# Understaffed, underpaid, and you want to improve morale with a BBQ?!? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 8, 2001, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384 "2001-08-08T01:09:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/21 "2001-08-09T00:40:35Z")
> [@](#): > > This BBQ is actually supposed to be a potluck. At my boss’ house. And it’s just for our department – i.e., 7 people plus family. It’s supposed to be a chance to get to know one another better, and get to see the “other people in our lives”. > > Right. If I wanted to socialize with these people, I would do so. But when the weekend comes, I want ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with ANY of them. They are not my friends, they are co-workers. We have very few personal tastes or hobbies in common. And, frankly, I don’t LIKE them very much! Ahhhh. I know that feeling too. I have no time for most of the people in my office, either (got lots of friends in other departments, but the people in my own department…well, most of them are good at their jobs, but they positively suck as humans). So, I take back what I said about your attendance at this function, and put myself firmly in the “don’t go” camp. Hope that helps. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ISBop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bc79bd/32.png) [@ISBop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISBop)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/22 "2001-08-09T01:44:38Z")
You people are all crazy. Vinegar-based BBQ (ENC BBQ, as a previous post put it) is the greatest stuff ever. I live in Raleigh, NC, btw. All that tomato-based crap sucks. All of it. I just had to pop in here with that. I won’t be on to see any replies. Continue on 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/23 "2001-08-09T02:03:12Z")
Yes, I was referring to the ENC barbecue. I was raised on Kansas City BBQ, but moved to Virginia fer my higher learnin’ and learned to love the vinegar-based kind even more. Oooooooh baby. Imagine my horror when I was at a diner in New Jersey and ordered the BBQ sandwich. It was a big piece of tough beef brisket with some bottled sauce poured over it. Served on a stale hoagie roll. _THE HORROR_ I can’t relate to the OP, alas. We’re understaffed and overworked; all of us have vacation time piling up and stress is running high. But I love my officemates and we even spend time together outside of the office. And we’ll jump on any excuse for an office potluck. ---
**Author:** ![Joaquim\_Matilda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@Joaquim\_Matilda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joaquim_Matilda)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/24 "2001-08-09T19:46:39Z")
cat. Caircair, I have a cunning plan: If you had a sick relative or close friend, would you be able to go? Feed the bean dip to someone dear to you. Yes, he’ll get sick but you’d get out of the BBQ & get the pleasure of caring for him. Healing him will help you get over the guilt of almost killing him & keep you from being found guilty by the courts for causing a fatal BBQ potluck. ---
**Author:** ![caircair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/91b2a8/32.png) [@caircair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caircair)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/25 "2001-08-09T20:27:10Z")
Nice try, Joaquim. However, it appears the BBQ is being postponed due to lack of interest. Namely, with all the job stress, nobody wants to spend our weekends with the coworkers we are forced to spend our weekdays with. I, for one, am not unhappy about this. While it isn’t that I don’t APPROVE of the BBQ, it’s just that I think NOW isn’t a good time. I’d rather wait until we’re all reasonably mellow and in the mood to have a good time, rather than do it now out of obligation. Moot point now, anyhow. ---
**Author:** ![Frumious\_Bandersnatch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Frumious\_Bandersnatch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frumious_Bandersnatch)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2001, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/26 "2001-08-09T22:15:06Z")
I have, on multiple occasions, explained very carefully to management, that while they were paying me _almost_ enough to work with these losers, they were not paying me nearly enough to socialize with them. Certainly not always the right move politically, but it works for me. ---
**Author:** ![caircair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/91b2a8/32.png) [@caircair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caircair)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2001, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/27 "2001-08-13T21:27:02Z")
UPDATE: The BBQ has been cancelled, officially because we couldn’t find a weekend when EVERYONE could come. I suspect, unofficially, nobody cared. We’re still underpaid and understaffed. And morale still sucks. The more things change, the more they stay the same. At least I don’t have to socialize with this group! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_Who](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c2a13f/32.png) [@The\_Man\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_Who)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2001, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384/28 "2001-08-14T03:39:36Z")
Ah, barbecue arguments. The last refuge of the damned. Oh, wait. That’s Brunswick Stew arguments. My mistake. Carry on. -Myron [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understaffed-underpaid-and-you-want-to-improve-morale-with-a-bbq/75384.md?page=1)