Judith Eastman
Civilian
Grandma
Posts: 2,593 Likes: 84
Rank: Civilian/other
Position: Civil Servant
Species: Human
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Post by Judith Eastman on Jan 3, 2021 4:16:42 GMT
[Cmdr. Judith Eastman(-Williams) - First Officer's Office]A smile crossed Judy's face, seeing that her sentiments more than came across. It brought her great joy when she could make a member of her crew feel that they belonged, and that they were appreciated; it was what kept her wearing red uniforms, instead of the yellow of her early career. "Well, I do pride myself on not being like most commanders."It was a very simple, almost obvious statement. Of course the woman who donned a knee-length skirt (an uncommon but kosher uniform variant), baked various pastries for her crew, and preferred to be addressed by her first name off-duty, wasn't like most commanders. There was also more to the story. "You see, when I was a junior officer, I wasn't who and what I am now. I was in my early 40s, that age where every human woman feels expired, and I was just a few years out of my very painful divorce. I had serious trust issues and generally not the best moods. The way I coped, while going into the unfamiliar environment that was the fleet, was by immersing myself in my work, and putting up emotional walls around myself. In other words, I was something of a bitch," she explained, giving an abbreviated version of the origin story of "Paperwork Woman" (as her children insisted she would be called if she was a superhero). "Now, the best thing that happened to make me who I am now was meeting Max, falling in love, getting laid," she added, putting the last two words to an extra-salacious whisper, as though it was some juicy secret that the couple - who had two kids together - slept together. "But I also had a few very understanding superiors who helped me through that period, really fine people, and I wouldn't have gotten anywhere without them, in the fleet or in my personal life. Now that I'm the well-placed, well-adjusted one, I get to pay it forward," she continued. "And besides, all the standard fleet formalities just feel clunky to me, since I didn't spend my entire adult life in uniform."The First Officer chuckled softly.
Tag Jovireh Velal
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Jovireh Velal
Security & Tactical
[TI18]
Posts: 2,609 Likes: 55
Rank: Senior Chief Petty Officer
Position: Chief of Security/Tactical
Species: Betazoid/Romulan
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Post by Jovireh Velal on Jan 3, 2021 6:15:53 GMT
[Crewman Jovireh Velal - Front Ear - XO's Office]It was certainly becoming more and more clear that Judy wasn't like other commanding officers, for which Jovireh was increasingly grateful. Likely she wasn't the only one, either. The Commander then sharing part of her own life also came as a surprise, but Jov recognized it as an attempt to gain trust through understanding and empathy. That gesture was also appreciated, and she listened as the woman spoke. It was helpful having the explanation of what 'early 40s' meant for humans... Though Jov was in her early 30s, her aging had progressed differently. Slower than humans, faster than Romulans... And in her experience she found herself more equivalent to humans in their mid-20s. Needless to say, numbers alone didn't mean much to her. It was hard to imagine Judy as the stern and isolated officer that she described. It was like hearing about a different person, someone other than the woman sitting across from her. But she believed it... Because if Jov told anyone what she had been like, the person she had been, twelve years earlier... They likely would find it hard to believe also. She smiled as she mentioned meeting Max being the turning point for her, falling in love, and... Um. Jovireh blinked once in surprise as the whispered phrase registered. While yes, clearly Judy and Max had a physical relationship... She wasn't used to officers talking about it. Though she was definitely able to agree that 'getting laid' certainly helped, as was evident by the coy grin on her face. Falling in love hadn't been in the stars for her yet, but she was in no rush. Her own emotions were messy enough, Jov had no desire to tangle them up in someone else's. Jovireh nodded in understanding as the other woman moved on to explain about her own superior officers helping her down her path, and her desire to pay it forward. "Use the good and the bad to make something better," she agreed, quoting what one of her instructors had said. The subject had been about moving from post to post, experiencing different crews, different leaders, and how some superiors would be easier to follow than others. His advice was that as one rose through the ranks they should take a little bit of everything from all the supervisor's they'd had... Consciously taking on the good aspects, and consciously rejecting the bad, to make themselves into an even better leader. Even though Jov wasn't an officer, and didn't foresee herself ever being a department head, that advice still stuck with her every time she worked under someone new.
Tag Judith Eastman
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Judith Eastman
Civilian
Grandma
Posts: 2,593 Likes: 84
Rank: Civilian/other
Position: Civil Servant
Species: Human
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Post by Judith Eastman on Jan 3, 2021 6:37:53 GMT
[Cmdr. Judith Eastman(-Williams) - First Officer's Office]Jov's surprised reaction at Judy's mention of her own sex life brought the older woman a bit of cheeky joy. Sometimes, she did allow herself to indulge this particular streak. As for the grin, that indicated something rather clear. The words with which the younger woman finally answered were wise ones. Indeed, Judy herself hadn't so much purged the bad, as moved through; it was a part of who she was. "That's certainly good advice."Judy glanced down at her wristwatch. Their time was just about done. "Now, I'd best send you back to your duties, but you're more than welcome to drop by for dinner sometime - with your significant other, if you'd like."The invitation was sincere. Judy very much loved throwing dinner parties, and Max loved them as well - so long as they weren't too big.
Tag Jovireh Velal
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Jovireh Velal
Security & Tactical
[TI18]
Posts: 2,609 Likes: 55
Rank: Senior Chief Petty Officer
Position: Chief of Security/Tactical
Species: Betazoid/Romulan
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Post by Jovireh Velal on Jan 3, 2021 6:53:14 GMT
[Crewman Jovireh Velal - Front Ear - XO's Office]At the mention of returning to her duties, the Crewman nodded and slid the chair away from the table, preparing to stand. She paused however at the invitation to dinner, surprised by the mention of her significant other. A startled cough escaped her, and a faint green blush tinged her cheeks. Needless to say, that was not going to happen... and he really wasn't her significant other anyway. While she wouldn't mind 'running into him again', and had told him as such, they both seemed rather disinterested in getting emotions involved. But she certainly wasn't going to clarify that she'd used a one-night-stand with a stranger who turned out to be an officer as part of her coping after the ordeal of the last mission. "I'll keep that in mind," she replied instead, recovering enough to rise to her feet. "Thank you again... For everything." Her hands folded behind her back in a habitual parade-rest as she paused before leaving, just in case there were any last-minute thoughts that came to the Commander's mind. Thankfully she was scheduled for patrolling the lower decks today... It would give her the much-needed time to process everything that they had talked about.
Tag Judith Eastman
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Judith Eastman
Civilian
Grandma
Posts: 2,593 Likes: 84
Rank: Civilian/other
Position: Civil Servant
Species: Human
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Post by Judith Eastman on Jan 3, 2021 19:50:04 GMT
[Cmdr. Judith Eastman(-Williams) - First Officer's Office]From Jovireh's somewhat awkward reaction, Judy assumed that the young woman wasn't too keen on the prospect of a dinner party with a senior officer, and as disappointing as that was, Judy understood it. Like it or not, her pips were inherently terrifying. "Have a nice day," she bade her guest farewell, as she then moved back to her desk and got back to her plentiful administrative duties. They had a joint fighter test with the Nyberrites coming up, and as Judy had been unable to convince the Admirals not to do it, she sought to make it as disaster-proofed as could be[fn] And boy, did that turn out well.[/fn].
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