Accept our Appreciation With Complimentary Bagels and Mediocre Coffee

The Building smells of coffee. Freshly burned coffee. There are several kettles lined up on a long plastic table. It's Employee Appreciation Day today. There are a few women setting up the table still. They spread out bagels with tubs of cream cheese and a stack of napkins are placed at the beginning of the table. I watch as the three women who set up the table and who are wearing cafeteria uniforms, each grab a cup of coffee and a bagel. They sit down together and eat. 

It's 9:00am now and I see people slowly starting to filter through the line of food and (burned) coffee. I recognize the first wave of people who go through the line as administration. They all wear slacks and button-up shirts or polos. They greet each other with half smiles and handshakes. After they go through the line they sit down and mingle with one another.

While the administration employees were getting their food I noticed the janitorial staff greeting each other near the janitorial closet. They give warm smiles and hugs to one another. They pile behind the administration and grab some (still burned) coffee and bagels. 

I watch as the administration and the janitorial staff greet each other once everyone  has gotten their food and drinks. They all stand in the main area talking to one another for a few minutes before everyone separates and sits down with their friends. In this case, the administration sits with the administration while the janitors sit with the janitors. 

While all of this is going on, there are young students walking in and out of the administration and janitorial staff. They need to cut through in order to get to down stairs where there are open tables and an Einstein's Coffee shop. There is no communication between these students and the employees in any situation aside from a few "excuse me" and "pardon me"'s. 

Now, after everyone has gone through the line for food, the Building's head honcho makes her way to the center of the room. Ms. Watkins. She is an older Hispanic woman. Maybe in her fifties. She has freshly dyed brown hair and some dark lipstick on. "Good morning, team," she says, "I just want to say thank you for all of your hard work. I know how much you each do to make this center as successful as possible. Please accept our appreciation with these bagels and coffee. Keep up the great work." There's a considerably long and awkward pause while people debate whether they should clap or not. They decide to applaud, but it was so weak it was probably best that they kept silent. 

Everyone goes back to chit-chattin' with their friends. 

Students still stumble in and out of the crowd of employees. Both students and employees remain indifferent to one another. 

Looking at the crowd before me, I notice that it is easily identified as two groups. The janitorial staff sit together on the right wearing their matching maroon uniforms. The administration sits on the left in their array of Aggie colors. 

When the breakfast starts winding down to an end, however, I notice that the groups start to mingle again before they separate. They say their good-byes as they finish their cups of coffee. Eventually, by 10 o'clock, the breakfast has finished and everyone parts ways to go back to work.