WG2 Gets Awkward in the Kitchen

It is no secret that I can be one of the most awkward people you have ever met. Most of the time I like to think I'm not too bad, but place me in certain situations and I turn into a babbling, incoherent, awkward teenage girl. Case in point, my embarrassing London story included the best man, the dance floor, too much champagne, and then having to see him the next day at another wedding event. I will divulge no other details. It was embarrassing enough to have to live through.

Despite drinking and morning after situations, there is another location where I become awkward and that is the office kitchen.

My office actually has a nice kitchen - all new appliances, a nice island that seats four, all the green tea you could ever want, and a huge fridge for storing food. But I rarely venture in the kitchen because it usually results in me having to engage in conversation with people I don't know very well or want to avoid.

Example, a few weeks ago, I was heating up one of my tasty Lean Cuisine (sarcasm noted) when another co-worker of mine whom I had never met waltzed in. He was in obvious need of the microwave as well, so he patiently waited and waited as those 4 four minutes dragged out for eternity. And therein lies my problem. While those 4 minutes seemed to pass so slowly, I tried to make conversation. Yes, I realize this is the polite thing to do when in a co-worker-to-co-worker situation, but I was as awkward as awkward can get.

I brought up all sorts of topic convos - where are you from, how long is your commute, oh you have kids how nice. Then the microwave beeped and I checked on my Lean Cuisine and of course it was still frozen and still looked really unappetizing. So I began a new string of conversation about Wii. As many of you might know, my office just recently got Wii and all of the employees are supposed to make Mii characters. So I asked if he had made one. Can I just mention that this particular co-worker is probably over 50, has children, little knowledge of the English language, and apparently no interest in playing Wii at work. He looked at me blankly and we watched as the minutes on the microwave excruciatingly passed by.

It wouldn't be too bad if this didn't happen to me on a regular basis. Meaning me putting my foot in my mouth. Thankfully many of my co-workers find this endearing so I'm in pretty good shape. But my awkwardness has led me to avoid the office kitchen.

I walk in, grab my water, and walk out trying to avoid eye contact with anyone who might be heating up a bagel or peeling an orange.

Does anyone know where I can take classes on being less awkward in the office kitchen? Because I am need of those. STAT.

An American Girl in Londontown

I just got back from the wedding in England where I drunkenly embarrassed myself so drastically that I might just ban myself from the United Kingdom altogether. As a side note, congratulations to K & A. The wedding was beautiful! And Vix, here's your big shout-out! Thanks for the lovely big sleep-over and I miss you terribly already. 

It's my day to post. 

Unfortunately, I have major jet lag (and I totally can't call out of work tomorrow). I just got off the plane ride from hell (think puke, broken TV monitors, and dead iPods). 

And to top it all off, WG1 has raided my Ben & Jerry's ice cream stash. And when I say raided I mean she picked out all the good bits and left behind vanilla ice cream. And when I yelled at her (and oh man did I yell) she said she did it because she missed me. Which is really nice, but don't tell her I told you that. 

So, in short, I think I might take the night off and go to bed early. 

What a Betty

Every office is full of various personalities. While everyone is different, there are a few personalities prototypes that a Working Girl can find almost everywhere she goes. She may even find a little bit of herself in these women, which is probably why they drive her crazy:

Betty Business - Betty shows up to work early, doesn't take lunch and stays late. Whether she's doing it to impress her boss(es) or really has that much work to do, she's serious about her job. Betty's a nice girl, but she doesn't have too many friends in the office, mostly because she's working through lunch and working past happy hour. But because of that, she's a favorite among the higher-ups. Sometimes her business savvy comes off as being a little ruthless because, after all, she is looking out for herself and her career.

Debbie Downer - Oh Debbie. Something's always got her down. One day it's the weather, the next day it's her boss or cube-mate. She's the wrong person to talk to when you're having a bad day, because she just might make you feel worse. Debbie doesn't smile much and you sometimes have to wonder how she got hired in the first place. She must be a genius at excel because she certainly wasn't hired for her positive attitude. 

