We were enjoying one last hurrah
THERE’S nothing quite like the bond you share with workmates; strangers who end up sharing the weirdest in-jokes, the people you see more than your friends or family.
Well, until 2020 – the year when colleagues became pixels on a screen, an email, another ping on your messenger app.
When this column was first handed to us, three BFFs working on the same newsdesk by day and hitting the bar by night, we were babies.
Yes, we were in our late 20s and early 30s… but our generation clings to youth just a little bit longer, so forgive us for a few tipsy nights out and queasy mornings at work the next day.
If anything, we were just enjoying a last hurrah before coronavirus, never mind adulthood, came calling and robbed the whole country of a social life…
Two years later and, between the three of us, we’ve amassed two husbands and a longterm relationship, several new homes and, very soon, a baby BFF.
Our fellow columnist Magdalene heads off on maternity leave shortly to relax and prepare for her new arrival – and probably more than a few sleepless nights. If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know that our Mags hasn’t had an easy time of it, finding out she was pregnant during lockdown and going through hospital appointments, fears and worries with less face-to-face support than she may have otherwise had.
Still, she has handled it like a hero, showing a resilience we all knew was there and staying calmer than we’ve ever seen her before – and that includes those days when the boss called her into his office, raging hangover in tow.
Like everyone working from home, those are the milestone moments you miss. Who else would kill to shower their workmate with cupcakes and balloons right about now, to celebrate major life events in person?
Our BFF’s baby joy put into focus what we miss most about office life; those short and sweet chats in the canteen, the giggles around the desk and the chance to celebrate the highs and commiserate the lows of everyday life.
Yes, we’ve grabbed a few walks in the park in the last year, catching up on work gossip – and probably enjoying more fresh air than we ever did when putting in long hours at the office. But we miss each other daily as we adjust to living life remotely and we can’t be alone, with much of Scotland now working from their bedrooms or kitchen tables.
So it’s time for one of the BFFs to hang up her columnist hat, temporarily, and focus on a new chapter in her life ... and the two of us still sitting at a computer can dream about a time when we can wet that beautiful baby’s head in person, talk about how much life has changed and see work friends that have become so much more over the past two years.