Girl on the Brink: Surviving Desperate Times with Desperate Measures

Were you ever filled with so much mirth and laughter that you just wanted to get it on right then and there?

But then something stopped you that broke the mood.

One of you had to go to the bathroom. Your girlfriend said she was on her period. She didn’t tell you she was really a man. [You failed to read the fine print in her online dating profile.]

Whatever the reason, it was reason enough to stop.

Most people know when to stop when it comes to sex. If only the same could be said for people who work. How they still keep their jobs is beyond me, but they do, despite the stupid, insincere or heartless things they say to their boss or co-workers and vice versa.

Sometimes, what you say at work can get you fired. It happened to me eons ago.

As a temp (yes, I started out that way and seem to have come full circle), I answered phones for a big D.C. law firm. A letter arrived for one of the partners, but I didn’t deliver it to his desk.

When he asked me about it, I made a snarky comment that ended my career as a receptionist. I still have no regrets, and it didn’t influence my career path.

I’ve never said anything like that to a boss again, though I’ve felt like it.

I did assign a former boss’ cell phone number a ringtone of a cow mooing. (I know, a bit juvenile but oh so much fun!) She was a bad boss because she didn’t know how to manage people, which should be a prerequisite for a boss, just like a secretary should know how to type.

While career counselors criticize employees for spouting off, employers also say things they shouldn’t.  Telling a laid-off employee, “How’s the family?” is heartless, and fake empathy — “I know how you feel.” — is patronizing.

“I’m sure you’re surprised” is another bad thing to say.

If a relationship is to come to an end, it should be no more of a surprise than a girlfriend who says, “I’m pregnant.”