Not preggers here (and probably not in Tep's dreams, either).

I'm now seeking incredibly minor hairpats and reassurance. I just got off the phone with my agency rep. She started the call out with "Your boss loves you, they're so glad you're on the team, and they like your work."

The 'but'?

Apparently my perfume is triggering someone's allergies, and I feel like a complete heel about it. My boss had sent a team-wide email reminding us all that there are people with fragrance sensitivities in the cube farm, and I reduced the amount of perfume I wore after that mail. But apparently it wasn't enough, and I feel really bad that I've caused someone distress.

Oh, Jilli. You didn't mean to. It's such a hard line to judge.

Jilli, as someone who pretty much dies even from small amounts, I suspect the easy fix is an apologetic email, and leaving it off at work.

You can always go happily wild with it after work, right? I mean, it's not as if it affects the look - and it does suck, but allergies don't take much to trigger, alas.

But don't feel guilty, damn it. You have no way of gauging it, if you aren't allergic yourself. Not your fault.

But don't feel guilty, damn it. You have no way of gauging it, if you aren't allergic yourself. Not your fault.

But the thing is, I know folks with horrible, horrible allergies (such as yourself, Deb, and my friend Thea), and I feel like I should have been more aware or something.

Poor Jilli. You didn't know, and there's no way you could have.

When you talk about perfumes and link to that site you always have make your scents, it always makes me want to go on a buying spree. I am somewhat sensitive (although not such that I ever had to complain at work) to scent though, so don't.

Okay, Tep, I think you have to tell us who the dream was about. At this point, only a few people haven't weighed in, and I think Susan is one of those.

God bless you, Jilli, for not being one of the people who goes, "Well, it can't be me!" and changes nothing. I can tell when some people come to work by the "fragrance" that goes through the room.

Yes, emails have gone out. The main culprit--a guy--isn't around often enough for him to remember that he's the problem.

Sweetie, Jilli, no, honestly. Trust me, an email with a "I'm so sorry, I really didn't know, I'll leave it off and please, please do tell me in future if something is a allergen" message will make it all right.

Hell, I have the allergies and I tend to forget that I might have cat hair on my clothing, to trigger reactions in my allergic friends. We all forget, if we don't suffer from it - after all, it isn't in either our psychic or physical awareness banks.

I wish I could remove allergies from the world. Would make life so much nicer.

Steph, is it me?? Cause, I'm like, totally preggers. (Also, Rygel Ohmlet appears to be puking in the other room. Feh. Cat vomit.)

Why is it that my scheduled 20 minute OB checkups ALWAYS seem to take about an hour, of which, at least 35 minutes is spent waiting around reading whatever freaking reading material is on hand, usually ancient issues of Vogue and Elle that I read the last time I was there?

So not your fault Jilli, and while I'm sure the first e-mail was meant to be polite, it probably would have been better for the supervisor to have just told you in the first place. It may not even be how much, but a what. Perfume doesn't bother me at all unless it's a few kinds. I don't know what they have in them, but the make me nausous. They don't even smell bad to me.