Networking Nancy - Nancy takes networking to another level. Her lunch calendar is booked through September and she likes to spend one-on-one time with everyone in the office. You don't have to talk much at a lunch with Nancy; she loves to talk, mostly about herself and where she sees herself in 2 years, 5 years or 10 years. She wants you to know where she wants to go, just in case you can help her one day. 

Superficial Sally - Sally is not one of your closest friends at work. In fact you don't really like her and you're pretty sure she doesn't like you. Whenever you see her, which is usually in the ladies' room or on the elevator, she's sweet as sugar, or tries to be. "How are you, sweetheart?" she asks. "I love your, [long pause] your shoes, so cute," she comments as you think to yourself, "When did they hire Regina George?"

Chatty Cathy - We are all familiar with Chatty Cathy. She loves to talk, even more than Nancy does. A conversation with Cathy usually starts with a simple topic, like what she did over the weekend, but before you know it, she's gone off on 12 different tangents and you have no idea how you ended up talking about the Mommy & Me class she took with women who get facelifts. Cathy is also the queen of TMI. She tells whoever will listen about the time she had to cut her husbands toenails or how much her son pooped today. The best thing you can do is avoid conversations with Cathy altogether. The second she gets talking, you're done because Cathy does not follow normal conversation ending etiquette.

Chivalry Is Dead (But Only in the Mornings)

My commute compared to others is quite simple. I walk to the PATH, I get on the PATH, ride a few stops, get off and walk a few blocks to my office.

For such a simple commute, one would think that getting from Point A to Point B would be relatively painless. But of course this is never true. I've complained and whined about commuting PDA (and how it should be banned completely), but now I have something new to complain about. My new gripe: how men become complete a-holes when commuting.

I am not one of those girls that complain about chivalry being dead. Just to preface, I like to think of myself as bit of a feminist (I go on tirades about feminism when drunk so don't get me started) so I'm not going to stare down a m. And while I do think that I, as a woman, am capable of most things that men are, I don't think that means that all the rules of respect between men and women should be discarded. I'm pretty traditional in that I like having my chair pulled out for me at a nice restaurant or having a guy hold the door open for me as I enter my apartment. To me these rules of etiquette are just a gesture of respect.

I feel like most men are good about these rules. Holding doors, helping me with my groceries are just little things that I have experienced lately that make me have faith in chivalry.

That is, until I step out of my apartment building at 8 a.m. Because it seems that all the rules of respect and chivalry are thrown to the wayside when men are commuting.

Yesterday morning, I witnessed a woman juggle a baby (who was so effing adorable btw), the baby's bottle/pacifier/baby bag, and her files for the day and no one offered her their seat. And let me tell you there were plenty of males in those plastic seats who could have gotten off their Crackberries to let her sit down. Can we say rude?

And the rudeness doesn't just stop at the subway and not offering seats to ladies who are obviously preggers, it follows me all the way to the office. Literally, I was practically run over by a gaggle of men fighting me to get into the elevator this morning. Are you kidding me? I was obviously here before you and I'm a woman! Please don't body check me so you can get to your floor first.

Bus rides seem to have a similar effect on men. A bus stops and men literally jump over women, pushing and shoving, to get off first. Which leaves me to ask, where has all the chivalry gone on my morning commute?

All I'm asking for is a little respect - a hand gesture indicating that I can exit the bus first, or an offer that I can have that seat on the subway, or holding the elevator for one second longer as I race into work 10 minutes late.

I need more chivalry on my morning commute.

Chattin'

A work day doesn't go by that I don't talk to WG2 on gchat. That is, unless one of us is out of the office, which was the case today. WG2 has left for London to attending a wedding. Obvi, I'm jealous, she has tomorrow, Friday and Monday off. Biotch. 

Since I was procrastinating anyway, I decided to look up some up of our old and not-so-old chats to fill void in my afternoon. Several of them amused me, but I'm easily amused and I think we're funny sometimes. I've told WG2 that we should have a reality show because it would be GREAT! She disagrees but really believe would find us amusing. Either way, I wanted so share some memorable chats with you, obviously work-related:

3:29 PM July 6th

WG1: i got us toothpaste today

           i took it from the promo closet

WG2: oh that's AWESOME

5:07 PM July 10th

WG1: i wish i had a personal assistant

WG2: seriously

5:26 PM July 16th

WG1: at my dad's i'm going to have to get on the train at 7:26am

   ugggggghhhhhh

WG2: ew

   well at least you have somewhere to live?

