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Tuesday, May 29, 2007

The Group Home Voice and a Meme

Lately I feel like a whiny baby. I had a fight over the phone with my slumlord tonight and I used what can only be described as my Group Home Voice. I worked at a home for juvenile delinquents/felons and unwanted kids for a few years in college. I was too young to know what I was doing, and whenever I think of that time, I always say a little prayer that goes something like this: I hope to hell I did slightly more good than bad in those girls' lives. It's optimistic, but that's always my hope. The group home was a zoo, and when things got ugly, and they often did, I would use my "Oh no you dint" voice. I talk a little faster than normal and my tone is one-hundred-percent attitude. I hate it; I always cringe when I realize I've slipped into it. It's very condescending and know-it-all. Argh.

And . . . better late than never, I got tagged! I love being tagged! I let this go too long, but I have good excuses, which I won't bore you with. So thanks to Matterdays for thinking of me, and here's the meme:

The rules are:
* Write a post and add a link back to the person who tagged you.
* List down 5 reasons why you blog about the things you blog on your blog.
* Choose your 5 tag ‘victims’ and tag them nicely :)
* Write a comment on their blog letting them know that you tagged them.

Five reasons why I blog about the things on my blog:
  1. I've always enjoyed writing; I've kept a journal since first grade
  2. I'm a pretty private person and blogging forces me out of my comfort zone a little
  3. I like keeping in touch with the people I've met through blogging - meeting and connecting with such cool people has been a great surprise
  4. I love to read back to see what I was up to a few years ago; it helps me to know I wasn't miserable the entire time I lived in Japan
  5. It's not work. It's something totally different from what I do each day at the office.
And now I tag Lacey, Scootersville (already tagged, but I don't see the meme), the kicker is, Rainey, and Demandra, who might hate memes because I don't see any, but it's worth a shot.
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6 comments:

  1. MichaelMay 29, 2007 at 7:05 PM

    Oh, I know that voice--I slip into it from time to time, too. I'm not proud of it. But thanks for giving it a name for me--Group Home Voice. Nice ring to it.

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  2. LaceyMay 30, 2007 at 5:51 AM

    Oh, yeah...I recognize it also...mine usually starts out like this....
    "listen here, missy" or "listen here, buddy"

    My mom had this look...she didn't even need words. Just THE LOOK.

    ReplyDelete
  3. MattMay 30, 2007 at 10:11 PM

    I used that voice today with two different *idiotic* vendors without meaning to. Now I'll thing of you whenever I speak with utility companies or phone service companies. Funny how close I was to going "oh no jou dint" with both of them. (Head wag and finger waving included, although they couldn't see it, which made it anti-climactic). And no offense to my buddy Michael or any other New Yorkers, but the NY attitude (dealing with vendors for our Manhattan office) just made me want to smack them even harder. We have an unbelievable PacNW passive-aggresive way of dealing with things ... ;)

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  4. DemandraMay 31, 2007 at 7:26 PM

    Thanks for the shout-out, my dear! And I happen to like your Group Home Voice. I think it's charming. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  5. C.R. IIIJune 2, 2007 at 11:53 AM

    I realized I kind of do the opposite: I'll slow WAY down, like I'm talking to some two year-old. I'm sure it comes off as totally condescending. Usually I'll fight that urge, though, and try to do the right thing and figure out how to make it a "win-win" thing. Not always easy, though...

    Speaking of landlords and two year-olds, maybe this will lighten the mood a bit.

    ReplyDelete
  6. BigAssBelleJune 4, 2007 at 9:30 AM

    i remember that voice. so glad to have left it behind :-) it's a nice weapon to keep in one's arsenal of back-off tools, but geeze, i hated chasing kids.

    ReplyDelete

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