Thenurse – thanks for the clarification
I’m a little edgy about sharing the sensitivities i’m talking about. but i’ll share some. I mean if working in an office with both women and men, neither should be addressed by their first names. Ex: Mr ________ Miss _________ and if needed when calling eachother also introducing oneself as MRS/MR etc It sounds so silly, yet it is very profound. It sets a certain HEALTHY distance. THats the way it SHOULD be. also not making eye contact, and only speaking about WORK related issues. and NOTHING else.
OOmis i STRONGLY disagree with you. It is only NATURAL for boys and girls NOT to be comfortable conversing and it should remain that way – even AFTER marriage. (Obviously not spking about with one’s spouse) Many tend to think that once someone is married they can now be more comfortable conversing with people of the opposite gender. They are GROSSLY mistaken. THe halachos only become more machmir if someone is married. It’s just that they are now more comfortable with each other. This is something that makes me SOOO upset and i see it all over.