For a long time I've wanted to chronicle the goings on of the office. Honestly, I don't think I can do it. For one, it's hard to capture in writing the actual events and how horrifying they really are. Secondly, it's a bit depressing to relive these said moments. I get plenty of opportunity with my co-workers to blow off steam I don't think I need a secondary outlet.
At first I thought it might be fun to let the public in on our little hell we live in but then the idea just became a bit pathetic. If it's so bad, why are we still there? Good question, and I have an answer. We joke (and are sometimes serious) that we are here for past sins. Like making fun of the size of Harriet's ass. It is huge and getting huger. Levi's is loving her for the 5,000 calorie lunches that require a new purchase of jeans each month.
I don't know. Maybe this isn't the place for it, maybe it is. I'll give it some thought for now and may be back. Maybe I just need to chronicle for posterity maybe I need to not for my own sanity. That is the question.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Cool Shades
Dear Mr. Applicant,
I know you are excited that we are hiring. I know that you want to come in and impress. And what I know most of all, we don't have to hire you.
When you come in wearing your leather jacket and sporting the shades that match the Cadillac Escalade you borrowed from your dad you look like a tool. We are not impressed. Take off the sunglasses. What? are you on drugs and don't want me to see your eyes? Are you too cool to remove your shades in a building with limited light exposure?
We were not overwhelmed with excitement upon your introduction to us as God's gift to metal fabrication. And, before I was able to get a word out of my mouth you ask "how much do you pay?" Easy to answer "to you, Nothing! Get out!" My goodness, how long have you been out of work? Are you trying this hard because you've failed at all other approaches? Or do you really think you're that good?
Here is a suggestion; go to your local bookstore and pick up a copy of "What Color is Your Parachute". It might help you, it might not.
By the way, I shredded your resume as you walked out the door.
Best regards,
Schmo, who will not be hiring you.
I know you are excited that we are hiring. I know that you want to come in and impress. And what I know most of all, we don't have to hire you.
When you come in wearing your leather jacket and sporting the shades that match the Cadillac Escalade you borrowed from your dad you look like a tool. We are not impressed. Take off the sunglasses. What? are you on drugs and don't want me to see your eyes? Are you too cool to remove your shades in a building with limited light exposure?
We were not overwhelmed with excitement upon your introduction to us as God's gift to metal fabrication. And, before I was able to get a word out of my mouth you ask "how much do you pay?" Easy to answer "to you, Nothing! Get out!" My goodness, how long have you been out of work? Are you trying this hard because you've failed at all other approaches? Or do you really think you're that good?
Here is a suggestion; go to your local bookstore and pick up a copy of "What Color is Your Parachute". It might help you, it might not.
By the way, I shredded your resume as you walked out the door.
Best regards,
Schmo, who will not be hiring you.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Throwing a Sideways Smile
Sometime ago at my previous Asylum my co-worker and I shared an awkward moment. Ron, from the sales department, stopped by our office to check on an order that was placed. Since we didn't have visitor chairs in our humble abode he chose to squat next to the desk while chatting with us.
After completing our transaction Ron stood and walked away. As he trotted down the hall I noticed a flash of white on his backside. I pointed this out to my co-worker who quickly looked and let out a burst of laughter.
"He's got a sideways pant smile going on!" Quickly slapping her hand over her face she looked at me with hand on mouth and eyes as big as saucers.
"You're going to tell me that I need to go tell him his pants are split, aren't you?" She nodded still holding in the laughter.
"But he was squatting at your desk!" I protested.
"He needs to hear it from a man." She said.
"But..." I was going to continue my protest.
"...from a man!" she insisted.
"Alriiight!"
I mustered up some courage and put on the straightest face I could considering I was approaching a man with pants split from here to there. Down the hall I went rehearsing my speech in my head.
Knock. "Hey Ron."
"What's up Schmo?"
"Uh, your, um, pants... yah, well we noticed that they were... welll... they are split." Phew! Got it out without busting up.
Ron reached around and felt. "SH!T, I have a meeting in 1/2 hour."
"I thought you should know." I rushed away.
I returned to my office only to be barraged by others who had been let in on the chuckle. I told them I did my duty and that co-worker owed me one.
The impromptu meeting in our office continued so I took advantage of the distraction to go use the restroom. As I entered I heard a familiar noise but a strange on for a restroom. Ka-Chunk! Ka-Chunk! Ka-Chunk! The sound of a stapler hard at work.
