Short Story This So Called Office By Daniel Orozco

With harsh fluorescent lighting, an aroma of coffee in the air, and the faint sounds of fingers typing, Daniel Orozco describes this mundane workplace as a new employee is given his orientation. While the short story appears to be a description of your run-of-the-mill office space, there are some underlying hints towards the fact that this might not actually be a professional place of employment. The evidence, including the details of the characters and the strange rules of the workplace, has such an eerie tone that I have reason to believe that this so-called office is a ward in a mental institution instead.

Of the total eighteen characters, including the narrator and the individual receiving the orientation (essentially the reader), eight

appear to be the staff of the mental facility and the other ten show characteristics of mental patients. The distinction between hospital staff and patient is characterized by who has an office and who has a cubicle, each person’s back story, and the role/job each individual has in the office setting. The eight staff members include Phillip Spiers, Clarissa Nicks, Albert Bosch, Ellie Tapper, Matthew Payne, Gwendolynn Stich, Curtis Lance, and the receptionist. Phillip and Clarissa are both orderlies; they do not appear to work in any of the offices, but they are both designated go-to people if you cannot find your supervisor (284). Albert Bosch is a nurse; he works in one of the offices and is the subject of Amanda Pierce’s affection (285). Albert’s feelings are not mutual, which is due to the fact that it is against hospital policy for hospital staff to fraternize with patients. Ellie Tapper is also a nurse; her role in the office environment is to grant employees access to the supplies in the supply cabinet, which is actually where patients report to receive their medicine. Matthew Payne is the head security officer of the ward; his title in the office setting is “Unit Manager” and the employees/patients never see him, but it is known around the office that his is always watching. The narrator states, “We have never seen him, and you will never see him. But he is here. You can be sure of that. He is all around us” (286). There is a certain sense of fear that is apparent when describing Matthew, not to mention that his last name is Payne, and as the head of security he most likely watches over the entire ward through security camera feed and is in charge of the other security officers/orderlies, so he never has a reason to leave the office. Gwendolynn Stich is the psychiatrist: Of all the people in the office, the narrator knows the most about Gwendolynn and talks about how friendly and caring she is. It is also explained how she has been heard crying and getting sick in the women’s bathroom and stairwell, most likely due to the stress of her job as the primary caretaker for all these patients (286-287). Curtis Lance is the medical doctor and he authorizes employees’ permission to get “supplies”, or in the hospital setting he assists in prescribing medication to the patients (285). Finally, the receptionist of the office is also the receptionist of the ward; the narrator explains that she is a temp and all the receptionists they’ve ever had quit with an alarming frequency (284). This could be due to the fact that they aren’t able to handle the intensity of working in a mental institution.
The ten patients include the narrator, the person receiving the orientation/the reader, John LaFountaine, Russell Nash, Amanda Pierce, Anika Bloom, Barry Hacker, Colin Heavey, Larry Bagdikian, and Kevin Howard. All the patients had relatively more complicated back stories and stranger personality traits. For example, John LaFountaine is supposedly harmless, but likes the thrill of sneaking into forbidden territory like the women’s bathroom, and Amanda Pierce is victim of sexual abuse. It is revealed that her abuse is inflicted on her by her husband.
He subjects her to an escalating array of painful and humiliating sex games, to which Amanda Pierce reluctantly submits.

She comes to work exhausted and freshly wounded each morning, wincing from the abrasions on her breasts, or the bruises on her abdomen, or the second- degree burns on the backs of her thighs. (285)

Also, Anika Bloom’s palms bleed, she falls into trances, she is avoided by everyone, and she predicted Barry Hacker’s wife’s death, while Barry Hacker steals to cope with the loss of his unborn baby and wife. It is believed that Barry Hacker’s dead wife haunts the office as well (285). Finally, Kevin Howard was a serial killer known as the Carpet Cutter before being admitted (287). My theory is that during his trial, Howard’s lawyer helped him avoid prison by claiming that he was not responsible for his actions due to mental

illness.
The rules of the office are very strict and there is little explanation as to why the rules are such a big deal.

This is due to the fact that a mental ward must be kept on a clear, firm, and precise routine to maintain order. It is an unofficial rule amongst the “patients” that you don’t let on about the gossip and stories about people’s personal lives floating around the office. This is something the narrator reminds the new employee more than once, “But we’re not supposed to know any of this. Do not let on. If you let on, you may be let go” (285). Being “let go” is a very vague explanation, which likely refers to getting fired in the office setting, but could simply mean getting transferred to another facility in the mental ward setting. A transfer due to “knowing too much” or “letting on” could refer to the patient reconnecting with reality and responding well to treatment, so they might be sent to a more appropriate facility or even home. There is also a lot of importance placed on emergency routes and evacuation plans, most likely because of the degree of organization needed to keep a group of mental patients on serious medications safe. More rules and regulations include the fact that the characters classified as patients are not allowed to touch appliances like the coffee machine and microwave, they are forbidden from the custodial closet, and have very tight schedules when it comes to lunch and break/free time (285-286). Finally, they really praise the view

from the window in the photocopying room (287). I believe this is because they are not given a lot of time outside and find themselves cooped up on the seventh floor most of the time. At the end of the story, the narrator cycles back to the beginning of the tour where they point out Phillip and Clarissa’s desks (287). This might not be anything special, but it leads me to believe that the narrator, who is a patient too, is the only one with the delusion that the mental ward is actually an office and spends their days providing “orientation” to people in the ward over and over again.
While this story gives the impression that it is about a regular office, it is clear there is something more complicated going on beneath the surface. Not only is there a unusual quality regarding the way the narrator describes the workplace, but the unquestioned following of the strange office policies raises suspicions as well. As the reader delves deeper into this peculiar world, the office begins to appear less and less like a professional place of business and more like the ward of a mental institution. The evidence for this is apparent in the backstories of the characters and the strict rules of the establishment. I think it is safe to say this is a job orientation most people would rather avoid.