Conversations on the road

     

What did I do on this vacation? Talked, of course. Ann owns a business and employs people, mostly high school youngsters, kids moving on to the next phase of life. She tagged along on blogger meet-up lunches with women her age and mine, engaged with the public in similar ways. 

In truth, she did much of the talking, my aching knees and I joining in. I am pleased and amused to report, Ann confessed she could have sent me alone, with nothing to worry about. And I resolved the knees on returning home, sort of. A discussion for another day.

I was about to start this paragraph: Millennials!  Actually, it’s worse than that. They’re called Gen Z in the literature. “Z” may have been appropriated as the next in the alphabet. Or, it may be “Z” as in the old cartoon notation of fast, fast asleep. Kids these days, as noted by we old geezers, respond to no stimuli we experienced or understand.

So, I’m sitting at lunches with adults dealing with Gen Z’s, who all made the same observations. Gen Z’s parents call and make their appointments. Their parents call them off work. Their parents even submit their resignations. “I’m calling to let you know Jane/John is quitting.” “And how much notice are you giving for Jane/John? A week, two weeks?” “Oh, no. She/he is not coming beginning today.”

When dealing directly with a Gen Z, any sentence ending in a question mark is met with a blank stare. There is no apparent recognition of the punctuation mark, or the authority of the person asking the question. When set upon tasks, the Z’s perform adequately, then mill about out of sight, or stand stock still, ‘out of sight, out of mind’, avoiding learning the next job. Or knowing the next job, commencing the execution.

All these points of discussion between Ann and the wonderful lurkers I found did not fall on deaf ears. I’ve had ten or more years of blank stares. The children come home from school with their self-esteem boosted, but little increase in understanding. In short; it’s a pervasive new system. Parents and teachers seem to have cheerfully quit knowing what is best, in favor of gaining the approbation of the children.

And then we would conclude a nice meal discussing the very few we have seen sent out to the world and rising to expectations. We despaired for the many who shunned a trade for accumulating all the debt associated with a profession.  There is not much left for we geezers to do. In due time we will exit stage right, hoping the examples and lessons we’ve left behind will have effect.

I see that worry about the results of the next election, and the big one, after that, are futile. We are left with speaking our minds and making our case. Generations X and Z will turn the election left or right, blue or red. We can only hope there are wheels in play behind blank stares.

I spent a lot of time in Madison, the beautiful capital of Wisconsin. Like my own Case Western Reserve, the University of Wisconsin, Madison area is maintained and upgraded University, Inc., USA. A pleasure to be in, ambiance to absorb, restaurants to try. And the bakery! In Wisconsin you must try every bakery. All those Swedes and Danes and Germans knew what to do with butter and flour!