Name: Dorothy
Form of oppression: Geriatric Community
“The old people criticize me a lot. I think they resent my youth. Once this old lady, I think her hearing aid was turned off, said really loudly, ‘Dorothy’s getting fatter and fatter and soon she’s going to blow up like a balloon!’ That bothered me for weeks. I cried every time I thought about it.
“For activities, we do a lot of bus trips or nostalgia exercises, like remembering floor plans of their old houses. We have accordion players come in and play oldies. I once canceled shuffleboard because I couldn’t be there to monitor and the old people were cheating. We’re doing a carnival, but we have to find hula dancers who aren’t too scantily dressed. The boss canceled pajama day because he thought people would show up in negligees. Not the old people–the staff.
“Popcorn time irritates me the most. Once a popcorn kernel in hot oil went down my blouse and burned my nipple. I was so surprised, I lifted up my shirt and all the old people stared and said, ‘What is she doing?’ I had to fill out worker’s comp. Now I’m scared of popcorn.
“The repression makes it hard to do a lot of activities. I just feel like I can’t be me. I had this cute little cartoon up in the activity room that said, ‘When Jesus has his Second Coming, he’d better schedule it around bingo.’ I’ve had a lot of complaints about it. I’ve been called a Satanist because I mentioned Harry Potter in the lunch line. I’m afraid of doing anything. I’m afraid of the old people.”–ANNA SIMON