WG1: right

9:18 AM July 17th

WG1: i don't feel like working today

WG2: i never do

      i want to play wii

           but all my employers are here

           so i have to appear busy

WG1: boo

11:11 AM July 22nd

WG1: it's days like today that make me want to quit my job

WG2: ugh what happend

WG1: people are just annoying and don't take the deadlines i give them seriously

WG2: hmmm yea

           yuck

4:46 PM June 12th

WG1: this was the fastest day of my life

WG2: yea day

WG1: i wish it wasn't nasty out

WG2: yea out

WG1: you're busy, huh?

WG2: yea

Ok, so maybe we aren't as funny as I thought we were. But it's these silly little conversations that get me through the day. Since WG2 is probably trying to find Colin Firth and galavanting in London, it looks like I might actually be pretty productive at work tomorrow. Boo. 

Pump Up The Jams, Pump It Up

Tuesdays are my most hated days of the work week. 

Tuesday is no man's land. Tuesday plops you down at the beginning of the week - but not at the middle quite yet - and what's worse is that you're not even close to the end of the work week. Depressing. 

I have devised a small, yet effective cure to my Tuesday Troubles and that is a pump-up, get-me-psyched for the work week mix. This combination of songs has just the right amount of gumption and spunk to get me grooving (and focus less on the stress that is piled on my desk waiting to get done).

1. "Believe" by Suzie McNeil. 

This tune really makes me think that I could "move mountains with dreams". Seriously. This is a secret, so don't tell anyone, but sometimes I blast this song when no one is home and I stand on my bed, belt this out, and imagine myself moving mountains. Just kidding. Or am I? 

2. "Push the Button" by Sugababes. 

I'll admit. This song isn't particularly inspiring. But it does make me want to dance, which makes me smile, which makes my day seem not as bad as it really is. 

3. "Believe" by The Bravery.

I hope we're not seeing a theme here. Apparently, I need to believe in things to make myself feel better. Honestly though, this song has a great beat, a great chorus, and makes me want to skip work and play Rock Band all day. Maybe I should quit my job and become a rock star. Just a thought. 

4. "Won't Keep the Good Girl Down" by Marie Wilson.

Please don't judge me, but I first heard this song while watching 7th Heaven. Seriously though, this song convinced Lucy Camden that she couldn't be kept down. Therefore, it is a shoo-in for my sick playlist. 

5. "Courage Is..." by The Strange Familiar. 

I'm a cheeseball, but I just love the lyrics of this song. "Courage is when you're afraid/ But you keep on moving anyway/ Courage is when you're in pain/ But you keep on living anyway". 

6. "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield. 

The Hills. Enough said. 

7. "Find Yourself" by Brad Paisley.

I am a huge country fan so this had to be done. 

8. "Find a New Way" by Young Love. 

Find another way to dance. While I'm not a dancer, I really think the moral of the song (if there isn't one I apologize for reading too much into your masterpiece Young Love) is that don't let someone back you into a corner and if they do find another way out. 

9. "We Made It" by Busta Rhymes feat. Linkin Park. 

I love when rappers and punk rock combine. And this song makes me walk faster to work (it has serious magical powers). 

10. "So Much Better" by Laura Bell Bundy for Legally Blonde: The Musical. 

I may have just added this to the list because WG1 and I just watched the finale of MTV hit "The Search for the Next Elle Woods". Congrats Bailey! She achieved her dream! Woohoo! Working Girls unite! 

Now, please go download these 10 songs and instantly feel better about your 9-5. 

We're Famous!

Work was busy today, especially after taking a Summer Friday last week, so I didn't have time to check my Working Girl e-mail. It wasn't until I commuted home and ate my leftovers from Q'doba (I love my chips and guac) that I checked my Working Girl Gmail account. 

Typically, my inbox has a few e-mails, notifying me of comments from our lovely and loyal readers. Today, there were over 25 comments, not to mention e-mails from new readers telling us how much they liked our blog (thank you!) and asking who designed it (Delicious Design Studio). WG2 and I love getting comments and e-mails but 25 in one day. Phew. We were blown away. So as I hungrily consumed my guac I kept thinking, "Where are all these readers coming from? Are we on a new blog roll?"

