Hey, dude. You really have no reason to apologize to us. You are entitled to your rants, especially about those angry annoying people who simply piss us off. I jumped the gun and said things I shouldn't have. Others might not have been so willing to join if I hadn't been so damn loud about my own opinion. :o)
Please, continue to rant to us. We're supposed to be here to help you through those times. I promise I'll do better next time :o) Rant away!
I totally understand where you're coming from, Dan. After I was diagnosed when I was 7, my a1c was something like 5.9 (my mom helped me a LOT, haha) and now I'm at 7.0. I was offended by what you said, but I think if I had an a1c that was in the 5's, I might feel a bit more entitled to express my frustrations toward other diabetics who might not be in such great control. As stilledlife said, some diabetics might just be going through rough patches in their management (which is sad) but it's also real life. I have found that transitioning from high school to college has been quite difficult, as my campus is pretty big, parties are always tempting me, and the added stress of school work plus a job can have a large effect on blood sugars. I thought it was funny how you said that comment about saying you check yourself 10x or more a day, because my average number of sticks per day is 10, as well.
Also, I think I might even experience more frustration than you. My dad's currently 45 and I'm 19. He was diagnosed with Type 1 when he was 35, while I'd already had diabetes for quite some time. My parents are divorced, and I'm under my mom's insurance, so all of my supplies, including my pump, is covered. My dad, on the other hand, owns a small business, and can't afford to get a pump. I've watched my dad for years, and I notice how few times per day he checks his blood sugar. I don't even think he has ever figured out an insulin to carb ratio for himself. He most likely guesses on his injections, and doesn't know how many grams of carb will raise him if he's low. He probably checks his blood sugar about 5 or 6 times a day, and usually it's either too low or too high. It's devastating to watch him take his disease so lightly, especially since he has watched me go through dealing with it for so many years. You have no idea how many times I've confronted him, yelled at him, cried in front of him, about how much I wish he was in better control. Unlike your relationship with your coworker, my frustrations lie with someone who is part of my family.
Try to be more sympathetic, since stilledlife was right, sometimes no matter what you do, you can't change people's ways, even if it hurts to watch.
The problem with how you feel about your co-worker is that now you will judge people who have poor control over their diabetes even if they are trying very hard. I have a friend that is having complications and has been fighting harder then anyone can to get her diabetes under control. But between not being able to afford all the many needles, strips, equipment and insulin that is needed to control it even though she works 3 jobs, and being refused by our lacking Canadian health care system to be provided with a pump that she would pay for herself by taking a second mortgage out on her house and likely working a 4th job, she's sick. When someone isn't taking care of their diabetes your first question should be, are they being provided with all the tools they need so that they can? And if with access to money or health care benefits, support from family and friends, a job where they can stick to a routine, and access to a counseler or medication for any emotional problems and diabetes education and strength to deal with it all they still aren't taking care of their diabetes, that's still their choice and their business. And if they make unwelcome comments to you about what you're doing to take care of your diabetes then tell them that it's your choice and your business to do things that way and you don't appreciate their input.
If you're lucky enough to have access to everything you need to be able to take care of your diabetes and you can control it be thankful for that. Because not everyone does.
why don't we agree to change the title of the post to: THIS ONE GUY I KNOW really really annoys me and makes me angry.