Working Girl's Guide #7: Turbulence, AI emojis, coworkers who call themselves "Daddy"

It’s the middle of June, which means it’s winter over here in San Francisco, everyone in the world is either just back from or about to go to Europe (don’t worry I’m still just here at my desk! Anyone else??) and Friday meetings are always getting pushed. Also, Apple can’t shut up about custom emojis (no hate: I’m tbh very excited about this), everyone’s getting married, and in-flight turbulence is at an all-time high. Perfect!!!

Let’s get into it.

Hotter summer = more violent flights

If you’re flying this summer, wear your seatbelt. You’ve probably heard about any of the many in-flight injuries that have recently occurred: as the climate warms, the jet streams responsible for turbulence are getting stronger, which means severe turbulence is more likely even in clear air. Wearing your seatbelt when they tell you to is obvi a good idea, but wear it for as much of the flight as possible, because clear-air turbulence (experts just call it “CAT” — I love using acronyms at work and cosplaying as a woman in STEM), often happens without warning.

It’s the summer of going back to the office (boo)

Working from home is still on the decline, according to a study out of Stanford and the University of Chicago. Only 13% of full-time U.S. employees are currently completely remote (compared to 60% at the height of the pandemic), with tech employees leading the charge, with a whopping 69% of them clocking in from their kitchens/living rooms/beds. People who work from home are way more likely to shop online (no surprise there), and apparently a lot of us are buying groceries from our desks. Bruce? You cookin up an onion casserole tonight? Wrong screen? Got it!

Apple is doing more with AI

At the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, Apple, introduced Apple Intelligence, i.e. AI (ok Apple, very cute redefinition there!). Apple intelligence will include gesture controls for AirPods, phone call transcripts in real time (hopefully we can turn that off for our gossip sessions??), AI-generated emojis, an even smarter Siri, and much more.

So technically my out of office was a live show with Ross and ZoomInfo, including an interview with the CEO Henry Schuck. So it feels like kind of an office-y out of office, but given that I sabered a bottle of champagne which exploded into shards of glass everywhere, we’re going to place this experience squarely in the category of weekend fun so one can say I don’t conduct myself properly in a work environment! Ross and I had NO idea what to expect, but to our surprise, people laughed at (most of) our jokes, and seemed to actually enjoy it? And yes, I got these shoes for the conference, and yes, Henry is more interested in how cute they are than whatever I’m saying (honestly fair).

Trying to toe the line between office siren and pajamas? Trick question: office siren is NOT a thing we’re doing this summer, dear god. But office-appropriate summer pseudo-pajamas? Yes. This dress is like sweatpants for your entire body. Add some walkable low heels and a belt and you’re done. I love that it’s basically a bathrobe you can wear to a meeting. If I was WFH for the day, I’d probably ditch the belt and swap the shoes for slippers (if I’m being honest). Easy!!

I love shopping. And it’s SO easy to overspend, then feel weighed down by a million purchases that you loved online but actually have no need for. I’m definitely prone to buying things I love in a picture, but that either don’t fit my lifestyle at all (note to self: you go to the beach once a year and you do NOT NEED ANOTHER BIKINI), or that I already have a hundred of (my friends had to stage a blazer intervention when they saw I had two almost identical blue linen blazers). We’re all about saving money and streamlining our lives/closets/decisions. I’m never going to deny you the rush of an online sale. But instead of buying things right away, I keep a running list of links to items, and most importantly, the category/purpose of that item. So if I’m desperate for new denim shorts, instead of ordering them, I write down the category/purpose they would fill (casual bottoms to wear on weekends), and let that marinate a little. Half the time, I end up returning to something I already own (an elastic waist skirt I already have is actually a way more comfy casual bottom than jean shorts, for example), and then I can move stuff to a “talked myself out of” category, which feels like a reward in and of itself!

And finally, another episode of Demoted for you, in which we cover a breakup overheard on Zoom (oh my god), a coworker who referred to himself as “Daddy” (terrible anywhere, but in the office??), and a recap of Ross’s most recent doctor’s appointment, which no one asked to hear and I’m pretty sure that still no one wants to hear! Listen here.

Thanks for reading!