Finally, one of your comments gave me the answer. Rowena from Rubber Slippers In Italy pointed out that Working Girl is Blogger's most recent Blog of Note. As someone who often checks out the Blogs of Note, all I have to say is: How effing cool is that?!

When we started this blog, WG2 and I wanted place to write what we were going through as new Working Girls, a place where other Working Girls could commiserate, live through our experiences, and maybe even garner some knowledge. As cheesy as this sounds, since we started blogging in January we've felt like we have little more purpose and meaning in our lives. Working 9-5 (and by 5 I mean 6:30) pays the bills, but writing this blog gives us a creative outlet and just makes us feel good. But it's not just the writing that makes us feel good, it's the comments and the stories you all share with us.

So, thank you readers for making us feel loved and thank you to Blogger for making us feel like rock stars. We feel pretty damn good. I can only hope that my bosses and coworkers are not Blogger users because if they find this, I may not have a job to blog about.

Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me

The online shopping website Bluefly makes me want to punch a baby (just an expression, don't worry readers I'm not literally running around NYC punching babies).

And no, Bluefly doesn't drain me because of my slow internet connection or because it doesn't have that Fendi bag I'm dying to buy. No, it's because of their constant contests, giveaways and promotions. That. I. Never. Win.

WG1 and I have similar morning routines in that we both get up, shower, get dressed, and go our separate ways to work. Around 9:05ish, both of us appear on Gchat and proceed to complain about we have once again not won the Bluefly daily giveaway.

Sample conversations:

9:35 a.m. WG1: i got heel stuck in a grate

9:37 a.m. WG2: i got hay fever

9:10 a.m.: WG2: wardrobe malfunction

9:13 a.m.: WG1: heel stuck in grate!

You would think these conversations would be about real encounters on our way to work. However, WG1 and I have not recently gotten our heels stuck in any grates or had any horrible wardrobe malfunctions within the half hour it takes to get to work (though it is possible). These are in fact the conversations we had every morning this past spring as we played Bluefly's "Spring In the City" Giveaway. Last spring, WG1 and I faithfully spun the Bluefly's spring giveaway electronic wheel to see if fate would let us win a $10,000 spring wardrobe. Alas, we never won and the rigged wheel of fortune never spun us fates that would allow us to wear a designer that didn't have the number 21 on the label.

Bluefly gave us a mini-break for the first months of summer. No contests or giveaways presented themselves. But last week, I got an e-mail in my inbox from WG1 urging me to get daily reminders to try and win Bluefly's "The Designer ABC's Giveaway". I could win $1,00o luxury "loot" by choosing the correct shopping back out of the three presented to me.

I gave in and subscribed myself to receive daily reminders to play this taunting game that I know will never really materialize any loot or money for a designer wardrobe. And everyday WG1 and I commiserate about how we still haven't won anything. Sure, every once and while Bluefly will let us "win" $30 off any purchase that day. But really what can I do with that? Thanks Bluefly, I'll be sure to use my next paycheck to buy a leg of one of those designer pants (yes, I can only afford one leg at a time).

It's frustrating. But I come back for more everyday.

I'm WG2 and I'm addicted to Bluefly's online giveaways.

Network, Working Girl One, You Gotta Network

That is what my dad told me when I began internship searching and again when I began job searching. I thought he was crazy because (a) I didn't know anyone with whom to network and (b) I was convinced that getting a job was as easy as sending your resume to HR. Boy, was I wrong. I told everyone I knew that I was looking for an internship or a job and, long story short, my networking paid off. 

Networking is important, but there is such thing as too much networking. Here are some networking tips & tricks to keep you on track when job searching:

• Tell your friends and family that you are looking for a job. They may have connections or know of job openings at their companies or their friends may have openings. The possibilities are endless.
• If you're looking to move up in the same company or field, ask your people in your company questions about how they got where they are now. But don't ask too many questions or make them feel like they are on an interview. It can be uncomfortable for them and they may realize that you are up to something. Not to mention, it is a little annoying. 
  
