I and a 25-year-old woman working for an event management company. My job requires me to coordinate with a couple of freelancers (photographers, artists, etc) from different cities for events we organise for our clients. One of the freelancers, a 60-year-old photographer we hired to shoot a corporate event a year ago, acts too familiar with me even though we only communicate through email, Facebook Messenger, or speak on the phone to discuss work. He calls me by my first name and tries to be cool by using a short and ‘cooler’ nickname in every mail he writes to me. He comments on all my photos on social media and most times, right after that he posts a romantic status on his wall. I have requested him numerous times not to call me by my nickname, but he continues to do so. I know all this is harmless, but why does he need to do this?
Why does anyone do anything my dear? If you go looking for answers to these questions, I’m sorry to say you’ll find yourself going mad running about in circles.
If his commenting on all your pictures on social media makes you so uncomfortable, why do you allow him access to it? There is a simple solution here — unfriend him. If he hasn’t paid heed to your requests to keep things professional, this will straighten things out.
But now, you might call me old-fashioned, but maybe, just maybe, he’s not in hot pursuit of you afterall. You know just last week in my Rummy club, we were discussing how some of these men who have hit the senior citizen status are losing their marbles because of Facebook. One of my friend’s husband puts up close-up photographs of all the different plants in his garden everyday and expects everyone to compliment his hard work. The best part is that his garden really comprises the three potted plants in his balcony, and his hard work involves watering them every alternate day. Another chap believes he’s “into farming now” because he plays that silly farm game online. The thing is my girl, that seniors have a hard time with the way the world has changed for them, and they are trying their best to be an active part of it. Sometimes they’re just being their romantic selves and sometimes they’re just being creeps — but it’s very difficult to tell the difference.
So even though this photographer’s gestures seem harmless to me now, one can’t be absolutely sure about his ulterior motives, if he has any. You must acknowledge the fact that men interpret women very differently. So the best thing to do is to be straightforward and express yourself as clearly as possible.
