Sunday, January 31, 2010

High school called, it wants its drama back.

To recap: Week before last, three people were fired. One of them was a very popular person, and two of my friends commented on Facebook that they thought it was crap. So CL "talked" to them about how "inappropriate" it was. Cali Girl, who wrote a short paragraph, was talked to briefly, but everything was fine. L. said basically "that's bullshit" and "we'll miss you". And for some reason that brought the full wrath of CL down upon her head. I thought it was worked out after last week's various issues, but apparently not. This week, my friend got called in--on her day off--to have a "talk" with CL.

CL told L. they'd gotten an e-mailed complaint saying that L. had been on her phone all night behind the bar, and had been bitching about the management and talking trash all night. Later that day, L. called me and told me the whole story, including that CL said this was why she'd spent an entire shift staring at her. Right away I burst out with, "Bullshit! I heard her tell [person who hates L. and L. hates] she was staring at you because your phone was by the computer!"

I obviously haven't seen the email, but from what L. told me the language was very stilted and the complaint odd. Apparently this person thinks the "management team here is great" and they said they'd never come back to "her" bar. They didn't mention L. by name, or give a date--but CL assumed it had to be her, so she told her she wasn't allowed to tend bar anymore. She's a bartender. That's all she does. She hates serving. CL told her she could pick up serving shifts, but she wouldn't put her on the schedule for another two weeks. Over one customer complaint, supposedly received a week before and not acted on for a week.

CL also talked to a girl who was training to bartender the night (apparently) in question, and L. doesn't know what she might have told her, although the girl told me she didn't say anything and thinks it's bullshit and she's afraid L. hates her and everyone else thinks she did something to get L.'s shifts.

Apparently CL told that girl, "I bet everyone is going to think I made this up!" .... and that's about what people seem to be thinking. Of course, everybody's afraid they'll be next on CL's little hit list, and is afraid to trust anybody, so no-one is saying it flat-out. They're all just saying that it's "really convenient" since CL has made no secret of the fact that she doesn't like L. and wants her gone. I heard someone suggest that maybe she had a friend come hang out at the bar to try to get dirt.

I hate to be cynical and suspicious, but it does seem very convenient, and also very odd that she redacted part of the email. Maybe the email address of joe.blow@workplace.com and it was a security issue; who knows. But of course, L. is hurt and upset, everyone is afraid of being next, and everyone can see that CL is trying to get L. to quit because she doesn't have cause to fire her. Add to that the fact that when CL was telling that customer last week this whole story, I heard her say that L. would "be next, she'll quit or something." ... and I'm pretty suspicious.

A lot of people have told me various things about the situation, I don't really know what the truth is. I don't know if it's a legitimate customer complaint, a total fraud, or a friend of CL who came in to spy. I don't know what the truth is, and I wanted to stay out of it all other than comforting my friend as much as I was able.

Unfortunately, CL is obviously gunning for her, and I heard L.'s supposed best friend (JJ) talking to CL and trashing L. And I knew L. would call JJ right away, and I felt like I had to tell her what I heard. L asked JJ about it, but didn't tell her who squealed; but since me and Cali Girl were the only ones there it's pretty obvious. But that's alright. I feel like I did the right thing--I didn't want L. to get in to more trouble because she told JJ something and it got relayed. JJ was rather cool to me tonight, but she can get over her happy ass. She shouldn't have been talking trash about someone who's supposed to be her friend.

I've been debating, yet again, if I should stick it out here, with the brand of crazy I'm familiar with, or if I should just give up and go find somewhere else and adjust to their brand of crazy. I hate to give up the seniority I have, especially since I'm hoping in just over a year to be done serving. But constantly worrying I'll piss off CL and find myself at the wrong end of one of her mini crusades is just exhausting.

5 comments:

Steven Nicolle said...

That is a tough one but you know your stuff so just hang in if it is just a year. Go in and do your job and leave. If you go to another place you are right , you will be starting all over again low on the totem pole. Hang in.

nativenapkin said...

It's always so much "He said that she said that they said..." in restaurants. It is always amazing to me that restaurant fold have to create drama where there is none otherwise. I agree with WE. Keep your head down, your mouth shut and do your job until you are done.

My favorite quote, and I think it's Shakespeare so I'm definitely paraphrasing, about this kind of stuff: "The gods above look down and see what abject fools these mortals be..."

♥ Caz said...

Hang in there. Like Waiter E says finding a new place means that you have to start at the bottom again. Which is not always the best and can take a while to move up again.

Do the best as you can and if she turns her claws at you then at least you knew you were right and that she hasn't really got a thing on you.

Mary Sheehan Winn said...

Yup, once again I say stay the course. A year will be up before you know it and getting used to the craziness at a new place is too much work. You KNOW there will be craziness ;)

purplegirl said...

You guys are right; that's my plan unless something drops in my lap. I'm sick of dealing with the crap, but I don't want to deal with the crap AND be the FNG all over again!