Proofer talk

Yesterday I made some steps in overcoming my at-work shyness when my supervisor invited me to a "team meeting." Because I am now like a robot, I didn't realize that I am actually in a team. So I walked into the fish bowl -- I think every company's conference room is called the "fishbowl" -- and joined the nine other ladies sitting, with their attention fixed on Ms. Supervisor. "So this is my team," I thought, as I considered sitting next to the two other proofreaders.

Let me say this: I think proofreaders are universally alike in that we judge for a living and everyone who doesn't understand us, fears us because we hold the power to tell you that your work is shit and slam it down on your desk. I'm not that mean...but I have the capacity and somehow I think I'd be allowed to behave that way because everyone expects it. We're never really part of the company because we could do this job anywhere, kind of like IT people or file clerks. So we band together and judge not only your work, but everything about you.

I didn't sit next to them at the meeting -- as a part-timer, I'm not really part of their group either...hence the robotic tendencies. Yes, they're nice and helpful, but as a newcomer, I feel the hesitation on their part to let me in their elite group of feared judges.

So anyway, I quickly realized the meeting is not a meeting, but a time to dish, talk about the flooded bathrooms and people who aren't in this particular team. This is what happens when you stick 10 ladies in a room and business is stable.

The one piece of useful information I took from this meeting is that I may not be part-time forever. Ms. Supervisor said something to the effect that "she's part-time for now; but if we're lucky, we might be able to get her in full-time." That is good news -- my pocketbook is throbbing in anticipation.