He said the reason he asked is because I've recently (apprently) become "snippy" or "sarcastic" with remarks that I've made, and he got a complaint from someone who thought the comments were becoming hurtful. He couldn't provide a concrete example, but he said the "undercurrent" he was feeling was getting more and more negative.
I said that it was simply my sense of humour, and that sometimes I can let it get out of control. I apologised, made it clear that I meant nothing in anger, and promised to temper my comments from then on. He went on in an understanding sort of way, saying that it was "that British thing." I thought you all would enjoy that.
And then, as a postscript, he said that that this complainant said I can be condescending at times.
I beg your pardon?!
For those of you with IT responsibility, you know what I mean. You start out explaining something profoundly simple, and you can sense that it's over the head of the user. You dumb it down, and the user gets offended because suddenly you're not respecting their level of skill. There's no way to win.
It doesn't bother me because I felt unfairly targeted, or what-have-you. It bothers me because I burned my mouth on my hot cocoa.
Now I do sound condescending, but it's for good reason: What is this stigma about smart people? You know a lot of stuff, and people know you know a lot of stuff, and suddenly you're an asshole. It makes me just want to play stupid for the rest of the week.
< / rant >
