Okay, I need to rant
I'm going to change some of the actual wording, just in case my coworker pops in here (she tends to haunt forums and anywhere else she can express her opinions), but here is the gist of my annoying day:
I'm a teacher and often, especially around this time of year, we get bogged down with work. When we first come in the morning, we spend what little precious time we have before class, prepping. Anyway, my co-worker, who is short in stature, used to be much bigger in width and had recently lost a lot of weight. She is EXTREMELY insecure and is constantly seeking validation. EVERY minute of EVERY flipping day, if it isn't about her weight, its about her work, or her hair, or whatever, and I suppose that it wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't so...whiny. I can only tell her how proud I am of her, etc. so many times before it gets exhausting. She is like an emotional vacuum cleaner, sucking up the kindness of colleagues who are trapped in the office with her. Example of the same typical conversation that I overhear with different colleagues, and which she also constantly initiates with me:
"Is this dress too tight on me?" (coworker will say no)
"Are you sure? Be honest." (coworker will say no, it looks fine)
"You wouldn't lie to me, would you?" (coworker, lying, saying no, I wouldn't lie to you. You look great)
"Ohh, I'm so glad that it looks okay, I worked so hard
"
(I added the emoticon because, I kid you not, she starts whimpering EVERYTIME, before bolting out of the room.)
Anyway, tired of having the same conversation with her everyday for the last eight months, I try to avoid her as much as possible. This morning, she approaches me while I am feverishly prepping and says:
"Remember that skirt of mine that you said you liked?"
(I say yes, eyes still on my work, because if you make eye contact, she will keep talking)
"Uhmm, you can have it if you like. It's too big on me (giggling), now that I have lost (she trails off as she sees the look on my face).... Oh, I didn't offend you, did I? I mean, well, uh, if you want it, you can have it."
Now I realize that a size 10 on someone who is 5'1 is different from a size 10 on someone who is 5'9, but the fact still remains that the whole attempt was just weird. I would only give and take clothing from close friends and my sister, never from a colleague that annoys me, and even if I were to ever offer clothing to a coworker, I would never coach my offer in those terms.
At this point, I'm afraid I lost my composure and tersely said "No! Thank you, but No!" The problem is that this coworker can't leave well enough alone and kept asking if I wanted it, and when I finally said, "No, no, no, no, NO. Thank you." She gave me the *whimper face* and stormed out of the office. At first, I was too busy to really let her actions sink in, but later, they did, and I started to get angry. By the end of the day, as I stood looking at the picture she has hanging over her desk of a smiling kitty wearing a crown with the words "To my favorite Princess" across the bottom
, I felt murderous.
I need other opinions--am I overreacting? I had a laugh over what happened with some other coworkers, but I keep going between thinking that the whole incident was so absurd it was funny, and wanting to burn that kitty poster she has above her desk.
I'm going to change some of the actual wording, just in case my coworker pops in here (she tends to haunt forums and anywhere else she can express her opinions), but here is the gist of my annoying day:
I'm a teacher and often, especially around this time of year, we get bogged down with work. When we first come in the morning, we spend what little precious time we have before class, prepping. Anyway, my co-worker, who is short in stature, used to be much bigger in width and had recently lost a lot of weight. She is EXTREMELY insecure and is constantly seeking validation. EVERY minute of EVERY flipping day, if it isn't about her weight, its about her work, or her hair, or whatever, and I suppose that it wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't so...whiny. I can only tell her how proud I am of her, etc. so many times before it gets exhausting. She is like an emotional vacuum cleaner, sucking up the kindness of colleagues who are trapped in the office with her. Example of the same typical conversation that I overhear with different colleagues, and which she also constantly initiates with me:
"Is this dress too tight on me?" (coworker will say no)
"Are you sure? Be honest." (coworker will say no, it looks fine)
"You wouldn't lie to me, would you?" (coworker, lying, saying no, I wouldn't lie to you. You look great)
"Ohh, I'm so glad that it looks okay, I worked so hard
" (I added the emoticon because, I kid you not, she starts whimpering EVERYTIME, before bolting out of the room.)
Anyway, tired of having the same conversation with her everyday for the last eight months, I try to avoid her as much as possible. This morning, she approaches me while I am feverishly prepping and says:
"Remember that skirt of mine that you said you liked?"
(I say yes, eyes still on my work, because if you make eye contact, she will keep talking)
"Uhmm, you can have it if you like. It's too big on me (giggling), now that I have lost (she trails off as she sees the look on my face).... Oh, I didn't offend you, did I? I mean, well, uh, if you want it, you can have it."
Now I realize that a size 10 on someone who is 5'1 is different from a size 10 on someone who is 5'9, but the fact still remains that the whole attempt was just weird. I would only give and take clothing from close friends and my sister, never from a colleague that annoys me, and even if I were to ever offer clothing to a coworker, I would never coach my offer in those terms.
At this point, I'm afraid I lost my composure and tersely said "No! Thank you, but No!" The problem is that this coworker can't leave well enough alone and kept asking if I wanted it, and when I finally said, "No, no, no, no, NO. Thank you." She gave me the *whimper face*
and stormed out of the office. At first, I was too busy to really let her actions sink in, but later, they did, and I started to get angry. By the end of the day, as I stood looking at the picture she has hanging over her desk of a smiling kitty wearing a crown with the words "To my favorite Princess" across the bottom
I need other opinions--am I overreacting? I had a laugh over what happened with some other coworkers, but I keep going between thinking that the whole incident was so absurd it was funny, and wanting to burn that kitty poster she has above her desk.
