blocks or toys (or whatever that particular place offers the young ‘uns), watching benignly as said child throws the toys to the far reaches of the room, and then leave the premises. Without having the child pick up their mess. Without even ASKING the child to pick up their mess.

4. A person walking into a waiting area with other customers already there, quickly snatching up all of the newspapers or magazines off the table, and retreating into a corner with all the papers hoarded to themselves. (To which I think, “there is no way you’re going to be able to read all of that at one time… why not get one section at a time and allow others to enjoy the paper/magazine selections too?”)

5. People leaning back in the waiting room chairs and propping their feet up on the other chairs or on the magazine table.

And that’s where I’m going to stop. Though I could go on. You get the picture. It seems that alot of people are taking the ideology of “value the customer/good customer service” to translate to “treat the vendor and the other patrons any way I’d like, ‘cuz I’m allowed to”.

My OTHER question is, when did this become ok?

I must have missed something.