There’s been inumerable threads here about workmates who are complete dickheads/should’ve been shot at birth/drive us up the proverbial wall.
I want to start a dedication thread to those folks at work who keep us sane, make our workday bearable, and give us a reason to turn up each morning.
In my case, it’s Dan and Michael. They both wander in half-awake each morning, tousle their respective heads, whinge about the hard night they had the night before, then sit down and whinge for their entire shift…with a bloody big grin on their faces!!
Of course, that gives me plenty of ammo to toss at them for the shift, and make their already painful lives even moreso.
Which gives me the stamina to keep going each day. Without my loveable cow-orkers, I would’ve left this job yonks ago.
Our analysts. Both the ones based in our building, and the ones I work with remotely.
Yes, some of them are skanky, underfed, underslept hacker types who look like they don’t wash/ shave/ socialize enough. They can also, on occasion, be extremely frustrating as they refuse to communicate in anything resembling human language. But hey, if they behaved like human beings all the time, they wouldn’t be analysts.
And when they do communicate they add to my practical knowledge, and hugely extend my horizons. They give a whole insight into a different world.
And that’s what I love them for. I wouldn’t survive here without them.
I invariably seek out and find a kindred soul at any new contract. Someone cynical, twisted and incredibly capable and competent but also someone who’ll call bullshit the second even a hint of the beurocratic stink floats past their nose. Someone with contempt for corporate rules and most corporate structures and its advocates/enforcers.
Because I’m on a new contract/job site every few years, there have been too many to count in my 20+ years on this carreer path. But there are always one or two black sheep in the herd. We find eachother and make the days and weeks more tollerable with humour and a common sense of irreverence.
On this project, it’s M, J & T. Nothing is sacred and no-one is safe. :dubious:
I work in an office of about 40 people. Our headquarters is in Texas, and our branch office has been slowly and steadily growing.
I work with funny and creative, smart and friendly people. When I first started here, each of the employees took a moment to stop by my desk and just chat. We have seasonal parties off premises that almost everyone attends. We have contests and monthly Friday in-office 'wine and wings" parties. We celebrate the achievements, birthdays and anniversaries of the staff.
I started to name my cool folks here, but after listing 20 odd people with more to add, I decided to edit. I’ll just send my valentine to my office: I love you _ _ _. The best architectural firm in the world!
Special shout out to our director and Senior VP Mark! He sets the tone and is great to work for!
The two co-workers that kept me sane were let go during the recession. I still see them regularly. I sometimes Email them during the day and go to Yankee Games with them. It was a better place when they worked here. We would go out to lunch, talk baseball & politics or whatever else.
There is a group of co-workers I play Quoits with at lunch. It is fun, but I am not particularly close friends with them. I have one co-worker who when either of us are feeling particularly frustrated we rant and rave to for a little while. It helps us both stay somewhat sane.
I’ve been on the current job a month, so it’s too early to say for sure – but my second in command is a great kid, and there’s a writer in another dept. who’s definitely on the same wavelength.
From my old job: Rich, the freelance typesetter. We worked together closely for about 12 years, and it was always a pleasure. Smart, hardworking, competent, he quickly developed the ability to read my mind – and, more impressively, my handwriting – and was always cheerful and cooperative. Excellent human being.
Well a few years back there was a short South Asian guy who worked on the experimental side testing analog circuits and stuff. Very technical work. Anyway this guy was short even for his herritage, and had quite a stutter. He was also charming and very polite, real nice guy. Anyway what I loved about him was that he was also an ex-olympic quality boxer for his country I hope he levveled a few asses who would otherwise pick on a short stuttering nice-guy.
I’m lucky: absolutely everyone I work with. My labmates are smart and funny and interesting, and they make even the most aggravating work worthwhile. The PI of the lab could not be nicer, and I consider her a friend as well as a professor, boss, and mentor.
The company I work for has let go of a lot of people - unfortunately, my bestest of bestest friend was one of them. In fact, that whole department is gone :eek: - good thing I transferred out I suppose. I found someone in my new department though - if I wasn’t married to my husband, I’d probably be married to him. If he weren’t married too. We get along that good.
My favorite co-worker only comes in about once a week. She and I can always find something to chat/complain about, and we always end up agreeing that if we ruled the world, there would be no problems.
It’s funny, because on the surface, we’re exact opposites. She’s about 40 years older than me, has a whole bunch of kids (I have none), and is very religious. However, we agree on many subjects, and I love how open she is. This woman does not beat around the bush. You always know what she’s thinking! It’s refreshing in the age of small talk (“How are ya?” “Fine.”) to encounter a person like her.
I get along relatively well with all of my co-workers. There are only a couple who drive me nuts on a regular basis, one of them being my boss. But even he has his good moments, when he’s not making obnoxious snorting noises. I’m obviously having a good day at work today, or I’d be telling you all what a bunch of assholes they are.
Former job- my immediate supervisor, who got me the position to begin with.
Any boss who can come into my office, look at my work, and say, “You know, if you’d got (result x), I’d have to kill you and hide the body.” Gets amusement props in my book.
Everyone at my workplace rocks. It makes up for the crappy pay. Even the managers are awesome: Guybrush, Zoidberg, Woman Hitler… I kind of miss them, really :\
I really like everyone I work with, which is pretty damn good.
However, this thread reminded me of when I was a waitress at a pizza joint and everyone would get excited when the bread guy came by. I don’t know what it was about him, he was just a pleasant, smiley man who brought us bread daily or a few times a week or whatever, but whenever he came everyone would break out in smiles. “The bread guy is here. The bread guy is here!”
I am very lucky that all five of my bosses are wonderful. All of them treat me as an equal and none are psycho-beasts. I’ve worked for some real buttheads in this profession (law), so I know how rare my present situation is. I’m also paid generously and told that I’m worth it, and again, this is a rare and wonderful thing for a legal secretary. I knock wood and thank my stars every day.
I’m just worried that if this place ever tanks, I’ll discover that I’ve grown soft and vulnerable and won’t be able to go back to a more typical, meaner place!
Me, too. I honestly like everyone I work with, very, very much. A few people have their little quirks, but it’s nothing I can’t deal with.
I’m extremely lucky.
The two co-workers that kept me sane were let go during the recession. I still see them regularly. I sometimes Email them during the day and go to Yankee Games with them. It was a better place when they worked here. We would go out to lunch, talk baseball & politics or whatever else.
