Australia's Science Forum

Well for me it depends on who is calling me these affectionate names. If it comes from someone that I like then no problems, if it comes from someone who gives me the creeps then I have a real problem with it. Double standards???? yes probably but some of my favourite teachers call me "dear" "Nickity Nick" "darl" etc. But if a sleazy teacher said that to me I would have something to say

Dear voice,
I am 62yrs old this year and have white hair!!!
Since I let my hair go white I have been amazed at the number of people in the general public who call me love,darling or sweetie!!!!! is it my age or my hair colour or both????
None of the staff call me this in front of students .... mostly MRs .... or Judy.The staff have no excuse to call you anything else as there aren't that many lab assistants!!!
I think it has something to do with patronising the elderly....a general trend in society.They need to remember our wealth of knowledge and experience and respect it.

Maree,
I must say, I had never given this much thought until I read your post.
I call my children 'pet' names, including 'darl' and 'sweet', but I rarely say these things to anyone else. I have people around me here at my school though, that call me sweety or love, and I think nothing of it. I also have one teacher who is a 'touchy feely' type, and, while I am not, I don't mind other people doing so, within reason. I guess, like Smiley said, I figure most people are just being nice.
Having said all that, if you have specifically asked them to call you by your name, I would expect them to be making an effort to do so. Like I said, this practice does not offend me, but it does offend you, and I think if you have let people know that, they should try and make an effort.
Now.....having said all of that, two of my children are entering their teenage years, and I am aware that they now may not appreciate me calling them 'sweet' etc. in front of their friends. Sadly though, I often do, not because I want to embarrass them, or I'm 'not thinking', but purely because it's what I've done for years, and it is very hard to change.
So, keep reminding those who continue to use affectionate terms toward you that it does offend you, but in the meantime, try to remember that they probably don't mean to be offensive, it's just the way they are.
Cheers,
Lisa (45 yrs old)

Maree, of COURSE I would call you by your name, especially if that was important to you, and considering you're an adult AND considering that you obviously hate it. And yes, if I had a dollar for all the times I've been called Kirsten instead of Kristin, I wouldn't be working!

And yes Nicky, I agree, we all have a sliding scale of tolerance, and my tolerance for sleazes is less than zero. Luckily we don't have any here. Mr Filch (ref: Harry Potter) is grumpy, but not sleazy. Quite important really (the not sleaziness) in an all girls school.

Just remember guys, not long to go. We're on week 8 up here, so 2 weeks to go. Yay!

geeze ladies......Is this your biggest winge about your school/staff that you can come up with? Im sure the people that say these "affectionate" names dont mean any malise or bullying.You should be grateful that they notice you there at all....after all they could be calling you a lot worse names then above.AND.................after all there are much much bigger problems in this world of labbies to deal with.
M ...and I dont mind being called that

sorry matchstick but I agree with the others and would be annoyed if people couldnt call me by my name. This forum provides emotional back up for each other as well as lots of practical advice. To the original "whinger", stand up for yourself and insist on them using your name, good luck.

My current frustration & eye rolling is about one of our teachers, young & female, who has a very high opinion of herself & a large ego, but is always the one who asks me really stupid questions.

Anyway.....re handbooks we give the science teachers, I'm happy to share ours if anyone wants to have a look.

They're too big to post here, but let me know your email & I can send them to you.

The questionnaire they do at the start of the year is only a 1 page doc so I've attached it to this post.

Thank you guys! I feel so much better! As I speak he's in the lab now... kids stirring beakers with thermometers... Quick question - should thermometers be kept in the liquid heating over the bunsen to watch them warm up? I can't remember now but I'm sure I was taught to take it out & do it occaisonally not keep it in there??

Cheers Kel

Thanks for the handbooks Kiah! might have to suggest something like this for my school!

Don't stir with thermometers!!! Unless they are special stirring thermometers (which have thicker glass around the bulb at the base). They can be kept in the liquid to watch the temp change but they shouldnt be sitting on the glass at the bottom (cos that just tells you how hot the glass is). We usually get the kids to clamp it on a retort stand making sure the clamp doesn't obscure the area where you need to read the temp.

To Maree
You could try wearing a name badge, to emphasise your point. You could even point to it occassionally with a smile at the transgressor, to get your point accross.

G'day Dime,
You will love this! All staff at my school have a name badge (magnetic).
Blue for workers like me (integration aides, lowly office workers, assistants and me).
Yellow for teachers.
White for senior teachers.
Gold for the executive class (Principals, vice principals, and all the top notch office staff)!
I must admit I was dumbfounded when this happened to me. I could not believe the snobbery that this entails.
Maybe, between us all, we could think up some reasons for the colour selection.

You just have to laugh sometimes!
Maree

Gosh Maree, there are folks that always thought that deep down Victorians hadn't yet abandoned the caste/class system, and there's your proof. Maybe you could allocate colours based on what kind of car you drive. Oh wait, that'd mean some of the Yr12's would have gold filigree badges, and mine would be dirt coloured.

All our staff have name badges - even most of the regular casuals. Not me though! I think I'm the only one who hasn't got one. Oh, I don't think the cleaners and maintenance crew have them either... but they have a uniform of sorts.

Sorry! I forgot. Our cleaners have a uniform but not name badges. What? Because they are contract workers and therefore "not part of us". Our office staff and maintenance men also have uniforms but also name badges. You know why!
Maree

Wea ll have them but not everyone wears em and they are all the same colour just have the school logo with your position and your name

Harking back to the discussion about thermometers (on the previous page)

And to prove that the teachers are NOT the only people who do very dumb things.....

The other day, I had a few thermometers that had broken spirit columns. The alcohol goes part way up, then there is a gap and then a little bit more alcohol. The teachers were complaining because they were not giving accurate readings. I decided that it was time to fix these miscreant thermometers. The procedure is to heat them up in a beaker of cooking oil to push the alcohol right up the top until it "JUST" gets to the top reservoir. (water will not get hot enough) This will generally join all the little bits of broken column together again and result in a thermometer as good as new. I set up the crook thermometers in the beaker of oil, holding them with retort clamp, etc, and turned on the heat, and then got called away...........(!!!) You guessed it! When I came back 10 minutes later, my three thermometers had NO BULBS, and there was glass in the bottom of the beaker. I guess those thermometers are well and truely fixed now. They will not give ANYBODY any more trouble!

Cheers
Ian

Good one Ian, just remember to always store your red or green themometers upright. NOT LAYING DOWN. And again you will not have any more trouble. Or try a mallet.

Well Ian, at least the mess was in the oil. I have been reconstituting therms for years, but I just put em on a hot plate, which has been turned on full. I have been known to walk away, impatient for it to heat up. Only to come back when I've heard a funny popping noise, and they have exploded up the wall! As you say, there is more that one way of fixing 'em.

I'm sure I read here about heating them in sand, which seemed like a very smart thing to do.