Expecting The Worst

I was going to write about what a night we had, but it seems I've already been there and done that lately. We had a really calm night so after the yards closed we sat around and tortured each other with amusing stories and really bad jokes.

Just me and Sgt Uncle T and some guy who is so new I haven't made up a nickname for him yet.

It was a good night. Or parts of it was, anyway.

Uncle T had several "meetings" with Captain Jabba and none of them turned out nicely. It seems they just haven't taken a shine to each other.

Just as soon as the Cap would call on the radio Uncle T would cringe and say "God damn it! Here we go again! More skin off my butt!"

And it's true, mostly. The man never has anything positive to say to anybody. He just criticizes and makes veiled threats. I guess it's his leadership style. He apparently likes being a bully because that is all he ever does.

And if you stay calm and use logic to refute his (usually) inane statements, he gets mad and throws you out of the office.

Unfortunately, alot of the leadership around here is like that. And we get used to being criticized and always assume that we have done something wrong.

For example: Last week I was out on the yard. Yards were closed so we were at leisure for a few moments. Out of the blue I get a radio call from Sgt Archer, who was working over on A-side. he tells me to come to central.

My immediate reaction is "Oh snap, what did I do?" All the way there my mind raced over the events of the last few days. I didn't think I had done anything wrong. And I know Archer and he wouldn't get me off in a wreck on purpose. He's a good cat. But I worried the whole way up there. And when I walked into the office there was an evaluation sheet with my name on it laying on the desk.

And once again the paranoid part of my mind thought "What did I do?"

But since Sgt Archer is my rating Sergeant he does my annual evaluations. And he had actually written up a good entry to put into my file. It basically said that I showed up to work more often than not and was on time when I did and was sensible enough not to run with scissors on the yard.

Or something nice like that. It was positive, anyway.

I almost fainted. But I restrained myself and thanked him instead.

We almost never get that kind of positive reinforcement from our leadership. Sure, there are a few, like Uncle T and Sgt Archer and a couple of others who will tell you now and then you are doing a good job and actually thank you for what you did manage to do right.

That always feels good and makes coming to work a positive thing.

The rest of them just want to concentrate on the negative stuff. "Oh sure, you just saved the Wardens life but your name tag is on crooked! That's going in your file and if it happens again you're fired!"

Okay, so I exaggerate a little. But you get the gist of it.

So many of the upper echelons want to forget that we are here to manage the inmates. They feel that since this is a prison they have to punish somebody and since they no longer have any direct contact with the inmates except for emergencies, they must punish us for any trifling or imagined derelictions.

Yeah, let's piss off the front line troops. Make them regret they ever came to work in the first place! The beatings will continue until morale improves!

By Gawd it worked for Leona Helmsley and it will work for me!

Whups. Almost forgot. Tomorrow is Evaluate Your Life Day!

Yeah. Sure. I hope there's no paperwork involved.