• Even when you're not looking for a new job keep in touch with people who may be helpful in your future. This includes new coworkers, old bosses and friend. A general rule of thumb is to contact a person at least every 3 months, once a quarter. 
• Develop and maintain relationships.
• Confide in coworkers that you trust. Or at the very least, tell them what your career goals are and find out if they can help. 
• Help those people who are networking with you. They can return the favor someday. And, if you're lucky, your company may offer an incentive for recommending a new hire. I received $500 (more like $300 after taxes, but still!) when someone I recommended was hired. 
• If someone gives you a lead, gets you an interview, don't just thank the interviewer, thank the person that helped you. They will be more willing to help you again. 

Network Working Girls, Network!

Brrr It's Cold in Here!

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas...in my office. It's the middle of July - hot and humid and gross - but once I walk into that office it's like I am immediately transported to the month of January - cold and cold and cold. 

As the summer months get hotter and hotter (I personally blame global warming for this summer's atrociousness), offices turn up the air conditioning and leave their employees literally shaking in their Uggs which they have to bring to work because it's so freakin' cold. 

It's gotten so frigid at my company's office that I have resorted to using my crazy, might explode any minute lamp everyday because it gives off an insane/unhealthy amount of heat and warms my little shivering fingers as I work. As I was avoiding work by taking a "stroll" around the office yesterday, I also realized that my co-workers all do similar little things to keep the cold from affecting them on a daily basis. I loved all their ideas on how to stave off the cold. So here are my findings in neat little bullet points. 

• Keep a blanket underneath your desk for particularly cold days. This little trick can even help in the winter when it's super duper cold outside (yes, I just said super duper).
• Pashminas are a classy and fashionable way to beat the cold. My office is a huge fan of White + Warren travel wraps. Yes, they are expensive but also toasty warm and look good on every body (seriously, Sisterhood of the Traveling Wrap). 
• Some people even buy space heaters for their cubicles during the summer months. I find this a tad bit extreme but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do to stay warm. 
• Switch out your flip flops and open-toed sandals for slippers once you sit down for the day. Easy to slip on and off, they protect your toes from air conditioning. 
• And if those little tips do nothing for you, my last suggestion is complain because if you say it enough you might just make a difference (and you'll become the office hero!). 

Now I'm going to see if I can get HR to spring for a space heater for my cubicle because at this rate August will probably feel like a blizzard in February. 

I Kissed A Coworker and I Liked It

Ok, I didn't hook up with a coworker. In fact, when I told WG2 that I was going to write about hooking up with coworkers she sarcastically said to me "Why? Because you have so much experience?"

She's right, I have little experience hooking up with coworkers. Unless you count when I was the commentary editor of my college newspaper and I started hooking up with the editor in chief. Yes, my working boy and I have quite the dorky story. But that doesn't mean we didn't get hot and heavy once or twice. Ok, just once and we got interrupted. Awkward.

WG2 actually has her own story about hooking up with a coworker but I'll let her tell that one herself. I'm going to tell you a story about my friend, we'll call her LP after her favorite designer Lilly Pulitzer, who innocently went to happy hour and hooked up with a coworker. LP works in the financial district, what she does exactly, I have no idea. But she works with many a hot working boy.

Now, LP loves her white wine almost as much as she loves a preppy boy in a collared shirt and pink gingham oxford shorts. This happy hour she got plenty of both. And plenty of Grey Goose. We'll call LP's hookup BW. BW told LP that he would take her home because she was drunk. LP could have taken a company paid car home but what's a drunk Working Girl to do? In this case, go with the working boy. I won't go into detail about what exactly happened when they hooked up because (a) she didn't tell me and (b) we're not that kind of blog.

The next day is what really matters, as it always does after a drunken hook up. The next day, LP was not in a good place. She was hungover. BW, knowing she would have a raging hangover, kindly brought her a water in the morning. Later in the day, her coworkers kindly informed her that he was married.

After the fateful night, LP and BW went to lunch a few times and LP noticed that this working boy doesn't wear his wedding band. Either he is a bad husband or he really isn't married. That is still to be determined. Either way, LP came to the conclusion that another hook up was not in the future. That was until the Training Class Graduation happy hour. There was more white wine, more Grey Goose shots and more of preppy BW. A party soon followed at a nearby apartment. Long story short, LP and BW proceeded to hook up in the master bedroom.

