Crazy Sue must die

Yesterday I phoned the union (gah) to ask them what I should do about Crazy Sue.  The fact that Crazy Sue has pushed me to the point where I feel it necessary to consult my union, which I loathe, is indicative how desperate I have become.

The person I spoke with was kind but totally married to her protocol.  That is to say that while I was hoping she would give me the formal go-ahead to kick Crazy Sue down a tall flight of stairs, or provide me with recipes for undetectable poisons, instead she told me that I should bring in a mediator whose job it will be to help us set professional boundaries and that kind of crap.  I told her there's no such thing as being professional when dealing with Crazy Sue, but the woman wouldn't budge.  She said I could file a harrassment grievance but that if I did so the results could be unexpected.  This sounded ominous and I was not certain whether she was trying to protect me or protect Crazy Sue.  Regardless, I decided to take her advice so I could, at least on paper, appear to have taken the right steps in the right order.

On her advice I sent Crazy Sue a coolly worded email expressing my hope that we could develop a more respectful and professional relationship and encouraged her to contact the union to arrange mediation, and to respond to me in writing to tell me whether she is willing to participate in the process.  (Gross.)

Crazy Sue, who only checks her email once a day at the best of times, did not receive my email until today.  And although she did not respond to me at all, apparently she phoned the Vice Principal and told her that she felt "blindsided" by my decision to take this step as she had no idea that were still any problems between us.  This made me laugh.  A.)  Crazy Sue doesn't understand that she is supposed to talk to the union and not the admin, and that this can get her in trouble with the union.  And B.)  I now think that after Crazy Sue spews venom on me she feels purged and happy, and doesn't realise that I am being burned by it for a long time afterward.

This brash style of communication is very difficult for me to relate to because I tend to be overly (wastefully) sensitive in my communications with colleagues.  I try to read their minds and hearts, and probably miss the mark at least as often as I hit it because I tend to ascribe to people the same feelings I have rather than recognizing that most people aren't such big babies.

Now it remains to be seen whether Crazy Sue opts to participate in mediation or not, but my understanding of the union's system is that she doesn't really have a choice.  I think she will participate. But I sort of hope the whole thing makes her so uncomfortable that she decides to move to another province. Oh, but that's just me projecting my emotional response on someone else again.  That's how I feel.

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