As people spend more and more time at the office, workplace relationships have grown closer and more fraught - in short, more family-like. An increasing number of companies are actively analyzing family dynamics to help manage office interactions. says one shrink,

Work is nothing more than an entirely complex set of relationships. You have partners that are your equals, subordinates, superiors...It’s parents and siblings. All of these dynamics that are exactly the same in the workplace, just the titles are different.”

As is so often the case, things come down to birth order:

Firstborns...tend to be fearful of losing their position and rank, so they may be extremely anxious at a time of layoffs and downsizing. Second-born children tend to be most adventurous and open to change, he said. In fact, [psychologist] Dr. Dattner said that companies he had worked with found that when sending employees overseas, second-born children tended to fare better than older ones. As the older of two daughters, Ms. Frankel said she sometimes feels competitive with Ms. Delio, which reminds her of competing with her sister for their parents’ attention.

Of course, as a composition teacher might say, where's the "so what?" To a degree, all interaction can probably be reduced to familial dynamics - which in turn can likely be explained by some biological imperative. At its worst, can overanalysis of this kind of pre-determining absolve us of adult responsibility? And to a certain degree, isn't what they're describing, at the end of the day, just your "personality?" For the most part, it seems moot: I'm scared of losing my job not because I'm the elder of two, but because we're in a recession; probably any responsible employee craves a boss's approval. What's more interesting is the degree to which an office life can allow someone to break out of his or her assigned roles, building new relationships and dynamics that in a sense give you a chance to do it better. To be crassly pop cultural, Don Draper may be a philanderer in the suburbs, but his commitment to his job is unstinting; where the character of Peggy may be one of a large crowd at home, her experience with dealing with a lot of people allows her to navigate the work "family" and promote herself. To the extent awareness of your proclivities makes you better able to harness them, I suppose this kind of knowledge is useful. But to the extent the formality of an office setting imposes structure and a certain professional courtesy, it seems like that, conversely, can inform home life. Those of us who work from home can just morph into spoiled only children and throw tantrums...with no one to hear.

Family and Office Roles Mix [New York Times]

Anyway, CNN reports that of 6,700 people who dated a coworker, 29% ended up marrying a desk-diddler. It happens! And consider Paula and Jim Sheftel of Sherman Oaks: She owns a frozen yogurt shop, and one day in 1987 a guy came in and ordered a blueberry smoothie. He became her husband — and co-owner of the shop — and they've been at it 20 years.

Of course, not all stories end happily, and often, getting with a coworker means lying and sneaking around. I know because I did it. I worked with this guy and we ended up "dating." We flirted until the tension got too much to bear, then went for after-work "drinks" and sealed the deal. Trying to keep the secret was part of the appeal; we shagged in the server closet, went on vacations together and hung out constantly, all the while denying anything was going on. When we fought, which was often, work was a hell like no other. And hearing him tell people who asked that yeah, he was single, could often send me into a nauseated rage. But it was fun while it lasted! Am I the only one?

The Ethics of Office Romance [BusinessWeek]
Office Romances Rarely Kept Secret [CNN]
Romance And Work Are 'Blend-Ins' Here [LA Times]
Lust At Work [Toronto Star]

[Image via The Office]

Here's the thing: Humans are overpopulating the planet. We're at the top of the food chain, eating like crazy and multiplying. And if you know anything about population patterns, our exponential growth may be followed by exponential decline. Like the dinosaurs, we're not meant to last forever. So maybe the obese will die and the thin will inherit the earth? With its limited resources? Who are we to fuck with natural selection? Survival of the fittest, for real?

It's just a thought. But it'll start with women. The report found that some see sports as "unfeminine", with thinness coming above healthiness in female priorities.

A quarter of women surveyed for the study agreed with the statement "I hate the way I look when I exercise or play sport" and a third of 18- to 24-year-olds and nearly half of 25- to 34-year-olds feel under greater pressure to be thin than to be healthy.

We haven't come very far at all; in 1934, Physical Culture magazine published a letter written by a mother about her 11-year-old daughter, Peggy. "My daughter, who had always possessed a sweet, lovable disposition, had become subject to unbridled fits of temper," writes Mrs. Helen M. Springer. "Her mood might be sparkling animation one moment, darkly morose the next. Her appetite was erratic, and her attention to things said to her very poor." Mrs. Springer started Peggy on a healthy exercise and diet plan. She gained weight, her schoolwork improved and the light in her eyes came back. That was seventy-three years ago.

If nothing changes, fate will take its course, obesity will kill the obese and global warming will take care of the rest. Can we really stop this destiny from happening?

Lack of time, Offputting PE Lessons, Social Pressure ... Why Women Face A Fitness Crisis [Guardian]
Few Women Doing Enough Exercise [BBC News]
Our Physical Culture Girls [Modern Mechanix]

Earlier: Thinking About Working Out Is Not The Same As Working Out