Every so often BW brings LP coffee. LP doesn't even like coffee, she drinks Sunkist Orange Soda for breakfast, but everytime he brings it she pretends that she does. And that's just the beginning of the awkwardness...

Wii While You Work

WG1 and I would like to apologize. We know. We've been delinquent bloggers. We blame this on a few things: the summer weather, our love of the Jersey Shore, and the fact that we're moving at the end of the month and are soon to be homeless (and just an fyi if you live in the Hoboken area and need a mattress, couch, dresser, etc. let us know as we are selling all our shiznit). So in short we apologize. 

Now back to our regular scheduled programming. 

A few weeks ago, I opened Outlook to find an e-mail that had been sent to the entire company announcing that The CEO had bought Wii (yes, I repeat Wii). Originally our new Wii was to be used exclusively that Friday when the e-mail had been sent out. However, after much persuasion, The CEO has decided to let our new Wii system live in the large conference room to be available for after-hours, break times, and as a stress reliever. 

I have heard rumors of companies that will do things like this for their employees - like a lot of movie production companies have Guitar Hero or ping pong tables so waiting clients have something to do while waiting for their materials and I've heard that Google has a skating ramp so employees can take their scooters and skateboards for a joy ride when stressed. I guess I just never thought my company (one that barely lets us expense cab rides) would man up and purchase something totally and completely fun that had absolutely nada to do with anything corporate related. 

I have to admit that the Wii has already started to bring us co-workers closer. For instance, last Friday I played a quick game of tennis with some of the new tech guys. And while I'm sure they probably won't ask me for another game in the near future (let's just say I have yet to master the Wii backhand or forehand for that matter), I do know that I've made some new friends all because of our new entertainment system. And I now know that our Senior VP is super competitive (aka do not engage in a game of bowling with him...ever). 

And Wii is pretty great with stress relieving. One round of baseball after a bad conference call last week and I was good to go for my next grueling meeting. 

Despite all of Wii's positives, my next order of business is bugging The CEO into getting Rock Band for the office. Because my guitar solos are insanely spectacular and I sure would love to hear The Boss rock out to "Roxanne".  

A Working Girl in Beantown

'A Working Girl in...' is a post written by a contributing writer that appears on Working Girl twice a month. This week's post was written by a Working Girl living in Boston, Massachusetts and her job at an internet marketing company. 

Last year, I graduated from an A #1 university in Connecticut and I made my triumphant return back to my hometown of Boston. I was ready to grab my own title in this city of champions - a marketing title that is. And with that title, I was looking for an office - preferably a corner office (with a view too) and it wouldn't hurt if it was over-looking the Charles. 

There was just one small teeny tiny problemo. There were no jobs amigos. Nada, zip, zilch. Nope, even after months of applying and endless interviews I had returned home to find myself unemployed and living with my parents and three siblings in our loud and crowded home. At this point, what is a determined Working Girl to do?

In this my case, it meant reverting to my summer job on Cape Cod, waiting tables, and living with my grandmother in another loud and crowded house.  And although my dreams of a corner office, a corporate card, and a VP title right out of college had been dashed, a great summer did await me. I had lots of good friends, great family, plenty of beaches and tons of booze, and even a hot summer romance. I spent my summer making tons of cash (but spending most of it), laying out on the beach, and hanging with friends and my summer beau-hunk. Like all good things though, summer came to an end - as did my seasonal employment (as well as my beau in case you were wondering).

It was time to say my goodbyes and head over that bridge to the "real world." I bit the bullet and after a few interviews I finally landed a job at an internet marketing company outside of the Hub. No corner office, no cushy title, no corporate card, but it's a start. First of all, it's a marketing position, which is what I have been searching for all these months. I have learned a great deal and have worked on some interesting projects. 

I can't lie though, this is not the start I had hoped for myself and I can't help but feel that I am slightly overqualified (ie: it's 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday as I'm writing this and I'm finished the projects that my boss had thought would take me the rest of this week so I plan to spend most of the rest of this day writing this article and looking online at clothes I can't afford). But as the news and gas prices keep indicating, these are hard times. So I can't help but think at least it's a start, right? Right?

