Men at Work

Asalaam alaykum.

So I'm hammering out this post at work in between mouthfuls of green tea. It's not that I don't have real work to do, it's just that I need to rant about this crazy dude working here.

He is so weird for so many reasons. I recently caught a glimpse of his raggedy, greying ponytail when he was adjusting his ghutra on the top of his head. He plays videos in his office and sings old Yemeni love songs in a loud, thick voice, bashing his palms on his desk in time to the music. When his friends visit his office, they have a blast, laughing and joking loud enough to blow your eardrums. 

And....He stares at women.  If you happen to meet him in the corridor, he loses his composure, then recovering, he will puff up his chest, broaden his shoulders and stare. He will even turn around to look at you from from behind.  It's horrible!  It's scary because he has very big, red eyes. I hate being stared at like that! I don't have to deal with him professionally, his work is not even remotely related to mine, but his office is directly opposite mine.(I call mine an office but really it's just a large cubicle).

My sweet friend called me for a natter the other day, and as I was quietly giggling at a joke, Mr. Big Eyes stepped out, scowling.  He walked right past my office straight to his secretary in the next office.  I heard mumbling for a few minutes and then he walked back to his office and slammed the door.

Then his secretary called my extension and apologetically told me her boss asked her to tell me that I was laughing too loudly, not appropriate behaviour for a woman in the office, and if I laughed or talked loudly again then he would report me to my boss. 

Really???!!??  Now as I remember I was talking softly but I was worried so I asked the secretary if she had heard me laughing or talking? 

She said, "No, I didn't even know you were talking on the phone!  That guy is a jerk, we all hate him!  He likes women to smile and laugh with him, and you ignore him. Just give him a smile every now and then and keep a low profile for a while until he finds something else to be a jerk about!" 

Whaaaaaaat....??!!??

So now I'm being made to feel like I'm a mannerless fishwoman who doesn't know how to behave in public because this guy needs attention?

My job is very important to me so I've been doing my best to talk very softly since then, but I will not smile at him. I refuse to pander to his fading sense of masculinity.

Meanwhile I'm thinking of blowing this picture up and putting it up on my wall. Heeheehee!