The Dangers of Sexual Harrassment

In other non-job related news, when I was in the Dallas airport the other day, and old-ish and generally unpleasant looking man made kissing gesture at me accompanied by rather loud and vulgar noises. It was rather surprising since we were in such a public place for such rudeness, but more than that, in my pajamas and greasy hair, having spent all day in planes and airports and carrying multiple unwieldy bags, I was hardly looking my best and there were plenty of more-attractive women than I nearby.

So I took my normal plan of action. I ignored him. When he did it again fifteen minutes later, I gave him a scornful look and walked out of his line of sight. I was in that position, indignantly planning my witty and politically-correct set-down I would use on him should he be unpleasant enough to do it again, when a sudden commotion alerted me to the fact that there was some sort of emergency situation afoot. Lo and behold, the unpleasant man had somehow collapsed on the floor directly in front of where he had been sitting. The paramedics were called and eventually arrived, by which point he was conscious and talking, and warning everyone against moving him from his awkward position by claiming that he had titanium plates in his neck that shouldn't be disturbed. Before my flight departed he was taken away in a stretcher and neck-brace, and I was left with the moral difficulty of trying not to feel so satisfiedly vindicated when someone might actually be in serious medical trouble.

This is something I have very little fear of encountering at work. Even though I am the ONLY female on an isolated rig of extremely uncouth men, I am protected by the fact that they live in mortal fear of losing their jobs IMMEDIATELY should they say or do something that might happen to offend me. The Company man has already let me know that I'm to come to him if I "have any problems", and I don't doubt that he's already had the "watch your mouth around the lady" talk at the daily safety meetings with all of the rig hands. It's a standard spiel that they give any time a woman arrives at a rig, and for days afterwards the crew all look like they're walking on eggshells around me.