The Office

Probably because it came on after Jeopardy! and probably because I was feeling too worn out to walk over to the TV and turn it off (you would be worn out, too, after a full evening of laundry and from-scratch pizza making in weather so humid you could cut it with a knife), I watched my first episode of The Office last night. And I thought it was pretty funny. And it got me thinking...I should introduce you to the folks in my office. So here we go.

Elaine
is our director;
is from England
but has US citizenship;
has a flashy wardrobe;
enjoys expensive haircuts;
is always busy;
sometimes swears at her computer
as well as to stupid people on the phone
(after she hangs up, of course);
always apologizes after swearing;
gets panicky and forgetful before giving any sort of presentation;
talks a lot
and can make a 30 second question to Dick last 5 hours;
is very intelligent and known in Indiana's economic development world.

Dick
is next in seniority;
is also very intelligent and prominent throughout the state;
talks quietly, in almost a mumble
but that doesn't stop him from talking a lot;
he also talks with his hands
and uses verbal "example lists" to make a point;
smokes (or "sins," as Elaine puts it)
but hides it well;
likes to give us brain teasers
such as the one where you have 3 bags of marbles -- 1 all black, 1 all white, 1 mixed -- that are all labeled incorrectly, how do you label the bags correctly by only choosing one marble?;
has currently stumped us with one brain teaser
which maybe I'll recruit your help for later.

Lisa
is my boss;
is very petite;
is the mother of two boys
who play lots of sports
which keeps her very busy evenings and weekends
and which she gives us full reports of each day
because she, too, talks a lot
and she talks like she is from Indiana
which if you heard her, you'd understand;
is a very hard worker;
loves herself many cups of coffee;
walksveryfast and is always go-go-go;
has done well patiently training me.

Rose
has worked here for 20+ years;
is originally from Mississippi
and talks in a southern drawl;
also talks a lot
and when she does, she does not make eye contact
because she is shy
and generally nervous;
also, she talks very quietly;
is the mother of 2 girls;
is a very concerned and protective parent;
has occasional personality conflicts with Elaine;
is probably the co-worker I feel closest to --
we have enjoyable conversations;
and a lot in common.

Lindsay
well
you know enough about me;
except maybe you should know
that I don't talk a lot.