A Second Opinion

My boss likes to get a second opinion on most everything. When it comes to the new girl he might be blatant about it, by right out asking my favorite coworker and I the same question he asked her earlier, but only after she’s gone for the day. But when it comes to getting a second opinion on something my favorite coworker or I say, he’s a little sneakier. I guess out of respect for all the years we’ve put into our job.

So what stealthy tactic does he use when it comes to us? I use to think my boss either a) couldn’t remember who was working on a project, b) didn’t care who was working on it, or c) just assumed our brains were somehow connected so he could ask either and we both should know.

In some case it could be any of the above. But in most cases I’ve come to believe it is his way of checking up on us. He wants to make sure our stories match. So he plays dumb. He won’t ask the same question to both of us, but when one isn’t around he’ll ask the other one like he didn’t know or needed an update.

Like so: My boss will ask me the status of an order he knows damn well my favorite coworker is handling. By asking me, he knows I’ll have to do some checking. When I come back with my answer, he’ll make sure it matches my coworker’s earlier answer. As long as our stories match it’s all good.

In some cases when our answers don’t match -- which only happens because I’m checking on something I have no idea about and how are you expected to always answer correctly on something you aren’t working on -- well, in those cases, my boss will pipe up and reveal the answer my coworker already gave him.

In those "she said, I said" moments, all I can say is well, she’s right (and I want to say if you already knew then why the hell are you wasting my time, but I don’t because he’s paying me to waste time). After that I usually wait around for my coworker to resurface and I relive the whole ordeal through whispers and throat chocking gestures, and after all that, then I get my own second opinion when I ask her if I’m crazy or is he an...