Not a People Person

I found a workshop for writers in Boise this week. They run it once a month.
The workshop is run by a professor from Boise state. The first two exercises were
focused on poetry, which is not my thing.

The last exercise had us write about two people and had to have a conflict. The
professor provided examples of two people we could use, such as a 70 year old woman
and a hitchhiker or a mother and a grown up son, etc.

We could also choose two people on our own. I chose a manger who micro
manages and his employee.

We had twenty minutes to write something.

Here’s what I wrote.

Not a People Person

He worked at the main office in New Jersey. The boss’s boss stopped at his desk.
“Do you have a moment?”

“Sure! What’s up?”

“The company is downsizing. We have to let you go.”

He felt panic. There were bills to be paid. Then a flood of relief flowed over him.
No more micro manager.

At home, the panic and relief turned to anger. He sat at his computer, opened his
email and typed a message to his former boss. “I’ve worked for many people during my
career. You are by far the worse. Not only that, you’re a coward! You didn’t have the
guts to tell me I lost my job yourself. You had someone else do it. Stick to managing
projects. People are not your strong point. In fact, I’m not sure you fit into the category
of ‘People’”.

The next morning, he found his email blocked for abuse. Anger caused him to
jump into his car. If he couldn’t email his old boss, he’d express his anger to his face.

Later, while he cooled his heels in a jail cell, his attorney said to him,
“You know, murder is the most serious of crimes.” The lawyer paused for effect.
“Perhaps you’re not a ‘people’ person”.

Michael T. Smith

Story ID:	7392
Written by:	Michael Timothy Smith (bio, link, contact, other stories)
Story type:	Fiction
Location:	Caldwell Idaho USA
Year:	2011
Person:	Disgruntled Employee