http://www.idkfa.com/v3 idkfa: syndicated http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4657 I suppose just about anything is better than a visceral grunt followed by a velociraptor-esque shriek when someone else reaches for the coffee pot before you can. The break room is the time when we are least human. conrad@idkfa.com (conrad) Look down, look down... Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:43:32 -0800 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4657 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4656 I'm with the other two. Break room chats never have very satisfying interactions. It always basically trails off awkwardly. It's an interlude chat. You can't say "have a nice day/evening/weekend" because you'll probably see them again before they leave for that. You can't say "nice talking to you" because you really didn't talk long enough for that to be true. It's not a real social interaction, it's a passing moment while you get your food/caffeine fix. There's no generally socially accepted way to deal with these so most people just walk away. The other alternate is looking at 20 million iPhone pictures of their grand children. lizinthelibrary@idkfa.com (lizinthelibrary) Look down, look down... Sat, 29 Sep 2012 20:25:22 -0800 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4656 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4655 Sounds like she had finished pouring her cup of coffee and was ready to leave. Break room interactions usually feel pretty forced, even when you know the people well. "All I want is my goddam Hungry Man dinner warmed up, I did not sign up for idle chit chat!" conrad@idkfa.com (conrad) Look down, look down... Sat, 29 Sep 2012 03:18:38 -0800 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4655 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4652 Sounds like typical small-talk to me. Scrotor@idkfa.com (Scrotor) Look down, look down... Fri, 28 Sep 2012 19:03:04 -0800 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4652 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4650 In the break room: Lady: "Are you new?" Josh: "Yeah, couple months now." Lady: "Where do you work?" Josh: "I work in I.S." Lady: "Ah, so what do you do?" Josh: "I sort of work with ___, keeping the data flowing, sorta." Lady: "Ah, all that interesting stuff." (walks away) Though I can't really convey it here, she said "all that interesting stuff" in a way that meant the absolute opposite. I can't decide if people just fear/dislike/misunderstand my association with my department in particular, or my association with technology in general. Maybe it's just people doing the usual self-deprecating, "I don't know anything about technology" shtick (as they whip their iPhone out of their pockets). Maybe I just identify too closely with technology to recognize a joke, or an attempt at one. kaiden@idkfa.com (kaiden) Look down, look down... Fri, 28 Sep 2012 13:20:59 -0800 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4650&msg_id=4650