This weekend I received a photo of my ex-boss’ butt in the mail.
To be fair, it was a side-view shot showing off a majorly impressive and gnarly scar and staples, but still, there it was, the sillouette of the butt of the man I used to work for… (Bossman, if you are reading this – by the way – nice butt! Been working out?)
I don’t know if this happens to everybody, if I just seem like a good listener, or if I’ve been ‘lucky’ enough to work with some really open people, but stuff like this happens to me a lot. I say I’m lucky, because I do enjoy hearing about what is on folks’ minds (and occasionally seeing their butts). Sometimes it really catches me by surprise. Here are some of the things that co-workers (people I don’t know super well) have told me (I’ll save the stuff that perfect strangers tell me for another post):
- Two separate co-workers have revealed to me that they do not wear underwear. Both female, both not hitting on me or anything. One doesn’t wear undies for comfort, the other to keep her body ‘open’ to Mother Earth.
- One co-worker admitted that she urinates outside (in her backyard) at least once a week to stay connected to the Earth.
- One co-worker, who I was only just getting to know, told me she had herpes and that her ex-husband had given it to her. He contracted it while having an affair. (It was to explain why she didn’t eat chocolate. I was surprised she was comfortable saying “Nope, I have herpes” rather than “No thanks!”)
- One co-worker explained that his chiropractor said he carries all his tension in his butt and that he must clench his butt-cheeks when stressed! No meeting involving that person was ever the same for me again!
- One co-worker explained that she was partly having a bad day due to the stress of just having left a cult. It was sort of offerred in the middle of a conversation, without much explanation, and for some reason I accepted it without much reaction – like I hear this every day. (I do live in Oregon after all.) A third co-worker who was with us was stunned more by my non-reaction than the comment itself.
These are the little things I love about working with people – just hearing surprising things that I’ll never forget. Little nuggets of insight into all different sorts of life experiences. All of the above comments come from people who became some of my most favorite co-workers and who I’d work with again in a minute! Does that make me appear to be somoeone who is accepting? Do I have an attribute that puts folks at ease? Do they tell everyone these things? I don’t know and it really doesn’t matter. These are the conversations that I love to have and that make people so nifty.
So, Dear Reader, is there anything you want to tell me? 