Work Life Balance

6-10-2006 - 10:39 p.m.

My boyfriend's company had a huge happy hour bash out on Navy Pier Friday afternoon. I attended, but that kind of stuff makes me palpably uncomfortable. I don't like mixing my work and personal selves and I get weirded out when other people do. In fact, my boyfriend makes fun of me for going to such great lengths to keep those two worlds separate. Work friends are work friends. Personal friends are personal friends. Mixing the two would be like mixing vodka and tequila... utterly pukey.

I don't make personal phone calls at work. Friends are not allowed to visit my office. My boyfriend will in no way ever appear at my office's holiday party (what would hot IT guy think? Or my new work crush, the over-achiever who looks like Tom Cruise and who I just found out has a not-so-secret crush on me too?)

I guess I'm a freakishly private person when it comes to that stuff. Maybe I like to maintain an air of independence in the office. Maybe I like to keep my hot guy co-workers guessing. Maybe I don't like to even acknowledge my personal self-- it shows weakness, after all. All I do know is that it fucking pisses me off when those two worlds come crashing together.

Before - After