Irresponsibility

In children, one expects irresponsibility, even though it is frustrating. In adults however, irresponsibility is unacceptable. Take the phone incident that we've been dealing with for the last week.

Tuesday: Alexis left her phone, yes, the one she's had for only 2 months that she got for Christmas, in the carpool mom's backseat. The carpool mom called to say she had it and would drop it by. She never showed.

Wednesday: So, we expected to get it back the next day at school, but it wasn't sent with her son, and Alexis rode home with a different carpool because of choir practice. I left a vociemail with carpool mom to see if there was a time that we could just come over and get it, or just send it with her son tomorrow. Alexis called the house and the son said they were heading out to a basketball game and that he would bring it tomorrow.

Thursday: Again, the phone wasn't brought to school. The other carpool mom picked up the kids today. So I called the first carpool mom and left a voicemail telling her that perhaps we could swing by before or after dance class to get the phone. Besides, they only live in the next subdivision over! I also called the phone itself to see if anyone would pick it up. I didn't get a call back, so we stopped by about 7:30 anyway. Dad answered the door, said Mom wasn't home, and that it must still be in her backseat. Alexis could get it tomorrow since she would be picking up the carpool again.

Friday: Alexis came home from school early because she was sick, and Mark took her to the doctor. I called carpool mom to ask her to bring the phone by after school, as both Mark and Alexis would both be home. She was completely flabbergasted that the phone had not been returned. She had told her husband to get it out to send back with the son. Out of frustration, I called the phone several times, hoping they would hear it in the car and find it. We went to dinner and the theatre to see Hello Dolly and got home around 9:30. There was a message from the son saying they couldn't find it. Alexis called back, but there was no answer. Thinking it had been lost, we went online to check usage. Nothing out of the ordinary was on the account, so if someone had found it, maybe they had turned it in at lost and found somewhere. In any case, we called Sprint and had the phone service disconnected.

Saturday: Since we didn't get to talk to them last night, I tried calling all three numbers listed in the school directory, but got messaging on all of them. I didn't leave a message. I'm tired of playing phone tag. I want to yell at these people myself. About a half hour later, carpool mom called to say they found the phone between the seats of the car when they heard it ringing (ha! my plan worked!) and she would be bringing it over in a couple of hours.

So, the point is this: Why, when you live two streets away and say you are going to bring it over, didn't you do it? And furthermore, if someone leaves something small behind in your car, don't you think you should put it somewhere safe where it won't slide around, onto the floor, and maybe out the door at God-knows-where when people are getting in and out of the car? I'm frustrated with Alexis for being irresponsible. I'm angry at the carpool mom for being irresponsible, disappointed in her non-chalant attitude in resolving the situation (it's a $200 phone, not a lunch box), and frustrated with the excuses that she was too busy to drop it by. I live two blocks away, right off the main road! She had to have driven past here at least once a day!

Responsibility: Get it, use it!