…or perhaps nobody pays any attention generally.
I came in to work all prepared to explain why I have a red and blue bruise the size of a quarter under my right eye. (My cat beats me up.) It’s been half an hour, and no one has noticed. I have to work until midnight tonight; this might be an interesting way to see if anyone ever actually looks at me. In 15+ hours of work, will anybody notice?
Cat, they may just be afraid to say anything. I mean, what if your SO is beating you?
What did your cat do?
Why would you pick a fight with a cat, and lose.
I’ll second the “afraid to ask” comment.
My wife’s at work with a great sunburn on the back of her neck. She’s getting all sorts of comments. Probably wishes
she could hide in a corner until it was gone.
On the other hand, getting beat up by the cats isn’t a story I’d like spread. Unless they were big cats.
“Yeah, that Bengal tiger has a mean right hook, let me tell ya…”
Cat, you have my undivided, total attention. Don’t get creeped out. 
No, really, do you think they might think it’s one of those “it’s none of my business, so I’m not gonna get involved. She’ll just tell me she walked into a door.” things?
Dammit! Beat to the punch! No pun intended.
I’ll third the “fraid to ask” When I got a bad blood test done a couple of months ago, I ended up with a purple bruise over an inch in diameter on my left forearm. No one asked. NO ONE. I finally said something, and they’d all do the “oh, yea, I noticed that”…
tell them or next time they see your SO, there’ll be glaring…
An Ogre’s undivided attention? ::shiver:: 
I don’t think these folks would be circumspect about asking me what happened, but I suppose they may be more sensitive than I give them credit for. I’m still voting for no one paying attention, though.
What did the cat do? Well, Enid is just a medium-sized cat, 13 pounds, but she has a mean right hook indeed. She got bored in the night and swatted at my face, and she seems to have nailed a blood vessel under my eye. It swelled some, though that’s gone down, but I have a lovely bruise.
Of course, I could tell them that the cat did it and still have it understood as a variation on “I walked into a door.” (Did anyone ever really get a black eye from walking into a door?)
Now, when you get back home, duct tape your cat’s paws together and tickle his nose with a feather for an hour.
Then smack him one!
…Sory, did someone say something?
Ogre attention can be pretty rough-and-tumble (but never mean!)
You might end up with some bruises, though!
Anyone asked yet?
Not exactly a bruise, but I do have a vertical scar right in the center of my forehead from running into a door when I was about 7 years old or so. I hit either the edge of the door or the doorknob, can’t recall. 6 stitches.
Oddly enough, I’ve known people who never noticed the scar until months after they met me. Don’t ask me how…it’s right in the center of me forehead and I comb my hair back, so nothing is obscuring it.
Not a soul, and I have looked easily two dozen people right in the face. I wonder if they are embarrassed? It seems so odd that no one has said anything.
People just don’t pay any attention, is what I think, Torberg. One just usually doesn’t get such clear proof – or maybe they’re embarassed to notice your scar, too :o
Cat - sorry to hear you got smacked by the cat. I WOULD say “smack it back” but then I’d have PETA all over me and frankly, don’t have the time or energy to deal.
But, I have to tell you from experience, no one will probably ask. I’ve come into work with a black eye in the past and wasn’t asked. It’s not because they don’t notice, it’s because, basically, in my opinion, they’re afraid of the answer.
This is not what they anticipate the answer to be:
Them - “Hey - nice shiner - what happened?”
You - “Well, my cat popped me with a paw.”
THIS is what they anticipate the answer to be:
Them - “Hey - nice shiner - what happened?”
You - “Well, my husband got drunk and hit me in the face. I’m going to get the restraining order during lunch break today.”
SO - they aren’t going to ask. What I would SUGGEST (just so people don’t go walking around with mistaken impressions and gossip gets going) is that you mention it to someone - call attention to it yourself. A “You know, the funniest thing happened last night…” kinda thing.
[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Catrandom *
**
Well, there’s this one building on campus, with a foyer with two glass doors. The doors are offset from one another, such that walking straight ahead through one will bring you to a glass wall, and turning right will bring you to the other door. Well, when I was once in a hurry, I walked through the inner door, saw nothing but “outside” in front of me and proceeded to walk directly into the glass wall. And when you’re not expecting something, you hit it hard. I destroyed my glasses frame, cutting the area below my eye and hurting my nose, but no black eye. Might have been different if I hadn’t been wearing glasses, and had my head turned, say, to look at someone outside. At any rate it ain’t too likely.
You’re kind of caught between a rock and a hard place on this one, IMO. If you call attention to it, it just might confirm some peoples’ suspicions: “That poor abused girl is so embarassed (frightened, insecure, downtrodden, …) that she’s making up ridiculous stories about “killer cats” to enable her abuser to continue abusing her.” Etc., etc.
If it’s the kind of place it sounds like to me (more or less impersonal) then calling attention to yourself is just another irrational behavior – which won’t help people understand you’re not a head case of some kind. Do you have any particular friends or work buddies that you are comfortable around who would understand and believe you? If so, it makes sense to me to tell them what happened. But if they are all pretty distant I think you’re better off saying nothing. I don’t think I would be alarmed if a co-worker showed up with a shiner. But a black eye one day, a bruise the next, a broken nose, etc. – that would set off my alarms.
you work in a strange place, catrandom. in my office we have had three people show up with shiners. one rugby, one karate, one sibling affection and gravel road. the latter took place in new england, be careful when hugging on gravel roads (this is what happens when new englanders try something new). as soon as the shinee walked into the office the questions were flying. at the end of the day the shinee was thinking of giving out shiners from all the questions. of course, once we heard the mundane stories, we tried to help out the shinee with more interesting stories involving lighting fixtures and a how to spice up book. you really work in a strange place.
I have noticed that I don’t notice stuff as much while I’m at work. My desk was situtated right by the printer so everyone walks by my desk and usually chat with me.
Roy wandered by several times and each time we’d chat. Then I noticed that he was limping and asked him about it. He had broken a toe three days before and I hadn’t noticed. It’s not that i don’t pay attention to Roy. i like him and enjoy our chats, it’s just that I always had some portion of my brain still mulling over whatever task I was working on.
Is it possible that people just aren’t being observant, rather than ignoring?
I can’t change the way I comb my hair or dress without colour commentary. I am the token male where I work so am constantly receiving advice.
Ooh, is it shaped like a lightning bolt? (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) ::slinks out of room::