Admire my restraint!

[mousme]

The supervisor I want to use as a pinata just told me to smile.

I did not kill him. I was reasonably civilized in my response. I did not give him a lecture on how he is an ass who is not entitled to a smile or anything else from me.

I also refrained from hitting him when he said: "I was just trying to be polite!" as though I was some kind of shrieking harpy.

I did not tell him that ordering me to smile as though I somehow owe him my goodwill is not polite, but condescending and chauvinistic.

On the whole, I think I did pretty well.

Comments

[taxlady.livejournal.com]

I'm impressed.

I detest being told to smile.

[foi-nefaste.livejournal.com]

Oh good god. Of all chauvenistic, condescending, and generally irritating comments, that one gets on my nerves the worse.

Congratulations for mustering up enough self-control to not rip into him. I'm not entirely sure I could have done it.

Visualizations tend to help. Imagine how nicely his head would explode if you used him as a pinata, say. :)

[kiwano.livejournal.com]

My response to such a request just tends towards some middle-ground between some theatrically psychotic delight of a maniac about to murder someone, and a death rictus. Of course I have a general bias towards responding to unwanted and unliked requests by technically giving what was asked for, but really giving the exact opposite of what was clearly wanted.

[sorceror.livejournal.com]

I also refrained from hitting him when he said: "I was just trying to be polite!" as though I was some kind of shrieking harpy.

On the other hand, this response is better than "But you look so much prettier when you smile!" or similar.

[taxlady.livejournal.com]

gah!

[moskevyu.livejournal.com]

I have never understood the compulsion some people feel to act as face police.

But, yes. It almost always seems to come the most aggravating people around us.

Maybe you should send him a polite email explaining the condescending and chauvinistic aspect of such requests. "I was just trying to be polite," is hardly an acceptable excuse. Ordering someone to govern their facial expressions according to his petty whim is not polite at all.

[borrowedwings.livejournal.com]

Thank you. Being ordered to smile is one of my pet peeves.
For one thing, I can't help that the corners of my mouth turn down naturally.
One day, I swear I'm going to snap and tell someone that I WILL NOT smile, because my entire family has just been killed, or something similarly terrible.