Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Oblivious

I found out today that I am oblivious to what goes on around me at work. Years ago I made a promise to myself to not give in to meaningless gossip in the work place. This is the result of being burned once.
My full time career started in a small office with a handful of employees. People were having affairs, getting divorces, in rehab and born agains right under my nose and I wouldn't know until months later. I concluded that it just didn't concern me. I would listen but not repeat. The last job I worked at was with a bunch of cackling hen's that did nothing more than gossip all day long. If they had nothing...they just made shit up. I was getting a divorce and didn't even know it. I stayed out of this stuff as most of it was hurtful. Once, I repeated something to someone else and had the source of the gossip in my face. That ended it. I went to the "I don't care" attitude and went to work to work.
I made it through 6 years where I am now hearing idle gossip. Keeping what people told me in confidence to myself and not offering much information about my own personal life. Either they think I am the most boring person in the world or they've figured it out by now.
I must have missed some specially marked day on the calendar today. Was it National Gossip Day? I checked but the day just say's October 10th. Nothing special besides my friends anniversary. Was it "Get it Off Your Chest Day". I wonder as if a line could have formed by me without interupting production it would have. A few things made me a little sad as one guy at work that I'm pretty close to is in the process of a divorce. They just bought a house. He had no clue they were even having problems. Another guy is pretty down on his luck. I'm not really concerned about him as he's one of those "I know everything" people and has his face in everyone's business. But there's more, and I had to act like I knew nothing. I was shocked at some of the crap I heard and am a little angry that some things are going on. I was trusted with some information awhile back and kept this all in confidence at work. It was no one's business. Now today I have four different people shoveling information that I just plain don't want to hear.
My special message : " Don't confide in me as a friend, explain that there are two sides to every story, and then think that everyone is so stupid that they'll never figure it out. That is a complete insult.

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