Office politics

Elizabeth reminds me that I haven't posted recently. As I told her, though, not that much has been going on that's been worth blogging about.

This past week, I finally watched Series 2 and the Christmas special for The Office (UK version). I had seen the first series years ago, and I'm a big fan of the US version too. These shows can be difficult for some people to watch, mostly because of the squirm-inducing sensation of watching completely clueless people make fools out of themselves. However, if you've ever worked in an office, you realize that while some of the characters are a little over the top, they aren't so far off the truth either.

My first job out of college was working in the trust department of a small bank in suburban Minneapolis. There was a group of us there, all just a few years out of school and not yet ground down by the corporate rat race. We dealt with stocks and bonds and trust assets in a "back office" environment, where we never had direct contact with the actual bank customers (and a good thing too). Although we worked hard, we goofed around a lot too, which just amazes me now that I think about it. I guess that's why I like laughing at The Office so much; it reminds me of all those quirky characters that seem to be a part of every working environment.

Here are some of the things I remember we did:


• Our offices overlooked the bank’s time and temperature sign. Every morning, the boys would start a betting pool as to what the temperature would be at 3 pm that day.
• We had another betting pool on how many days in a row our boss, Dino, would wear the same suit.
• Waiting until we knew Paul was in the restroom and then having him paged. When he came back, we’d ask, “Paul, did you hear your page? Where were you?" just for the sheer pleasure of watching him turn beet red.
• Keeping a list of the stupid things people said…like when Kim was complaining about her dry feet and Jayleen recommended that she use a pubic stone on them (she meant a pumice stone). I think I still have that list somewhere…
• Taking Kim’s ugly clown figurines that she kept on her desk and putting them in awkward positions.
• The bank subscribed to a Muzak service, and there was a speaker in our offices that we couldn’t turn down. Oddly enough, one of the songs included was the theme song to “The In-Fisherman”. Whenever it played, we would sit at our desks and pretend to fish. I can still hear that song in my head...Doo do doo, da doo doo doo doooo

So as a tribute to all those eccentric office dwellers out there, here's a little Series 2 Office action (Ivy, feel free to join in):