I love pranks. Not mean ones, but simple, funny stuff. I have the perfect person at work to pull these pranks on and another co-worker, Rodney, and I have pulled many on her over the years. Now Pam is a very intelligent person but somewhat gullible.
So, I work in a hospital lab and someone, I don't remember who, brought in this big, black, very realistic looking rat one day as a joke... you know, he was the lab rat, as we were. Of course, I realized the opportunities immediately. My lab is part of a huge hospital system in the area and there is some testing that has been farmed out to us, which means that we do all that particular testing for the entire system. The couriers will drop off the samples around 9 am each morning. They arrive in these large, brown, non see through zip lock bags. Pam was scheduled in this department one morning and decided to go have her breakfast and coffee before the courier drop off. About 5 mins after she left the area, the courier arrived and put her bag in her area. I saw my opportunity and found the rat. I opened the bag, dumped everything out, dropped the rat into the bag, then put all the samples back into the bag. I then went back to my assigned department and to work. Some time later, Pam returned to her department. The counter she sat at was a high one and she was in a taller, wheeled chair, tall enough that her feet would not touch the floor. Underneath the counter was a metal wall that ran from beneath the counter to the floor. I am looking through the microscope, reviewing a slide when all of a sudden, I heard a blood curdling scream, followed by the metal wall being kicked then the sound of Pam's chair slamming into the counter behind her. Everyone, including me, went running to see what was wrong, then Pam yelled "Cindy, Rodney, I don't know which one of you did this, but that was not funny!" By this point we're all gathered around the doorway to her area and there was a few seconds of complete silence while everyone took in the sight of Pam, red as a beet and against the opposite counter, then the pile of sample bags on the counter with that big, black rat sitting on top... then everyone started roaring with laughter. Pam was not amused. She glared first at me, then Rodney and said "I know it was one of you". I just shook my head and tried my best to look innocent. We all started walking away, still laughing, and, Rodney, who's 6'4" leaned down to me at 5'3" and whispered.."You did that, didn't you?" I grinned and nodded and he patted my back and said "Good one". Poor Pam. It's amazing that she doesn't hate us.
There were many, many more incidents with the rat and one day, it just disappeared. I suspect Pam. But there's always other things to take its place..... Rubber snakes, the large air pillows that come with supplies and make such a loud bang when you quietly lay them on the floor behind someone then jump on them, plastic roaches....... So many possibilities.
I love my job!