"Ron, is that you."
"Yes! I told you I have a meeting. This is all I could think to do."
"Your a frick'n MacGyver! Good luck with the meeting."
He walked with an odd step the rest of that day, but he had no sideways pant smile for us the rest of it.
After completing our transaction Ron stood and walked away. As he trotted down the hall I noticed a flash of white on his backside. I pointed this out to my co-worker who quickly looked and let out a burst of laughter.
"He's got a sideways pant smile going on!" Quickly slapping her hand over her face she looked at me with hand on mouth and eyes as big as saucers.
"You're going to tell me that I need to go tell him his pants are split, aren't you?" She nodded still holding in the laughter.
"But he was squatting at your desk!" I protested.
"He needs to hear it from a man." She said.
"But..." I was going to continue my protest.
"...from a man!" she insisted.
"Alriiight!"
I mustered up some courage and put on the straightest face I could considering I was approaching a man with pants split from here to there. Down the hall I went rehearsing my speech in my head.
Knock. "Hey Ron."
"What's up Schmo?"
"Uh, your, um, pants... yah, well we noticed that they were... welll... they are split." Phew! Got it out without busting up.
Ron reached around and felt. "SH!T, I have a meeting in 1/2 hour."
"I thought you should know." I rushed away.
I returned to my office only to be barraged by others who had been let in on the chuckle. I told them I did my duty and that co-worker owed me one.
The impromptu meeting in our office continued so I took advantage of the distraction to go use the restroom. As I entered I heard a familiar noise but a strange on for a restroom. Ka-Chunk! Ka-Chunk! Ka-Chunk! The sound of a stapler hard at work.
"Ron, is that you."
"Yes! I told you I have a meeting. This is all I could think to do."
"Your a frick'n MacGyver! Good luck with the meeting."
He walked with an odd step the rest of that day, but he had no sideways pant smile for us the rest of it.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
A Kick to the Crotch
Spring break brings more visits from Future Boss. It also brings his sister around more too. She doesn't come around as often so she's not as familiar with the surroundings as her brother.
This week I got a special visit from both. They teamed up on me to garnish some goodies from my office. Since it is the season of Lent I am abstaining from sugar for 40 days. Next to coffee, it is the closest thing I have to an addiction. For the 40 days I decided to empty my office of the typical stash of sweetened goodies.
"Hey kids! I guess it must be spring break since you should be in school this time of day."
"Yep" as they both check the bowl for the latest goody to snack on. The their dismay they find it empty. "Where's the candy?" asks Future Boss. Although he's younger he plays the ring leader.
"There is no money in the budget for candy this month"
"I don't believe you"
"Fair enough"
"Is it in your drawer?"
"Nope"
"Yes, it is"
'Sorry kids. No candy during Lent. You'll have to wait until Easter to have some in this office"
"Nope. You've got some."
"Nope. I don't." Now I'm in a silly argument with a kid. Uhg.
"Show me where the candy is or my sister will kick you in the crotch"
*Stunned* "She'll do what?"
"She will kick you in the crotch"
With the stern look of a father who won't take this from a kid no matter who his father is "Listen youngster. That is not appropriate and you need to leave at this moment."
They run away. To daddy.
Did I say anything to daddy? Nope. Guess where they learn this behavior. He'd just laugh it off like he has in the past. Sad really. Sad. This kid has no hope.
This week I got a special visit from both. They teamed up on me to garnish some goodies from my office. Since it is the season of Lent I am abstaining from sugar for 40 days. Next to coffee, it is the closest thing I have to an addiction. For the 40 days I decided to empty my office of the typical stash of sweetened goodies.
"Hey kids! I guess it must be spring break since you should be in school this time of day."
"Yep" as they both check the bowl for the latest goody to snack on. The their dismay they find it empty. "Where's the candy?" asks Future Boss. Although he's younger he plays the ring leader.
"There is no money in the budget for candy this month"
"I don't believe you"
"Fair enough"
"Is it in your drawer?"
"Nope"
"Yes, it is"
'Sorry kids. No candy during Lent. You'll have to wait until Easter to have some in this office"
"Nope. You've got some."
"Nope. I don't." Now I'm in a silly argument with a kid. Uhg.
