Cutie? Why not gorgeous?

My boss just remarked on my level of perkiness today. This was in response to me sticking my head in his office all smiley with a "Hiya boss!" on my way down the hall for coffee.

Coffee! With cocoa! Caffeine! And sugar! Clearly I need to sit tight. I do not need a second cup of coffee.

Perk level, I must admit, is rather high lately.

We have this thing at my office called Quiet Time. Like, if you need to not be bugged, you can slide a panel on your name plate aside to show the Quiet Time sign. But it is small and easily overlooked, and so I usually make my own.

Sometimes people respect it, and sometimes people deliberately ignore it. I've occasionally blocked off my cube with a chair with an enormous QUIET TIME sign pinned to it, and people have stood outside my cube with their hands resting on the back of the chair, talking over it to me.

But anyway.

Since Monday I have had a Quiet Time sign - written on paper with big, black marker - stuck to the outside of my cube. Because I need some uninterrupted think time.

So yesterday my boss came by to grab me for a meeting. I've said before that I really like him, and we have a great rapport. We sometimes hang out socially, and even when I say random and shocking things, he often thinks they're funny. He often says equally, if not more, shocking things, and so he'd be the pot calling the kettle if he judged me for it.

He's a couple years older than me, and reminds me a lot of my brother. This makes it so easy for me to relate to him even though we're very different.

So yesterday I was extremely focused on something when he appeared, and didn't actually look up till I heard him speak.

He said, or anyway, what I heard him say, was, "Hi cutie!"

I gave him a look. "Cutie? So. Inappropriate."

And then I gave him a fake simpering smile and said, "But who doesn't love a compliment? So thanks!"

He rolled his eyes at me. He pointed at my sign. "Q. T. Quiet Time. Dork."

Oh. Heh.