Coping With Difficult People

I am 16 turning 17. This is what happened:

Today, I walked into my school’s office with two of my brothers and the first thing we were greeted with before I even got the chance to smile or say "hello" was a rude
"Yes? What are you doing here?" from Secretary "A" I explained my little brother, Kyle’s, situation and we were told to sit. We sat for exactly 40 minutes. We were not told how long we would have to wait. We were told to sit and were ignored for 40 minutes. Tired of waiting, I got up and asked to make an appointment for another time. I was told "No, you have to sit" I said "Can’t I just make an appointment?" I was told, again "No, you have to sit down" This is only 1/10 of the rudeness I dealt with today. From one of two woman.
The other woman, Secretary "B" tried to explain where Secretary "A" was coming from: "You see, it’s common sense, well, you’re not dumb are you? If you would have brought a parent in with you, we would have greeted you with smiles, but seeing as how it’s just you and your brothers, there’s not much we can do" Now, I don’t see why bringing my mother into the school would put a smile on a person’s face. Things would have gone faster with my mom, but being nice and helpful isn’t hard! It’s not hard to smile and say "Hello, do you have an appointment? Oh, no? Well you may have to wait a while, if not you can make an appointment for another time and be sure to bring in a parent"
I don’t think it was "personal" either. I don’t have a "mean" face and I don’t think I gave off a "mean" vibe. At least, not until later. I’m a baby faced 16 yr old girl who’s constantly mistaken for an 8th grader. I’m called "cute" at least 3 times a day. So I don’t think the secretary saw me and said "She’s a horrible person". People have bad days, but this was just pure b_t_h mode. I mean talking to me kindly and explaining (kindly) the situation would have been better than being ignored and talked down to just because I’m a teen and don’t have a parent with me.
*Sigh* Anyway, after a while, my brother finally got to talk to the vice principal, but I was so upset with what happened just moments prior, that I stormed out. This is what happened:

Secretary A: Alright, Kyle, you can come in now
Me and my bro’s get up
Sec. A: No, just Kyle
Older bro: I’m going in with him so I can talk to the principal too
Sec. A: Are you his parent? No. You can’t come in.
Older bro: I’m his brother. I’m family.
Sec. A: Alright.
I get up and Sec A asks me: What are you doing?
Me: I’m going too
Sec.A: No you’re not
Me: Yes I am, I’m his sister
Sec. A: Sit down, there’s no room for you.
I got angry and stormed out. Now, what I did was a "girl thing" to do. Storming out in a huff, I mean. BUT! Were the secretaries not rude? I really don’t think it was just my "hormones" and "emotions" that made them seam rude. I truly think they were disrespectful and unhelpful.

Now, FINALLY (sorry for the long rant/explanation) here is my question. What would you have done? My brother (who wasn’t there) said I should have told the secretaries "I feel you are being disrespectful to me and you aren’t acting professionally at all. I don’t appreciate not being helped and being ignored for nearly an hour." He said that would have been enough to make them feel crappy even if it didn’t solve anything. I wish I DID say that, but what’s done is done. I stormed out. Would you have talked to the secretaries? Stormed out? Yelled? Ignored them? Made snide remarks?
Bonus Question For those of you who "ignore" difficult people, how do you do it? How do you just not care? My brothers who were with me in the school office said the secretaries were jerks, but they didn’t seem bothered at all. I was really the only one who showed any discomfort. So, how do you stay calm? Do you just say "I’m better than that" or insult them in your head? lol. This is just really bothering me. And school starts in a few days I don’t want to ever see those secretaries again, but unfortunately, I will.

There were a few more incidents that happened, but this is long enough as it is.
I should make it clear. Everything was resolved with Kyle and the principal. I wasn’t allowed into the room, but my older brother said everything went fine. There is no need to go back to the office with my mother. My question is would you have stormed out? Yelled? etc., How do you deal with rude disrespectful people? How do you ignore them?

See More Related Blogs

• You can rely on Appointment Management service | 9999 Articles
• You can rely on Appointment Management service
• Leekpai junior's Ministry of Culture appointment | General | Thai …
• NASCAR: Round 25 – Atlanta – September 11 « <motorsport.ind.>
• Griz recruit update: Kyle Noreen « Mslacat's Blog
• Inspirational Words With Brother Kyle
• Fashion Bug: 1 flip-flops today only + 30% off | Common Sense With …
• Common Sense Junction » Blog Archive » Open Letter From Michelle Obama
• Americans Want Commonsense Health Care Reform – Crystal Clear …
• Common Sense Atheism » Academic Standards in Philosophy of Religion

Technorati Tags: appointment, brother kyle, common sense, horrible person, little brother, mom, old girl, rudeness, smiles

Tags: appointment, brother kyle, common sense, horrible person, little brother, mom, old girl, rudeness, smiles