TheBanyanTree: gratitude for smartypants and jokesters

[Julie Anna Teague]

I have to stop here, for just a moment, and sing the praises of those around me
here at work who see the need for and the value of workplace humor.  Thank you,
Darren, for emailing the following, in response to an apology for adding to the
confusion of a technical issue: 

"Don't worry.  We've got enough confusion in general that a bit more doesn't
hurt anything.  In fact, a few more bits of confusion and we're going to make an
aggressive move, corner the market on it, and raise the cost of confusion until
we're all madly wealthy. Since you've contributed to our impending world
domination, we'll cut you in."

And thanks go to Ethan who is always a crack-up.  I told him that adding some
duplicate values to this table I maintain was not going to work.  He said he was
making changes to the program, and promised it would work.  It didn't work.  I
wrote back, saying, "Remember, unique keys are all that stands between us and
the chaos of the universe."  He replied, "Yes, I have created a glitch in the
Matrix."  Ethan told me, once, that while he enjoys my emails that begin with
"Criminy!", he especially likes the ones that start with "ACK!"  

My buddys John and Lisa, too, consistently show their human side with
sarcastically humorous remarks and a "f*ck 'em if they can't take a joke"
attitude.  They keep me laughing through the insanity of government student loan
reporting which is never, ever funny. (Don't smile.) Ever. (Dooon't smile....)
Really.   

And my undying gratitude goes out to my Internal Auditing posse.  They could've
made my life miserable this week.  That is, in fact, part of their job.  But
they chose, instead, to approach an audit of my area with a sense of humor and
good-natured calm.  I got the sense that these people actually understood that
while we strive for perfection, it ain't brain surgery we're doing here.  

And Peter and Patrick--these guys are University Registrars fer crying out loud,
with many serious concerns, and yet they keep their humor about them and banter
it about with me on a regular basis. 

Truly, I am grateful to these few folks who make my job more enjoyable, who
welcome humor and dish it out in return.  The rest--who wouldn't know humor if
it bit them in the arse, who wouldn't crack a smile, much less a joke, who are
serious as funeral directors every second of every day--they can eat my socks.

Julie