In this question lies my inner struggle as a fairly new Working Girl. Am I being greedy or presumptuous wanting more? Or have I settled for too little? Which makes me wonder...would I settle for just an OK pair of jeans or a mediocre boyfriend? Absolutely not! So why am I settling for a job I am fairly confident I am better than?

With this revelation I have begun the big search. Somewhere in this city lies my dream job - one where I'm busy more than two hours a day and I have projects assigned to me that actually interest me. But as my search continues, I know one variable that will remain constant. I will always live in the city that I love. Even if your job totally blows, in Boston you can at least count on being able to get a half day once a year to attend a championship parade. I kid. But truly, Boston is a great place to live and work (not to mention all the attractive Working Boys in Beantown). If you've never been to Boston, let me tell you, it's a great place to come and stay forever.

Yeah, I said forevah. We're not just a city of "wicked pissah sports teams" (although we have plenty of those). Boston has a great nightlife, good food, and great drinks. We have no problem getting hammered and doing karaoke on a Wednesday. We're superstitious and we look out for each other, and if you're not with us, you're against us. We won't tolerate fakers or liars (with the exception of a few of our own athletes and politicians of course). Not only that, but we're responsible for Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, NKOTB, and Good Will Hunting. We will however not take credit for Ben Affleck, but you can certainly thank us for real New England Clam Chowder, basketball, Vineyard Vines, Cheers, Aerosmith, Steve Carrell (and most of the cast of The Office) and much much more.

The moral of my story - yeah, so my job pretty much totally sucks right now, but I have faith that something better will come along. And I can deal with it for now, because I live in a city that knows how to have a good time - even if it has to wait to start until after 5:00.

Interns: Helpful or Not Worth the Trouble?

Confession: I love to eavesdrop and be nosey.  It started when I was a young girl sitting outside of my parent's bedroom listening to my mom talk on the phone with her friends. The neighborhood gossip, while completely over my head, intrigued my young mind.

Lately, I have been intrigued by our interns. I want to know what is going on in their unexperienced heads. I want to know why they aren't thrilled at the opportunity they have. I want to know why they don't follow instructions. Basically, I want to know why they suck. And they do, with the exception of one, suck. 

The interns have generic e-mails and sit at shared computers in closets, I mean workrooms. While looking for something in one of the said workrooms, I looked at the computer screen and noticed several e-mails from Intern 1 to Intern 3. Yes, I read them. They discussed how bored they were, complained that all they did was make copies and just couldn't wait to go home and sleep. Granted, I hadn't given them much to do that day, but they don't deserve the benefit of the doubt. As an intern, there will be times you are bored and when this happens you have to be proactive. Ask if there is anything you can help with, do research on the company or industry, sit down with a coworker to find out more about their job. 

I was fairly pissed after reading the e-mails but I held in my anger. I couldn't go to my coworker who I manage the interns with and just tell her I read their e-mails. The next day, my coworker had a confession: She read the e-mails too! 

We immediately decided that some manual labor was in order. Intern 1 and Intern 3 were asked to clean and organize the promotion closet, which was about a clean as New York City subway station. This, like many of their other projects, was done poorly. Intern 2, our all-star intern, had to come in and redo their project. This, unfortunately, is becoming a trend. Our entire department wants to only give projects to Intern 2 and Interns 1 and 3 are left twiddling their thumbs because no one trusts them to do a good job. I've explained to them how to do certain projects as best I can and given them tips from when I was an intern. Nothing seems to stick with them.

And to top it off, Intern 1 was sick one day last week so she did not come into the office. Do you think she called or e-mailed to let anyone know? Nope. She said she didn't have our contact information. First of all, my coworker had given Intern 1 her business card the day before. Second of all, shouldn't she have this information from an e-mail about interviewing or something. And finally, she's been working for 4 weeks, only three days a week I might add, and she's taking a sick day? I've been working for 1 year and 2 months. I've taken ZERO sick days. She was probably hungover. Even I come in when I'm hungover and let's just say I'm known for my bad hangovers. 

I'm trying my hardest to get through to these interns, teach them the ins and outs of the industry, guide them in the direction of good work etiquette, help them be good interns. But they are just not getting it. 

