But that said, I read this article today and thought it was really funny, enlightening and a little crazy! Go ahead, read it. You'll be glad you did. And please tell me you get the reference to "The Love Toilet" skit from SNL, because that was just a part of TV history that should be revisited in your mind.
After reading this, I thought, "I wonder what it would be like to be 15 feet away from Chris every day."And then it hit me. Though it really doesn't come close to this example, we kind of were there for a while. When we both worked at that lovely newspaper that shall remain nameless, we actually sat next to each other for the majority of our terms there. People asked me all the time how in the world we lived together AND worked together like that, but it really wasn't bad at all. Now, I'll be honest, I'm sure I was WAY more annoying to him than he was to me, because, well, that's probably just how it rolls every day.
We would discuss personal/home issues sometimes at work, but mostly kept it professional. We would, however, sneak into the break room for a quick smooch, and I have to say I definitely miss that (sorry if I just grossed anyone out again). Being that he was one of about three intelligent people in the entire building, I probably relied on him too much as another pair of eyes for stories or for advice on a story I was working on. I would repay him a bit with a few of my own suggestions, including which of his pieces to turn in for awards (I believe the ones I picked out got you those awards, mister!).
But with our situations now, how would this little scenario work out? Probably not so good. First of all, and this may reveal too much about us, privacy isn't really an issue with us. I mean, we're just really comfortable with each other. We usually don't accompany each other to certain bathroom trips. I'll leave it at that. The only time I want semi-privacy is when I'm brushing my teeth. Chris tends to want to kiss or tickle me when I've got white pasty drool falling from my mouth, and frankly, I just don't feel very romantic at that moment. But I digress...
Following Chris to work - a.k.a. the next room - would mean I'd have to sit there and listen to him talk about investors, finance, "this market" and "that market," CEOs and CFOs, M&A and any other initials or acronyms used in the world of business (we all have our little terms, don't we?). Would I be able to do my little design projects? Not unless we had lots of money and could buy an iMAC G4 complete with the entire Adobe Suite, QuarkXpress, a font manager, photo database, publications database and a sweet monitor and printer. So, I'd be forced to sit there, reading a book and telling the dogs I can't do anything with them beyond the 15-foot realm. The massive list of things to do at the house would still get ignored. BUT I'd get to stare at my wonderful husband all day!
And really, even though we're "together" at home, we're doing our own thing a lot of times. Just this morning Chris took the dogs for a walk while I got ready for work. This certainly could not happen if we were connected by a string. Normally in the morning after dragging myself out of bed, I'd be dragging Chris' lifeless body around if we were connected like that. He's not so much a morning person. Really, I'm not either but I have a boss who sees when I walk in the door.
I'm really curious as to how you think this would turn out with you and your significant other. Feel free to write your own post on the topic - or just leave a lengthy comment.
10 comments:
I went to the article that you are referencing and it was very interesting! Right now, as it stands, I don't think Jesse and I would make it...or maybe we would and it would force us to acknoweldge one another...hmmm... But I think it sounds fun! I've thought several times that I would love for Jesse to see me in my element (teaching) to fully understand what I do all day- my energy level, the balance beam I walk all day. And I would love to see him in his element because, let's face it, his brilliance facinates me. But I am with this lovely couple in agreeing that one day would be enough! Imagine someone seeing your every move, your every mistake, your every attitude adjustment, your every "good, bad and ugly" moment. It would kinda get exhausting after a while.
I think we'd do okay - largely because we kin of had to when we moved here. Not knowing a single other person on the continent has a way of making you cling to each other.
But doing 'okay' does not mean it would be our first choice. I appreciate the sadness at goodbyes and the little heart jump when we meet up later in the day, you know?
Party foul, Meaghan. You used a last name.
And also, this sounds like a bad idea. While I think it would be cool to see Matt in his element, I think he might divorce me if I teamed up with his boss to out-vote him on a project. I don't think that I would, given I am not qualified for his job, but I also think it would be hard to be a silent observer all day!
My reaction to the article was pretty much the same as Meaghan's. We basically did this experiment for three and a half years working at the newspaper. Not literally, I suppose. We didn't follow each other to the bathroom.
I'm confident we could still get along with each other well like this. But yes, Meaghan would be terribly bored by my job --- as am I many days.
Shannon - Yeah, some seeing my EVERY fault would get old, not to mention I wouldn't feel as free to sing songs at the top of my lungs in my car!
Kari - I like the coming together after a long day, too.
Julie - Good call on the last name! I didn't even realize I had done that. I since changed it.
Chris - In all fairness, you'd probably get a little bored at my job, too!
I love Mickey dearly, but I also love my space. As does he. Plus, he'd be dragging my lazy ass up a bunch of mountains and that would be fun for no one.
The phone-voice thing got me. I do get to hear Courtney on the phone when she has to interview people for an article, and this made me think of that.
I think Kari ("Jonathan and Kari" aren't even apart online? How appropriate!) nailed it with the comment about the goodbyes and hellos. Separation is good.
Let's see, there was Courtney and Chris there while you were there that I'm sure you'd put in that group of three smart people. Now my only question is which one of the rest of us (me, Julie, Ryan, Severo, and Lauren) made the cut. I'll go ahead and assume that the people who worked there during that time whose names I can't remember were in the stupid pile with most of us. I was never consulted on story ideas, so I'll assume that I didn't make the cut. You seemed to be awfully good friends with Lauren, so I bet it was her. Thanks. You just hurt half of your friends feelings. You really are mean.
As for your actual post, Kim and I did this our first semester of college. We were paired together for service calls for network problems. Whoever thought it was a good idea to pair a new couple together on jobs where you had no direct managerial oversight didn't have the best management sense. After college I rarely saw her because we had opposite schedules, but our relationship was great. We were so happy to see each other the two days a week we were together and awake at the same time that we never argued or took each other for granted. Now we drive to work together and work the exact same hours. Honestly, we occasionally grate on each other's nerves and take each other for granted a little more because we're almost never apart. I think a certain amount of space actually improves the relationship, but five days a week of separation is probably a little too much.
Oh Jacob... I just threw out that number as a generalization! When we worked with people like William and John D., just to name a few, it seemed like the place was being run by morons sometimes! I'm sure you felt that way as well.
I know. I was teasing.
Post a Comment