Topic: Your social environment

[PyroMenace]

This is something thats been forming into my head for a long time now. I'm a pretty introverted person, don't talk unless talked to, I dont make an effort to not talk, its just I'm more comfortable this way. So my only social life to speak of is where I work, and the time I spend with my friends, but mostly its where I work. I've been working at this hospital for over a year now and I still have a rough time adjusting to people. I know almost everyone who works on every shift and I'm on good terms with probably a good percentage of them. That is to say "good terms" as in they are friendly to me so I am friendly to them.  This "good terms" relationship is mostly the only thing I can keep around this place. The reason I've had problems with adjusting for so long is that about 90% of conversation subject matter among co-worker has been about bad rep to other co-workers. Its usually toward our management which I can agree sucks ass, but the repetition of complaints is fucking staggering. And if heaven forbid its not about them, then its about someone else they work with. Now I know everyone who has a job has a problem with at least one person they work with, but I ask you, do they fucking talk about them every time you engage conversation with them? Now I will be honest, Im not innocent of doing this, in fact, its all become such a migraine for me I've done it just to fit in, but I have to confess I feel like shit doing it. There has been a lot of days I just completely ignore everyone and just nod to make the quickest conversation possible, its just so hard to keep an even keel with everybody so I just give up. You make close friends with one person, and your automatically enemies with others, its social politics, which is why I keep to myself. I guess this is why I come here. There is no politics to speak of because your voice is viewed by all. It's probably why I have a hard time amongst an actual non-internet setting. Anyway, I have tomorrow off thank goodness, all Ive done for the passed few days is sleep and work so I have this compulsion to get this out of my system.

[Raisa]

sounds horrible.. people talking like that behind their co-workers backs.  I'm lucky to work with people who don't like doing that and we usually talk about fun times.  Any time that's spent talking about something other than work is usually very nice and lively.

Of course there are disagreements... but that's the way it really is.

I choose to only speak when I have to.  There's enough work to keep me busy and away from talking for months and months on end. Then it gets to a point where I need to get away from anything that's work related and go for a walk or exercise or visit someone I don't work with. 

Like yourself, this results in a very limited social life.  I can get along with anyone i want, and i can be a total socialite but I like being alone. It's so much simpler. 

[Xessive]

A lot of people gossip and it is truly irritating. I generally don't associate or get along with anyone who consistently gossips, mainly because I call them on it and ask them to stop; naturally I become their next target.

Social environments like that can't be good; they have to inevitably crumble, but they seem to survive because people shift a lot and new faces come in. I guess the best option is to generally keep to yourself, as you do.

I can't decide if I'm introverted or extroverted. I figure I'm a little bit of both, and I choose depending on the circumstances.

[Quemaqua]

Work is weird that way.  I hate basically everyone that I work with, though I pretty much get along with everyone on the surface.  I speak to them as little as possible, though, and do my best to keep from hearing them talk to each other.  They're shallow, pathetic people in general whom I want nothing to do with.  It sounds bad, and I don't mean to say that things aren't friendly between us, I just don't have anything in common with them or they with me.  I have one friend at the office and she and I are only sort of loosely associated because she tends to bring a lot of her personal shit into the office with her.

So yeah, I know what it's like to hear stuff you don't want to from people you work with.  We bitch about the bosses a lot, but we really don't have much else to do, let alone anything else to talk about.

[nickclone]

If you hang out with anyone you work with you're going to have to talk about work, it's the only connection you have. If you don't do that, you're just going to have constant small talk and we all know small talk sucks.

[ren]

It's just common ground. Your coworkers want to socialize as much as you. That one guy that everybody hates is the one thing that everybody can talk about. If you find other common ground with people, they'll probably be just as happy to move onto that and off the gossip. That's the thing about people at work though, it's hard to establish relationships where you can just talk about anything.