14 Stories That Prove the Office Is Basically a Sitcom We’re All Starring In

Coworkers come in all kinds: some chat endlessly, others complain to the boss about every little thing, and some bring their husbands to sort out issues with management. No matter what they’re like, we still love them. Somewhere deep down...

• Returned to work from maternity leave, and the management immediately became fond of me. Coworkers are confused, not understanding my success. But I simply take some of my kids’ crafts—ones that they don’t mind parting with—bring them to the manager’s office, and claim that my children made them specifically for them, putting in a lot of effort. Everyone finds it touching, and my kids receive sweet rewards. © mommdarinka / Instagram
• A coworker recently got married; he’s around 30 years old. At one point he suddenly starts laughing, clearly showing that he’s as happy as can be.
  And he tells us, “My wife ordered some shampoos and dyes and paid with my card.” He said this with such joy and pride that it was clear he had long wanted to experience something like this. He spent the whole day happy and content, recounting the story. © mediniyy / Threads

• I got off work early and decided to stop by my husband’s workplace to go home together. He was almost done, so I sat on the sofa in the lobby and waited.
  One of his coworkers passed by, greeted me, and then brought me tea. Another saw me, greeted me, and brought me cookies. A third person passed by, noticed I seemed bored, ran off somewhere, and brought me coloring books and pencils.
  Then the boss saw me, scolded me for sitting on an uncomfortable couch, and seated me at his desk with a nice chair. I adore my husband’s team; that’s why I love visiting them. © Mamdarinka / VK
• The boss said I do everything too quickly. He asked me to create the appearance of being busy because coworkers were complaining. I offered to give them my part of the work, and I’ll take theirs.
  After 2 days, everyone unanimously asked to return things to the way they were, because this pony (that’s me) was doing the work of 4 (and was paid accordingly). The boss laughed, brought a chocolate bar, and my coworkers didn’t complain about me anymore. © rita__abr__47 / Threads
• This guy I used to work with at McDonald’s in high school. He let everyone know he worked out and enjoyed being on the football team.
  He had this thing about going to the toilet 5 times a day. He would walk by on his way back from the toilet, chest out, shoulders back, and triumphantly announce, “That’s number 3!” © KillerKackwurst4 / Reddit

• Several years ago, the receptionist at a company I worked for brought her husband in on a Friday morning to discuss with the company CEO/president why she should be allowed to take paid time off the following week instead of me. Her husband demanded of the CEO that I move my vacation by a week because that was “only fair,” given that she’d worked there 10 years longer than I had.
  I was going out of the country to visit a college friend and had put it on everyone’s calendar 2 months in advance. She wanted to go on a self-described “spontaneous trip to the beach” with her daughter and infant grandchild, who lived next door to her. © tilton9 / Reddit
• Today, my husband ordered delivery to his office during lunch. A coworker approached him and said, “What, your wife doesn’t cook for you?” He replied, “A normal person wouldn’t ask that but would instead say, ’Enjoy your meal.’” The coworker silently turned around and left and hasn’t spoken to him since. © almirabiss / Threads
• We all do things we aren’t really supposed to at work, like be on our phones browsing Reddit or maybe take an extra 5 minutes on our break. You know, harmless things. Every time this guy saw me do something, he reported it. © Joelovesfood / Reddit

• My coworker never, ever stops talking. She is really into anime, and she will spend literally hours detailing all the characters and episodes of her shows. She is also writing a fantasy book and spends entire 9-hour shifts detailing the ridiculous and unoriginal storyline.
  Now, you might say I must be encouraging this in some way. But when she does this, I literally do not acknowledge, reply, nod my head, or let her know I’m listening in any way. I will continue to work and even just walk out of the room without saying anything, and she’ll start right back up as soon as I’m back! © Homiehomemrowess / Reddit
• I had a female coworker who downright hated me and refused to talk to me for literally no reason. My boss stepped in when she realized there was clearly a problem.
  Turns out this girl claimed I didn’t say hi to her one morning after she said hi to me. I am not that kind of person whatsoever. If I didn’t say “hi” back... it’s because I didn’t hear you. Ridiculously immature. Grow up; you’re almost 30. © Lizzythelizzard122 / Reddit
• I worked for 8 years as a chief accountant and was often asked to come to the office on weekends if there was any emergency. So, there I am, sitting in a yoga class.
  The boss calls and says, “Get to the office immediately.” I arrive, and he nonchalantly says, “Would you mind washing my glass, please?” That’s when I decided it was time for a career change. © tattoo_leroisolo / Threads

• I had one coworker who was angry that I got assigned to run a project that she applied for. She got so upset that she made a spreadsheet to mark the times I arrived and left.
  2 months later, she handed this spreadsheet to the boss. The boss laughed because we had an agreement that I could come and go whenever I wanted, as long as I worked a certain number of hours per week. © Beachy5313 / Reddit
• I had a summer job as a janitor in an office building, and one of my jobs was to do deep cleans of every cubicle. I had 15 minutes to do each cube, but there was That One Guy. He was infamous.
  I took one look at his desk and asked my boss if I could block off the entire morning for him. She asked why, I told her his name, and she immediately gave permission. I barely finished in time.
  It was 10 years ago, but I still remember the things I saw... the crumbs that came out of his keyboard could feed a small village... © Unknown author / Reddit
• The CEO’s girlfriend was a devout vegan who would patrol the office around lunch to make sure that anyone who was eating meat promised not to use the sponge in the kitchen to wash anything that meat had touched. © MarshallApplewhiteDo / Reddit

And here are more stories about office life.