What Do I Say?

I love my job … I really do. I love just about everything about it. Two things, however, are “opportunity areas” for me (by the way, opportunity areas is a nice way my company describes problems/issues). The first is the 40-minute drive – it’s not overly terrible, and heck, I’ve had longer drives to other jobs. BUT, with gas prices rapidly marching to $4.00 a gallon, it is becoming more of an issue than it should.

The second, and probably easier to solve “opportunity area,” is the security guard in the lobby of my building. No, I don’t have any major issue with the guy – in fact, he seems to be pretty cool. But, first, I have no idea what his name is, and he’s been there at least 8 months. I say hello to him every day, and chat with him briefly at least 2-3 times a day. At this point, it is nearly impossible for me to ask him what his name is. It would certainly make me look like an ignorant ass-clown (at least I think it would). I’m pretty sure he knows my name, because he’s the security guard, and anytime someone walks through the door with his/her id badge, the name comes up on the computer.

But, it goes further than that. I’ve run out of things to talk to him about. Sadly, the brief conversations are usually around the weather, and around how close the weekend is. Now, I hate to talk about the second “topic,” mainly because I really don’t hate my job (sure, I’m always looking forward to the weekend, but not THAT much). However, I’m always finding myself asking this guy, “Hey, is it Friday yet?” My teeth grind together every time I say this phrase. He’s probably sick of it as well – you know, he’s probably blogging about me being such an ass for asking him if it’s Friday, or how many hours until 4:00.

With previous security guards, I was able to talk sports, movies, tv, or anything else. Conversations were easy to start up, and I know I brought more value to the table than telling the guy that it’s unseasonably cold this morning. I’m not sure about any of this security guard’s likes or dislikes, and I’m not sure I want to know. But, seriously, I gotta be able to create more small talk with this guy than the current repository I am employing. So, if any of you have suggestions, please let me know … for my sanity, and the security guard’s …