A few months ago, a young woman in my office occasionally brought her pit bull terrier to the office. Several of the people would bring their dogs; the office is large with cubicles and the manager promotes a relaxed atmosphere, people bring their kids and small dogs. But the pit bull was huge. The owner of course insisted the dog was as gentle as a kitten. There was never any trouble – until there was.

I was standing in the corridor outside the office, a glass door to the office was closed. Suddenly, the unleashed pit bull charged at me. Glass door notwithstanding the dog hit the tempered glass with an audible thump. Four people witnessed the charge, including the owner, who quickly shackled the dog and went back to her cubicle.

When the coast was clear, I calmly went into the manager’s office and demanded he act. I was furious. If it had not been for the glass door, I would have been viciously attacked for no apparent reason. He brought the young woman into his office and the dog was taken home. No more dogs of any kind in the office.

I never spoke to the woman, nor did she apologize to me. I imagine I would have heard the standard “not my dog” denial, or even “you must have done something to aggravate the dog.” The woman resigned a few weeks later.

Another woman in the office makes greeting cards for special occasions: birthdays, births, deaths, departures. They are passed around the office for everyone to sign. Needless to say, I did not sign off on that young woman’s “Good Luck” card. If I had, I would have written “Good Riddance!”