Fang Discrimination

Caffeine Central accepts all people through it's doors. I personally believe in the paranormal. I have my beliefs. Others have theirs. Originally from Coconut Grove, Florida, the village for all walks of life, I hold true to the come as your are mentality found within each of us Grove-ites.

With this being said, I want to introduce Andrew U. Long blond hair, cowboy boots, Hell's Angels Tattoos, and tortoise glasses... Remember those?

Seems normal enough right? How many people would walk up to him and start talking to him? A master carpenter. I encountered him on a job site many years ago. I'm not sure if it was his professional workmanship that intrigued me or the fact that he had fang implants and a bottle of Scope that he drank out of while working. I had to introduce myself as the PM for the site.

What I discovered, as I thought I might, was a highly intelligent guy that had a deep fascination with the unusual. The man could hold a conversation about politics, life, and history. I might add that his breath smelled incredibly minty, too!

Andrew's alternative lifestyle was none of my business, but I had to discover more. In a conversation about history, he discussed his fascination with Transylvania and the loss of his girlfriend to a monastery there. Not thinking about the stereotypical  pun, I instead chose to say I was sorry his girlfriend left him. Why would she leave him?

His response? "I scared her away!" Puzzled.. I looked at him and said, "Scared her?" Andrew holds up both index fingers pointing down like fangs, snarls, and says "Yeah! I scared her away!" OHHH the FANGS! I really did completely forget about the tattoos, the fangs, and the bottle of Scope through our conversation. He was a normal guy with a terrific work ethic.

A month past. A new resource position opened for.. a lead carpenter. While I'm a PM for the site with direct contact with the client, each lead contractor must also have direct contact with the customer. The sad thought must pass through my mind - is this a good perception to demonstrate to a customer? Would this be fang discrimination? EEOC here we come. Sadly, I would never find out due to other circumstances beyond my hiring control.

Andrew was the genuine article. A deep, down-to-Earth gentleman. Would you have approached Andrew? Would you have hired him? While I might have hired him, would the clients have accepted him? My belief is that society judges a book by it's cover, and that society doesn't give good people a chance.