Catharine (the daughter) and I went to go see Horrible Bosses yesterday. Funny movie, kind of raunchy, I love Jason Bateman and Jason Sudekis, and I've almost gotten over getting all freaked out sitting next to my daughter during sex scenes and f-word-riddled dialogue. My review: go see it.
You know the premise of the movie, right? Three guys have these absolutely horrible bosses (hence the title) and the movie is all about how they try (ineptly) to kill off these bad bosses. Naturally, after it was over, I started thinking about the bosses I've had during my career, and was stopped short by one thing: Every single job I've had since I got out of college has been with some sort of Catholic church-related institution.
In other words, I've only worked for priests.
My first boss out of college was a priest, and since then even if my immediate boss wasn't a priest, his or her boss was a priest. Priests. Seriously. Priests. Isn't that nuts? I got a job out of college working as an associate editor for a magazine in Chicago, a dream job for any journalism major graduating in 1985, when jobs were scarce and lots of my fellow grads ended up waiting tables, working as secretaries in offices, or relegated to places like North Platte, Nebraska, where they were stuck writing obituaries and covering the collapse of the family farm. Me, I'm single, living in Chicago surrounded by a whole crew of my buddies, learning everything there is to know about magazine production--but here's the problem: because the magazine I'm working for is put out by the Jesuits, I'm surrounded by celibate men. Men who, if I'm to believe anything about the faith I grew up with, all have a direct line to God.
So much for dating opportunities at the office.
While my friends would regale me with stories about flirting with cute co-workers, I spent my days with a boss who collected mannequin heads, typed memos and manuscripts all in lowercase on scrap paper with an epileptic typewriter, and, at one point, turned the bathtub in his room into a duck pond. He lived in a primo house at Loyola University, right on the Chicago lakefront, and he'd invite me to dinner there occasionally, where I'd get to eat a good meal surrounded by a bunch of incredibly intelligent, interesting men. Awesome, right? Except because he was a Jesuit, he lived with a bunch of other Jesuits, and, well...let's just say it wasn't exactly Single Girl's Heaven.
My single friends and I would go out to the bars in Lincoln Park, striking up conversations with other singles and inevitably it would come up.
"What do you do?"
"I'm a magazine editor."
"What magazine?"
"It's called Company. You've probably never heard of it. It's put out by the Jesuits, they're an order of priests."
"Priests? Are you a nun? A religious fanatic?"
...and we're off.
The editor job morphed into another Jesuit-related job, and then...well, you get the general idea. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for anyone who's ever been dim enough to give me a job, and I can truly say that the majority of priests I've met have been wonderful, grace-filled men who have enriched my life and the life of my family. The direct line to God thing? As one of my best Jesuit buddies said, "Just because I'm a priest doesn't mean I'm not an a**hole. I just spend more time in church than the average guy." That's an understatement, to say the least, but as I started thinking about my work history in light of the movie we saw yesterday, I started to get a bit panicky. What if I am destined for eternal damnation, just because of the bad thoughts I've had about my former bosses and/or their bosses?
A quick phone call to my favorite Jesuit calmed my fears. He patiently explained, "Um, did you not take philosophy? Theology? Don't you go to church? Weren't you paying attention? You're not supposed to wish anyone dead, you idiot. Just because they're priests doesn't make it any worse. What's wrong with you? What kind of a person has a big moral quandary after seeing a cheesy R-rated movie? It's what, noon there? Have you been drinking?"
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm an idiot. But at least I'm an idiot who's made some good friends during the past 25+ years.
Thank God for that.
There was this nun who directed my practicum in college. The thoughts I had about her will land me in purgatory for a great long time. My current boss (you know, a priest) is a terrible leader, but a very good and decent man, so the worst I've thought about him is to wish he wasn't my boss. Or, frankly, here. (In Marshalltown, I mean. There's certainly room for him among the living!) Otherwise, I've been pretty blessed with good bosses. I have had some co-workers who have caused me to extend my stay in purgatory, if not stick my toe over the edge toward eternal damnation.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the line between being utterly exasperated with your boss--even possibly thinking horrible things about him/her and trying to off him/her is not fine. So don't worry.
Keep up the great work Brigid! Yet again I am laughing at the vivid picture you paint.....!
ReplyDeleteCathy
I've always had great bosses. Well, except for when I was self-employed. Bad boss. Bad employee. The most fun I had during that time was working with you and you-know-who, you know where. That thing that you would show me to try to crack me up in the middle of a business meeting when you-know-who made the AW... still cracks me up when I think about it. I really can't say more than that. I'd like to but I really can't. Except I'm loving your blog!
ReplyDelete