First day of training today, as a tax preparer. I have talked about how I became licensed here, for the $250 I paid for the class. (Since I would be working for the company that put on the class, they paid for my test and licensing fees.) I can't actually prepare taxes until my paperwork comes in, but in most states you don't even need a license. But my new boss did let me do practice problems on their computer program later in the day, and time was not as long, as I actually started feeling like I did something. Before that, I was reading the company manual and doing little else. It was a bit amusing how unprofessionally enthusiastic some parts of it were.
Twice in the manual, it literally says that the company strives to be "the #1 tax preparation firm in the universe."
The universe--there IS life on other planets, and it has both a government and a monetary system!
I also learned who really killed Kennedy (it was Johnson), because my new coworkers are just that, um...interesting.
Something else I found interesting was the assertion that was made,
"Pence won't do that to Trump." What? Is the vice president killing the
president a common thing or something? If they're so confident of
Pence's goodness, how did the possibility of him being a murderer even
come up? I've never thought to say, "Jesus wasn't a rapist," and I would be disturbed if I did. My coworkers talked about how nice Pence was, but still apparently wondered, briefly, if he would kill someone.
Of course, when I told a few Facebook friends that I knew who really killed Kennedy, one of them was so overcome with guilt that he confessed that he had killed JFK. When asked whether he was acting on the orders of his alien overlords, he replied, "I am the alien overlord."
So I guess we've got two suspects now. And now I know whom the aliens pay their taxes to.
Less amusing was another conversation I overheard, between the two women who weren't my boss.
"You know what I've been praying lately? I just pray that my grandkids never have kids."
I thought at first she meant "out of wedlock" or "in their teens," but the other lady reacted with shock and almost horror.
"If you aren't bringing up the right kind of people in the world, what are you doing?" she asked.
"But my son isn't as conservative as I am," the first one explained. I didn't hear much after that.
It was disturbing on so many levels. The pressure to have kids, the pressure not to have kids--especially because the parents weren't like her. And I myself do worry about the possibly-gay or trans kids of conservative parents, but only because I'm afraid of the very real harm caused by anti-LGBT beliefs, or that they will harm others. Maybe she is afraid for her possible great-grandchildren's souls...but my worry causes harm and even suicide in the one life we know we have.
I'm not sure exactly what she meant by that, and I don't intend to ask. I don't want to participate when they discuss religion or politics in the office.
I can't imagine coming out at work in the foreseeable future. In Oregon, I can't be fired because of sexual orientation, and I am told that tax preparers are scarce. But I want to do it when I'm comfortable in this job, and only then if it comes up.
Right now, I might say I don't have a boyfriend because I'm "busy" and "a lazy dater." Or maybe even, it's hard to find a good guy, or someone who shares my values. It's true, since I don't believe in buying new cars or other status symbols. And, though I am bisexual, I just see myself as happier with another girl, and it's very rare anymore that I like a guy as much as I like the thought of being with a nice, pretty girl.
But that values thing above could come in handy. If I ever do come out, my angle will be that I am a gay Christian. All of my coworkers I have met so far seem to be Christian. And my own faith journey is...complicated, but I never set out to lose my faith, so why should anyone tell me what I can and can't be? (Though I won't put it like that, at work. I don't owe them information about my spiritual journey that they will just use to inwardly condemn me anyway.)
If I am to change anyone's mind, I want it to be because of people getting to know and like me, and then learning what I am. Or better yet, I want to change people's minds with my own happy life.
The one who didn't want great-grandchildren (how sad is that!) is the receptionist, the first person who greets people when they walk in the door. Is she going to be able to equally welcome all people, or more specifically all couples? Is she going to make everyone feel right at home, without a hint of unprofessional disapproval? I guess I'll have to keep my eyes and ears open.
I have no idea what the future holds, but right now I have enough on my plate without worrying about how to tell religious coworkers. I guess I'll just have to focus on my religious extended family instead--eventually...
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