Melia Alexander | Dude-Speak

Aaah, The Male Observation Lab (aka my construction company day job). So full of opportunities to observe dudes in their natural habitat: playing with dirt…operating heavy equipment… building stuff from a set of plans that, even after *cough cough* years, still read like Greek to me…But that’s another story…

To say that I’m lucky to be exposed to such high levels of testosterone on an almost daily basis is an understatement. That I get paid to do this is like the heavens opening up and dropping story after story after story in my lap! Well, bits and pieces of it, anyway. Trying to untangle them can be a challenge, but it’d take more than a pile of cash to pry me away.

Okay, maybe I’m lying about the pile of cash thing, but still…

Honestly, there are things about the dudes that totally fascinate me. For instance, they have their own language, speaking in terms that I’ve come to appreciate over the years. And while sometimes the language is like reading a set of plans, somehow it ends up making sense. Or maybe I’ve been around them so long I’m starting to think like they do.

Huh. There’s a thought…

Anyway, some of the conversations involve construction-speak, and while shocking to my virgin ears some *cough cough* years ago, they’re now normal for me.

On a project site one morning, I noticed that the main equipment operator dude wasn’t around, but I overheard this snippet of conversation: Superintendent to operator: You ever work a pecker before?

Operator (hands on hips and leaning forward, obviously offended): Listen, I’ve been around long enough to operate a pecker more than once!

Superintendent (warning tone): You better not break it.

They were talking about an attachment to a backhoe, but you all know where my head went. *snort*

There was also the time when a couple of dudes who shall remain nameless – mainly because I don’t want them to throw up filters when I’m around – were in a project trailer. (Me? I was writing a report and shamelessly eavesdropping.) It was the middle of summer, and the trailer’s air conditioning whirred in the background, welcomed relief from the 90+ degree heat outside.

One dude was at his desk while the other was at the drafting table, deciphering one of the Greek-like plans for the job.

Desk Dude: How was your weekend?

Plan Dude: Had to finish the deck.

*Ten second pause*

Desk Dude: Got cut off, huh?

Plan Dude (not missing a beat): Yeah…I had to finish the deck.

Frankly, it struck me how so much could be said between them in so little words. And my muse couldn’t help but sit up, take a shot of bourbon, a drag off her cigar, and notice!

The opportunity to eavesdrop on observe conversations like these is one of the reasons why I love working at The Male Observation Lab, and probably why I chose for the heroine of my debut novel, Merger of the Heart, to be a part of that world. After all, the dudes I get to work with provide a ton of inspiration on a regular basis. It seemed fitting to include them, in some small way, in my first published book.

So, to the dudes at The Male Observation Lab, and to construction workers everywhere who build our roadways and bridges, subdivisions and structures, who dig the rock and turn it into construction materials, and who do all the countless tasks necessary to get the job done, thanks so much for the inspiration! You’re the best!

Have you encountered dude-speak? What’d you think?

~Melia

About MERGER OF THE HEART

He’s about to acquire a whole lot more than a business…

When her grandfather dies, Jessica Adams inherits the family construction business. But there are strings attached. Big, deal-breaking strings. For one, Jessica’s grandfather was in the process of selling the company to a national firm. And two? The big wig who made the offer for Jessica’s business is none other than Daniel Spencer, her ex-lover and the father of her seven-year-old son. Only Daniel doesn’t know.

What started as a standard business acquisition has turned Daniel’s entire world―and his plans―inside out. But even as he offers her the deal of the lifetime, everything changes when he meets her son. Their son. Now Daniel is laying everything on the line to put together a much different kind of merger…if he can convince Jessica to take the biggest risk of her life. Read Fresh Fiction's review of MERGER OF THE HEART

About Melia Alexander

Melia Alexander is the author of sassy, sexy, fun contemporary romances, but is also fortunate to spend her week days at The Male Observation Lab (a.k.a. her job at a construction company) where she gets to observe guys in their natural habitat. Though they often behave like typical alpha males, in many instances she's seen through their personas to the heart of who they really are - the heroes of their own stories. A native of Guam, Melia traded in warm, tropical breezes for the rainy Pacific Northwest where she now resides with her husband, two amazing nieces, and three adorable kitties. She's an avid reader who also loves to watch romantic comedies - preferably with a glass of CabSauv and a box of chocolates nearby. In her free time, she's busy conquering her CrossFit fears: ring dips, power cleans, and the dreaded 800 meter run. Her family appreciates her attempts at cooking and cleaning, although she spends it mostly daydreaming about her characters, which sometimes results in a burnt meal and a half-cleaned house.