Memories go POP, and there they are...

Once again, not a clue why this popped up in my head.

There I wuz... sharing a class/lab with another instructor for a 3 week session.  He had mornings, and I had afternoons.  He was the lead instructor for that course.  A job I declined, having enough on my plate.

This guy had some... issues.  He was quick, very quick, to criticize.  He wanted the lab in the exact condition he wanted the lab.  I mean right down to the Dial Indicators all at half-mast and pointing the same direction.  Obsessing is not the half of it.

In return, he totally ignored the condition he and his class left the lab for my students.  I had to arrive early every day to repair trainers and fix the measuring tools left in pieces by his class.  To make this knife twist even harder, he refused to hand over the space to me till my students arrived and he was forced to get the fuck out.  He just blabbed with his buddies and played with his phone until enough people were staring at him even he couldn't ignore them.

It got to the point where I made running commentary videos of the busted and disassembled tools a few days running to make my case with management.  I videoed me asking him to give me the classroom so I could prepare, and him just... not leaving.

The day I was to meet with our manager-in-common, I decided to talk with this instructor first.  It's never good to take personal issues like this to the suits.  It never ends well because they are human too.

I walked in to the room where he was working, and we were alone.  I began with bringing up the issues and how they were effecting my class.  He denied every charge, with a venomous smile. I looked at him, knowing that I had photos and videos backing up everything I spoke about.

I looked at this guy, and I had an epiphany.  He was not faking it.  He actually thought he was blameless on every count.  He simply did not see what he did or hear what he said, and his ego would never..... ever.... let him admit being wrong.  If he was proved wrong he would deny it to the grave, and become a lifelong enemy on a mission.  That was his personality, and it wasn't his fault.  It was his handicap.  It was his mental disability.  It wasn't personal, he was just... him.   It cost him his marriage, his kids, and any real friends. I recalled his brother used to teach there, and he was removed due to his own mental issues.

I realized there was nothing I could do to fix him, me, or the situation.  Yes, I could prove every single thing I was saying, but to what end?  Sitting back and using perspective I realized my best course was simply to let him have the win his mental illness demanded, finish out the session, and avoid being in that situation again.   He was a good teacher, even if he was a raging asshole, so what profit if I tear him down?

I told him he was 100% right, and I would try my best to follow his lead.  Then I went to our manager and told him the issue was handled.  He looked at me, and I think he had an inkling what the real situation was.  He thanked me and we moved on.

That day I felt like a more adultier adult.  I also felt pity for the asshole who would always wake up with only himself every day for the rest of his life.