"Show me where the candy is or my sister will kick you in the crotch"
*Stunned* "She'll do what?"
"She will kick you in the crotch"
With the stern look of a father who won't take this from a kid no matter who his father is "Listen youngster. That is not appropriate and you need to leave at this moment."
They run away. To daddy.
Did I say anything to daddy? Nope. Guess where they learn this behavior. He'd just laugh it off like he has in the past. Sad really. Sad. This kid has no hope.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Preface This
Boss Man has an annoying habit of prefacing every conversation with a statement to show how busy he is or how important he must be. I'm not really sure the point of the preface as he only has a handful of them and uses them incessantly. Like the boy who cried wolf, he has worn the edge of his preface blade so it results in a dull and irritating thump on the noggin instead of the slicing motivator he probably intends it to be.
Let's review the most common prefaces. These selected gems from his repertoire come at us on a daily basis.
"I'm in a flap." - This is his prized gem. Multiple uses daily. I've heard it for years but still don't know what a flap is or how he gets in it. I just picture in my mind a sleeping bag that he's zipped all the way up and now can't get his hands out to undo the zipper. Someday I'm going to find that elusive flap that keeps showing up and destroy it so he doesn't get in it anymore.
"I've got people chasing me." - Yikes! If I had people chasing me I'd let everyone know too so they could help get them off my scent. So scary. But in his world what this means is that he's taken two phone calls and both calls were from people who need something and now he is after you to help him get these people what they need.
"I'm in a sprint." - Ah, yes he is. He's moving fast because there is something else he'd rather be doing. And because he is the boss, what he needs and what he is doing outweighs anything you are doing even if it is something he needs to get the people chasing him off his back.
"I'm on the move." - See "I'm in a sprint."
"I'm going under." - This is slowly catching up to "I'm in a flap." in its usage quantities. Boss Man is singular minded which means he can only do one thing at a time. Definitely not a multitasker (which as a side note he thinks is a bull$h!t term and way overused). So when he pulls out "I'm going under." what he means is "I've got two or more things to do and I can't mentally handle it".
Because I am beginning to understand some of his neurosis I have developed some critical responses to the preface. The responses change from day to day but they serve the same purpose. Satisfaction. If only in my head, I want satisfaction. I say this because he never responds to my verbal parry to his preface attack. For example last week after he ran in telling me that "he's got people chasing him" I asked him "do you want me to cap some knees 'cause that'll slow them down?" Blank look. Oh well, I enjoyed it.
Let's review the most common prefaces. These selected gems from his repertoire come at us on a daily basis.
"I'm in a flap." - This is his prized gem. Multiple uses daily. I've heard it for years but still don't know what a flap is or how he gets in it. I just picture in my mind a sleeping bag that he's zipped all the way up and now can't get his hands out to undo the zipper. Someday I'm going to find that elusive flap that keeps showing up and destroy it so he doesn't get in it anymore.
"I've got people chasing me." - Yikes! If I had people chasing me I'd let everyone know too so they could help get them off my scent. So scary. But in his world what this means is that he's taken two phone calls and both calls were from people who need something and now he is after you to help him get these people what they need.
"I'm in a sprint." - Ah, yes he is. He's moving fast because there is something else he'd rather be doing. And because he is the boss, what he needs and what he is doing outweighs anything you are doing even if it is something he needs to get the people chasing him off his back.
"I'm on the move." - See "I'm in a sprint."
"I'm going under." - This is slowly catching up to "I'm in a flap." in its usage quantities. Boss Man is singular minded which means he can only do one thing at a time. Definitely not a multitasker (which as a side note he thinks is a bull$h!t term and way overused). So when he pulls out "I'm going under." what he means is "I've got two or more things to do and I can't mentally handle it".
Because I am beginning to understand some of his neurosis I have developed some critical responses to the preface. The responses change from day to day but they serve the same purpose. Satisfaction. If only in my head, I want satisfaction. I say this because he never responds to my verbal parry to his preface attack. For example last week after he ran in telling me that "he's got people chasing him" I asked him "do you want me to cap some knees 'cause that'll slow them down?" Blank look. Oh well, I enjoyed it.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Shhh! Do You Smell That?
This must be a common problem at most work places... the smelly 'fridge. A communal food storage device is just asking for an odor problem. Am I right?
