Unfiltered Story #264594

(It’s the middle of September and a little rainy this morning, but the afternoon is predicted to be really warm. We’re having our morning meeting and talking about the weather before getting into what needs to be done for the day.)

Manager: “This afternoon’s supposed to be super windy, so be careful when you leave. Somebody hold onto [My Name] so she doesn’t fly away.”

Coworker: “We could tie a string around her!” *mimics flying a kite*

Manager: “Yeah, we’d see her ’cause she’s red! And now we’re embarrassing her, so she’s even more red.”

(I’m used to being teased about my shortness and my red hair, so this isn’t new, but it’s awkward, and I blush easily. I was expecting the joke about me flying away the minute he started talking about wind, but not the rest of it. I just go with it and say the first thing to pop into my head as the joking continues for a second.)

Me: “And I park the farthest away, so…”

(Only by three or four parking spaces, but it’s still the furthest away from the building, at the edge of the parking lot. Old habit from previous jobs.)

Manager: “Hey, maybe that’s what I should tell my wife we should do when I get home today! Take the boys to the park and fly kites!”

(I was relieved the conversation left me. And it wasn’t *that* windy when I left that afternoon, so I didn’t fly away! And my boss forgot that he scheduled me for an hour less than my coworkers for whatever reason, so I wouldn’t have had anyone to keep me grounded, anyway.)