Oh, the workplace.
To some it's their entire life - climbing that corporate ladder and showing the boardroom who the boss is. To others it's just what pays the bills - is it paycheck Friday yet? It can be a home away from home - complete with family photos and house slippers, or the place of dread and gloom where the devil goes to play (yes, I know of people who feel this way).
Thankfully, my workplace isn't the latter.
Instead, we're like a family. Yes, that sounds cliche, but it's entirely true. It's a small place and on any given day there are only five or six of us in the office and each of us have a niche. There's the quiet, wise one who surprises us from time to time with an impromptu funny story about people we've never met. The seemingly shy one has a secret streak of slyness while the loud one with the distinctive voice kinda sets the whole mood of the office on any given day. If his sports team just suffered a bad loss, tread lightly. Then there's me. I bake. The end.
Maybe one day I'll disclose all information about who does what to keep the place running at peak performance. Today, though, I'm just going to focus my efforts on one guy.
He doesn't work there full time. Actually, I'm not sure if he works there at all. Is he on the payroll? I have to check. Come to think of it, I don't think he is, but I swears he spends at least 15 hours a week there.
But back to the story...
Rico always seems to show up at the most random times with no warning. He could make his presence known while the office is dead silent and everyone is focused on work (since that's the reason we're actually there, I suppose) and that just messes up the vibe. Good luck getting anything accomplished for the next 5 minutes at least. Or he could barge in the door when things get kinda crazy and everyone is frazzled and running around like crazy - then we see him, let out a sigh to ourselves, say a prayer for The Lord to give us the patience to endure his stay and attempt to get back to work. Then there are times when he creeps in and we only realize it 25 minutes after he sits down in the chair in the corner reading the latest edition of Mayberry's weekly paper, sipping my Mt. Dew. Did I mention he steals drinks from the fridge? Just like a real employee.
Don't think that I dislike Rico's visits just because he steals my "Go Juice." On the contrary, when he comes I can't help but smile. While his personality isn't the most dazzling and his mannerisms lack in sophistication, he still makes himself at home and feels comfortable here, which I find refreshing for some weird reason. I've walked in before to see him sitting at my desk, smiling and awaiting my arrival. He'll sit on the couch in the lobby without speaking for a couple of hours and I'm pretty sure he's nodded off there a few times. When I bake, I'm sure to include enough for his visit, so that must say something, right? And I can't forget to mention his caring side. He'll make sure all of us are doing well and see if anyone needs anything. If someone is having a particularly rough day, he's there helping them through it the only way Rico knows how. I'm currently searching for the right word to describe what that is, though.
While he's not on the clock or any certain schedule, we still worry about him when more than a day has gone by without his whereabouts being known. And the truth is - if he were to ever stop coming by, I'd miss him but love the surplus of Mt. Dew on my shelf in the fridge.
So, here's to Rico. My un-official coworker but a part of our work family just the same. He better bring a case of Mt. Dew to our company picnic this summer.
Wait, we've never had one. Scratch that idea.
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