The Mediator

me·di·a·tor : One that mediates, especially one that reconciles differences between disputants.

So I assume most of you have already heard ad nauseam about Mark's troubles with the contact lens from either him or me. Today, I got drawn into the whole ordeal as a mediator, which is apparently something I'm not so bad at. As you know, he has been getting ever more frustrated with the situation because he is not allowed to bring home his contacts until he can demonstrate that he is able to get them in and out. In the process, the people who work at the optical center have also been getting less and less friendly - even to the point of threatening not to let him get contacts at all. This has baffled me for the past week. I felt very defensive (as I do whenever someone I love is under attack) and frustrated on his behalf. So today, he asked if I would make the appointment for him because he usually just gets upset and ends the conversation without saying what he needs to say. The store was on my way home so I decided to just stop in and do it in person.

At first I had intentions of pulling out all my bitchiness reserves in order to get my way and DEFEND MY MAN. But, bitchiness is not really in my nature. I tend to avoid confrontation at all costs. Well, I do try to stand my ground, but at first the women, we'll call her C., tells me he can't come in until the manager is there. Basically, C. is rigid and cold and seems like she wants me out as fast as possible, then I try the old "catch more flys with honey" routine. I told her I understood Mark can be a difficult patient, and it was like the flood gates were lifted. She went on and on about how this has been such a hard week for her, and she thinks Mark hates her, etc. By the time I left, C. told me, "I'm so glad you stopped by. I feel so much better knowing you'll be coming with him. See you later." (with a smile no less). Oh, yeah, thats right, I convinced her to let us come in this afternoon eventhough the manager won't be there. See, what it came down to was she was afraid that if she had to be alone with Mark again, then only one of them would be leaving alive. This is something I've encountered in the past with Mark. It seems people tend to either love him or hate him at first. It was awesome that I could go in on his side and sort of win someone over for him. I swear if I could just have replaced "my husband" with "my client", I could be one kick ass lawyer. So, we'll see how it goes after he gets off of work.