Ours reeks. Horribly. I'm afraid to put my food in there because I don't know what might be lurking that wants to glom onto my food. It's so bad it's hard to even open the door.
The strange thing is is that it is relatively new and appears to be clean. It is a late model euro design stainless steel model with all the auto-fancy gadgets. There is not a hint of mold crusted food or fuzzy fruit. By all appearances it should smell cold and fresh. But it does not.
I happen to be a brown-bagger so daily use of the icebox is pretty much a given. It is because of this daily use that I feel the need to solve the malodorous mystery. Others use it too but none have stepped forward to solve, let alone acknowledged that there is even a problem.
Last month I bought some Arm & Hammer refrigerator packs and put them in. Still stinks and I seem to be the only one that cares. I guess the next step is the bleach bath.
Ours reeks. Horribly. I'm afraid to put my food in there because I don't know what might be lurking that wants to glom onto my food. It's so bad it's hard to even open the door.
The strange thing is is that it is relatively new and appears to be clean. It is a late model euro design stainless steel model with all the auto-fancy gadgets. There is not a hint of mold crusted food or fuzzy fruit. By all appearances it should smell cold and fresh. But it does not.
I happen to be a brown-bagger so daily use of the icebox is pretty much a given. It is because of this daily use that I feel the need to solve the malodorous mystery. Others use it too but none have stepped forward to solve, let alone acknowledged that there is even a problem.
Last month I bought some Arm & Hammer refrigerator packs and put them in. Still stinks and I seem to be the only one that cares. I guess the next step is the bleach bath.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
So Tired
Ever had a week that you finish and wonder if you can do it again? I have.
This past week was a rough one. I'd like to not repeat it. The Boss Man is getting crazier by the day. If you would have asked me six months ago if this was possible I would have said an emphatic "NO Way!".
The additional craziness explained... partially... I was walking along with him at one point this week and we were talking about an ongoing project. Every ten or so steps he'd either interrupt me or himself with an under the breath curse accompanied by a full body jerk and a quick wave of the hand. It was like the tantrum of a five year old. But he just kept walking along and didn't say what was wrong. He just kept doing it. I just kept walking and talking like nothing was the matter. Maybe I'm the crazy one. Still debating that one.
Later on his way to lunch he walked into my office and did the same thing. This time it was followed up with him ripping the bluetooth earpiece from his head and tossing it on my desk. "The DAMN thing beeps every time I get an email!" Ah. The light comes on. Now I get it. He reacts to voicemails the same way. A quick curse and throw of the hands in utter exasperation any time he gets a new voice mail. Now with the new laws on hands free driving he wears one of those cursed bluetooth ear pieces any time he's away from his desk.
The wheels were turning. That morning when I showed up to work I had at least twenty emails from him asking for various things. I decided to answer all of them while he was at lunch. I could just see him sitting at the restaurant throwing his tantrums. Yep. I can be a little passive aggressive.
*** By the way the Ghost visited this week. Yes. We have a Ghost. I'll tell you about him soon. He's quite something.
This past week was a rough one. I'd like to not repeat it. The Boss Man is getting crazier by the day. If you would have asked me six months ago if this was possible I would have said an emphatic "NO Way!".
The additional craziness explained... partially... I was walking along with him at one point this week and we were talking about an ongoing project. Every ten or so steps he'd either interrupt me or himself with an under the breath curse accompanied by a full body jerk and a quick wave of the hand. It was like the tantrum of a five year old. But he just kept walking along and didn't say what was wrong. He just kept doing it. I just kept walking and talking like nothing was the matter. Maybe I'm the crazy one. Still debating that one.
Later on his way to lunch he walked into my office and did the same thing. This time it was followed up with him ripping the bluetooth earpiece from his head and tossing it on my desk. "The DAMN thing beeps every time I get an email!" Ah. The light comes on. Now I get it. He reacts to voicemails the same way. A quick curse and throw of the hands in utter exasperation any time he gets a new voice mail. Now with the new laws on hands free driving he wears one of those cursed bluetooth ear pieces any time he's away from his desk.
The wheels were turning. That morning when I showed up to work I had at least twenty emails from him asking for various things. I decided to answer all of them while he was at lunch. I could just see him sitting at the restaurant throwing his tantrums. Yep. I can be a little passive aggressive.
*** By the way the Ghost visited this week. Yes. We have a Ghost. I'll tell you about him soon. He's quite something.
