15 + 6 points
Work is So Strange by alice gray
September 6th, 2006 2:50 PM
(As Ian's answer described a work-related strange thing that had not happened actually quite within the last week, I guess this one can count too...)
As a gallery supervisor at a science museum, it's my job to be outgoing and helpful to patrons, and to watch out for both the visitors and the exhibits. The people-watching is no longer novel, though it's usually still quite educational; for example, I have a good rough idea of what thirteen year olds are wearing in the suburbs this season, and how many front teeth a six year old has, as opposed to a five year old. Incidentally, one of the specific tasks of this job is to try to keep small children from getting lost.
While tending the Robots gallery last fall, I saw a very small child toddle up to a complex wide-screen Game of Life exhibit, and start to play with it. To reach higher, she got up on a stool normally used to sit in front of the screen and watch it change. There was no nanny or parent or sibling around her, so I came up to her gently and asked if she was having fun, where her people were... her face shut down, she dropped her arms to her side, and scowled and turned away from me refusing to face me. I paused, fingered my radio; usually our lost child searches begin when someone reports a child missing. I tried again to speak to the little girl, moving to face her. She turned away from me again.
A few minutes later (a long time away from a toddler!) a young woman came around the corner calling for her and scolding. Relieved, I explained that I'd been with her for the last five minutes and that it's not a good idea anywhere to leave that long with a toddler. Her guardian said, "Oh, she's eight. We get that all the time. She's a dwarf." And suddenly I could imagine her frustration and angry, and tried to apologize, but she still refused to look at me.
Her height, movement, and proportions really looked like a toddler's. I still wonder what her teeth looked like.
As a gallery supervisor at a science museum, it's my job to be outgoing and helpful to patrons, and to watch out for both the visitors and the exhibits. The people-watching is no longer novel, though it's usually still quite educational; for example, I have a good rough idea of what thirteen year olds are wearing in the suburbs this season, and how many front teeth a six year old has, as opposed to a five year old. Incidentally, one of the specific tasks of this job is to try to keep small children from getting lost.
While tending the Robots gallery last fall, I saw a very small child toddle up to a complex wide-screen Game of Life exhibit, and start to play with it. To reach higher, she got up on a stool normally used to sit in front of the screen and watch it change. There was no nanny or parent or sibling around her, so I came up to her gently and asked if she was having fun, where her people were... her face shut down, she dropped her arms to her side, and scowled and turned away from me refusing to face me. I paused, fingered my radio; usually our lost child searches begin when someone reports a child missing. I tried again to speak to the little girl, moving to face her. She turned away from me again.
A few minutes later (a long time away from a toddler!) a young woman came around the corner calling for her and scolding. Relieved, I explained that I'd been with her for the last five minutes and that it's not a good idea anywhere to leave that long with a toddler. Her guardian said, "Oh, she's eight. We get that all the time. She's a dwarf." And suddenly I could imagine her frustration and angry, and tried to apologize, but she still refused to look at me.
Her height, movement, and proportions really looked like a toddler's. I still wonder what her teeth looked like.
2 vote(s)
Terms
(none yet)2 comment(s)
posted by the white bread cancer on September 7th, 2006 9:16 AM
spooky. "Oh, she's eight. We get that all the time. She's uncanny."
that's awesome. I wish I had votes left.
yay! now I do!