It all started innocently enough. I emailed Jason with a question about one of our local high school football team's chances of going to the playoffs (basically they could lose, but not by more than 10 points). It was his alma matter's last game of the season and he suggested we should go. It was on a Thursday night but hey, high school games are usually fun. So we trudged over to a stadium in Addison that is part of DISD's system. Now, keep in mind it's DISD so their stadiums are older and not as "modern" as our district's. It was also a Thursday night at the end of the season so food was scarce (especially if you're on the visiting side).
So, we got to the stadium and found our seats. Jason was having trouble with his feet so going up the ramp was slow going and somewhat painful. After getting situated, Caroline and I go down to the concession stand to get something to eat and drink. As we stand in line I make a couple of observations: 1) there are only two people behind the counter, 2) One is at the cash register and the other is stirring the cheese for the nachos, 3) the line doesn't move really fast. When I get up to the register I ask if they have hot dogs and they kid says yes they do, but they're not ready yet. Maybe 10 minutes more because they started cooking them about 6:45.
No problem. Caroline and I go back up and sit down and watch the pre-game festivities (it's Senior Recognition Night for the other school). After about 20 minutes, we go back downstairs and get back in line. Same two guys working it. When I get up to the cash register, I find out that the hot dogs still aren't ready. No problem. I looked at their equipment and true to DISD fashion it's not state of the art (looked more like the two boys brought their crock pots up there). I pay for the hot dogs and 4 drinks and Caroline takes three of the drinks back up while I stand at the counter, off to the side, and wait. This is where the title of the blog comes into play.
As I'm standing there, several people come up to order food. Hot dogs, popcorn, nachos, peanuts etc. Of course, the hot dogs aren't ready, the nachos are almost there, and they sold their last bag of peanuts and there's never been any popcorn. Most people handled it well, some mumbled under their breaths rude comments as they walked off. The funniest was some mom who was shocked they didn't have any Diet Coke. Most of the food and drinks were on the home teams side, not the visitor's side.
Jack comes down at some point to stand next to me. This older guy comes up and asks if they have anymore peanuts, which they don't have. The guy stares at these kids and says in a very snobby tone (I'm not joking) "You're KIDDING? What the HELL DO you have?" Okay, I'd had enough. I piped in, "Excuse me sir? Did you just hear what you just said and how you said it? You are a visitor in this stadium and these guys are working very hard. They should probably be at home studying right now because it's Thursday, but no, they're out here working so we can have something to eat and drink. I understand it's frustrating because the choices are limited but think about it, you are a guest at their stadium. How would you react if you heard someone from the other team's stands treating our kids like that at our stadium?"
Jack is watching all of this and I can tell what he's thinking by the look on his face. I think he was afraid we were going to get in trouble. But I just stare at this guy and he mumbles something and walks off. A few minutes later, a couple of adults come over from the home stands to help the boys and it goes faster. The food wasn't the best and left little to be desired, but hey, it was the end of the season.
We left at half-time because our team was winning handily, and our band and drill team had played. Plus Jason was getting uncomfortable. All in all it was a good night.
Jack asked me about what he saw later before he went to bed and we talked about it. I think he understands why I said something and why I wasn't really afraid we were going to get in trouble or beat up.
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