Nothing a Little Midol Can't Fix

There are often stressful days or weeks at work and last week stress and PMS collided and caused me to break-out, nearly break-down in front of my boss and want to cry after work everyday. 

Usually the only change I notice in my behavior when I'm PMSing at work is my food intake. There is always candy, cookies and other goodies sitting by my co-worker's desks. Last week, there was a birthday which called for a huge display from The Popcorn Factory (I ate about half of it). It also didn't help that there was a new addition to the vending machine, Butterfingers, and it was BBQ week in the cafeteria. Hello, cornbread slathered with butter. 

For the entire week, I was overly stressed about deadlines. I was convinced that our September deadlines came out of nowhere and so did two projects that I just found out were my responsibility. My e-mails to clients were hurried and frantic, e-mails to my coworkers were even more so. 

I even had to be a tattle-tale and go to my boss about one of my coworkers when she handed me a multi-advertiser project that needed to be approved in two days. Let's just say, that's impossible. Seriously, impossible. The project was now mine, in my hands, my responsibility. I was not about to take the blame for a project that was not originally mine and was handed to me late. So I told. My other coworkers said it was the right thing to do. I wanted to cry, I felt awful as I sat in my boss's office as he grilled my coworker about the disorganization of a the project. 

Later in the week, WG2, some friends and I saw The Little Mermaid on Broadway. Before the first act was over, I was on the verge of tears. It was The Little Mermaid! What was going on with me? Stress and PMS, that's what was going on. The next morning, before work, I just let myself have a good cry in the shower. Sometimes that's all you need, a good cry.

The PMS has passed but the stress is still there. I survived the week on Butterfingers, BBQ and by taking free tampons from the women's bathroom. Thank God, it's a long weekend. 

April's Fools Day...Everyday

In my experience, practical jokes are a never-ending business of life. Practical jokes follow us wherever we go. High school, college, even work. 

At my high school senior pranks were serious business. We made the freshman dress up like babies (think pacifiers and booties - yes, i mean serious). We took every single desk in the right wing of the school outside before the first day of school and made the sophomores and juniors carry them back in. And a few freshman even had to kiss our Birkenstock-clad feet. Ok, so it wasn't exactly Dazed and Confused, but in high school you could get away with things like that and it was seen as funny (mainly because it was supervised). 

College followed a similar pattern. The most tame being the time our guy friends disconnected our air conditioning unit and hid it in their house which we girls followed by a retaliation of "kidnapping" a reluctant subject (just an fyi: pantyhose over your face disguises nothing) and stealing all of their knick knacks, posters, and clothes. Let's just say our college pranks almost lost us some friends. 

Work has turned into my new playground of practical jokes. My gay, 45-year-old, and Cuban best friend at work was the king of making Power Point presentations during our Biggest Loser competition. These Power Points painted the competition as satanical creatures eating Burger King. But we have to keep in mind that my gay bff did win the competition so he must have been doing something right. 

But my favorite practical joke was the time that a few girls in the office foil-papered everything in one of our bosses office - his stapler, his mugs, his plants. It was so Office-esque that it got me thinking. Why stop practical joke wars in high school or college? Work is a great place to have (responsible) practical joke fun. To follow are my pick for the top four practical jokes that should be done by all people at some point during their office career (depending of course on the cool factor of their boss). 

1. Jell-O was made infamous by my favorite Working Boy Jim on The Office, which is why one day I will go to the store, buy a "World's Best Boss" mug, and encase it in Jell-O. I will then place it on my boss's desk and wait for hilarity to ensue. Or to get fired.

2. As I was googling "office pranks" at work the other day (come on, who doesn't?), I ran across this little number. Post-its covering every single nook and cranny of a corner office! How great is that. Sure, it might take a few extra hours but it would be so. worth. it. 

3. This might best the easiest of the four, but sure would make me smile. Blow up a ton of balloons and fill the cubicle with them. The plus side to this one is an easy clean-up.

4. And my favorite office prank has to be making all your co-worker's desk supplies into cardboard cut-outs. Hilarious. Simply hilarious. 

Excuse me while I go buy some Jell-O.