I pretty much have the best job in the world. Like, yes, even in spite of my griping about gendered jokes this week.

This week I’m particularly delighted with a) the people and b) family-friendly policies.

It’s a good thing the people are good. The people kinda have to be good or the company would have imploded this year on accounta them squeezing 50 employees into what was once ideal space for about 20 employees while we wait for the new building to get itself renovated. Me, for example, I do not have a desk. I am currently parking my laptop on the end of two coworkers’ desks, and maybe next week I’ll move to some other coworker’s desk end so as not to wear out my welcome. But there’s very few corners (if any) where I wouldn’t feel welcome and probably have a blast.

And the family-friendly policies are not even really family-friendly policies so much as a level of adult trust. I have had to make use of some flex time in my first week back on account of child-care juggling and trying to make it to new daycare interviews. And it’s totally not an issue. I will absolutely make up the time as soon as I have a stable week — not that anyone has asked, nor did anyone even blink when I left early twice this week.

Oh yeah, and also I won a giant cheque for $20 in the office baby-picture-matching contest. Literally a “giant cheque”, they took pictures with me shaking the Creative Director’s hand and everything. I asked the women who work the front desk, “did anyone tell you that making giant cheques was going to be part of your job description?” “Um, yeah, this isn’t like any place I’ve ever worked before,” one of them replied.