I now bring you a very special edition of Funny Things Overheard At Work.
So I was sending off a work-related email to my coworker Adam. I began typing his email address into Microsoft Outlook. Outlook, being helpful, provided a list of recently used email addresses that were similar to the one I was typing.
I paused. I glanced surreptitiously at Adam over at the next desk. I wondered what occasion had led the previous owner of my work computer (my boss) to send an email to this particular email address.
Resolving that the incident was, at best, mildly amusing, I ignored the unhelpful suggestion from Microsoft and proceeded to send the email, and banished thought of the strange address from my mind.
About half an hour later Adam came over to me to see if I had gotten an email from him. I had not, so he set about jiggering with Outlooks preferences in an attempt to ascertain the problem. Once the issue had been resolved, he started a new email as a test - addressed to himself.
You can see where this is going. As Adam begins typing his own name, Outlook once more provides a helpful list of recently used email addresses.
His typing slows and then stops. His eye twitches involuntarily. His eyes are bulging. I sit nervously, marveling at how something so awkward could eventually become something so hilarious.
Adam clears his throat.
“Why do you have that email address listed?”
Was he accusing me?!
“I don’t know,” I said. “It was already there. Tim must have used it.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.”
“So, do you want to know what its for?”
“I don’t know, do I?”
As it turns out, this email address was set up by one of Adam’s college buddies when Adam got engaged. His friends had decided to throw him a bachelor party (they FORCED me to go to Vegas…), and had set up the group email address in order to communicate with all of their friends at once. After Adam had gotten married, the group continued to use the email address to communicate, since it had proven decidedly convenient, despite Adam’s (and his wife’s) objections. So I guess Adam and my boss are close enough that my boss would be included in these group emails.
Its still awkward though.
