Water Cooler Woes

There are some aspects of office life that get referenced in textbooks. One of the more recognized elements is Water Cooler Talk. For those unfamiliar, it’s a term used to define the gabbing sessions between co-workers, occurring usually in the morning, that tend to focus on the previous night’s happenings. The more popular discussion topics include television programs, nightly news items, and personal activities. This is definitely a ritual that is practiced at my place of employment and, as expected, appears to strengthen the connection between co-workers.

The other morning as I walked into the office and meandered over to my assigned territory, I noticed that a political discussion was brewing. While my focus at the time was on my morning tea, I tried to pick up as many passionate slurs and slanders as I could. It is always educational for me to listen to others’ opinions about people, topics and events. Although it mostly teaches me about the person of opinion, it also gives me a sense of what is defined to be of mainstream importance.

After trying to catch more than a few bits and pieces of the verbal dance being performed by several, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to participate in the discussion. Not because I don’t like bantering, but because I hadn’t done my Water Cooler Talk homework. I hadn’t directly watched the story that was requesting my opinion. And that was when I realized I’ve been slowing dying of thirst for the last few weeks.

Despite my life-long interest in women’s gymnastics, dating back to my somersault at birth resulting in a c-section delivery, the only moments of Olympic demonstration I witnessed were the Opening Ceremony and the first hour of the marathon competition. What?! To make matters worse, I didn’t watch a single moment of the JibJab National Conventions. Seriously?! What in the world have I been doing? I know I had to have watched some television during these historic times, right? After searching through the memory-bank, it turns out most of my tube time was the thirty minutes of nightly news with Brian Williams. Did I just assume YouTube would fill in the blanks if, and when, I became interested?

While I’m slightly embarrassed about my negligence with regard to watching these events (I never did try YouTube), I find that I am also intrigued by my decisions. Although I strongly believe in the global connection that is the result of the Olympics, and have great concerns with the political state of our country and excitement for its future, I guess I’m not sure I find the competition aspect of both as appealing as I once did.