A woman on Reddit posted a picture of a burrito "bigger than my forearm" that she wholeheartedly enjoyed at her desk. She described it as her response to a co-worker who frequently commented on coworkers' lunches. She said there's a woman in her office who always has a snide remark to make about everyone's lunch. She wrote that she no longer wanted to tolerate the behavior.
The post, which was shared by u/bumpygregory to the r/GirlDinnerDiaries on Reddit, starts by detailing the subtle digs this co-worker would take at herself and other employees. She said it got so bad that she retreated to eating at her tiny desk instead of in the lunchroom, just to escape comments like "Ooh, treating yourself?" and "Big appetite today!"
The Power Move That Shut Down the Food-Policing Co-Worker for Good!
The woman explained that she spent the last two years starving herself with small portions of food so that her nagging co-worker wouldn't have ammunition. Until one day, she pulled a power move on her co-worker that shut her up entirely. She brought a massive burrito to work that she said "weighs more than her cat." At this point, she anticipated her co-worker's reaction and was ready for a sly comment.
Instead of hiding to enjoy her lunch, she owned it! In great detail, she explained: "I unwrapped it slowly, at my own desk, in full view, and I made eye contact while I took the first bite." Then, as expected, her co-worker said "Wow, that's a lot." To which she replied: "Yeah it is," and continued chewing.
But she wasn't done delivering her masterclass in boundary-setting. She said that she "Didn't explain, didn't laugh nervously, didn't do the little self-deprecating thing(s) women are trained to do when someone policies our plates." It was clear that she meant business, and wasn't prepared to back down.
While the woman who made this post is giving her own story of workplace harassment, there are many others who share a similar encounter. For example, the user who reposted the woman's story commented: "Had an ED (eating disorder) for years and spent way too long letting someone else's comments live in my head rent-free, even after recovery. It felt good to just... exist and eat without performing for an audience, you know... the audacity."
