That was the question I was asked at work.
Let me paint a picture of the scene for you: There’s me, a rather cute, if large and soft, young lady, carrying a door through the rain. I try to be friendly at work and acknowledge the residents, but when you’re hauling doors through the rain, it’s easy to get distracted. Along the way I pass a small group of teenagers, who snicker and smirk as I go by, and I quickly smile and keep going, when one of them gets my attention.
Her: Hello
Me: Hi there!
H: How’s it going?
M: Not bad. How’re you?
H: Good.
I start walking away again, since doors do get heavy after a bit.
H: Excuse me, I’d like to ask you a question.
M: (Thinking it’d actually be relevant to my job) Yes?
H: Do you think about women?
M: (Caught off-guard and wondering about the relevance) Think about them… how?
H: You know, sexually.
M: Why do you care?
H: (Looking amused but sounding slightly defensive) I’m just curious. It’s for a survey.
M: …
H: … Well, I’m gay.
M: Well, that’s great. Good for you!
At that point, I’d just like to get back to work. I’m not in the mood to be hassled by teenagers who’re just looking to harass some random stranger (it’s harder to tell from text, but her tone, plus the smirking buddies gave the vibe that that’s what it was about), so I walk away. She says to my back “Now that’s a shitty attitude.”
Later I realized that I after she asked if I thought about women, I ought to have asked if she was looking for a date, maybe with a wink and devilish grin.
Now, I ask you: Did I have a shitty attitude or was she just rude? I’m still wondering what prompted that exchange, really. Perhaps she’s got pre-conceived notions about women doing my work. Of course, for all I know she was looking for a date, or it was a strange survey, but I doubt it.
It’s my first week with this new company. I hope this isn’t a sign of things to come.