Work is Hell
My cubicle is littered with crap. Crap everywhere just like a miniature Staten Island. I rarely get to clean this thing out because I'm always busy working on the next work related crisis. Truth be told, I enjoy what I do, although I dislike the company that employs me. Have you ever seen Office Space? Imagine a real life version of that, which happens to be two or three times worse.
The employees have routinely referred to this place as prison and getting another job as making payroll. When I speak about it to a former work friend his heart starts racing and his palms get sweaty. I can see a crazed look in the eyes like a dog who is just about to go into attack mode. Yeah. This place haunts you even after work hours, a constant dread that hangs over you like a fog that never goes away. Why haven't I left? Well, remember when technology companies could do no wrong? Well that changed five years a go. The market is slowly improving, but jobs are still scarce. For all intensive purposes, I'm currently trapped in this hell hole.
Last week the boss was out and all hell broke out. Suddenly I found myself fixing bugs like a mad man. Meanwhile, I see mention that company ABCD is having issues with the same product. I read the email, saw I wasn't responsible for setting up a meeting and just left it at that. I figured someone else would handle it. Since I'm not one for remembering other people's responsibilities, I completely forgot about it.
Well, a day later (Friday), my boss' boss comes by. I was taking one of those hourly breaks. Programming and debugging code could be quite draining at times. You need an Internet break just to clear your head. The computer I was working on, takes 10 minutes just to start up, so I figured, "What the hell, let's see what is going on in the wonderful world of yahoo news." Well Mrs. S (my boss' boss) caught me.
"Did you setup that meeting with ABCD," she asked with her hands on her hips.
"Ummm... no. Let me do that right now," I said. I didn't even stop think who was supposed to do it.
On Monday my boss returns from vacation and he tells me he needs to talk to me about company ABCD. Then he pulls out this email from Mrs. S which read something like this....
"I went over to ask Mike if he setup a meeting with ABCD. He was on the Internet, and he quickly closed his browser. I suspect it was not work related. I am not sure if he called ABCD."
Well, I did call the contact from ABCD although I got his answering machine. He didn't return my call until Monday. I didn't have the phone number so I had to play blues clues with tech support to get it. After the confrontation with my boss, I look through my email. I wanted to know what the hell happened. That is when I realized that it was never my responsibility to contact ABCD.
Needless to say, I'm pissed. I talked to my boss and showed him the email which supported my case. He responded by saying that perhaps Mrs. S and I needed to get better acquainted (Eyes rolling). The situation is even more weird since Mrs. S and I never interacted before. That's quite odd since she has been here for over 5-6 months. Since I have no recourse I decided to just let it go. There is no point in talking with Mrs. S about it. She seems like the type who makes up stories and won't be too pleased if I mention to her that her assumptions were wrong. Besides, I am the type who can't hide my anger about injustices. F*ck it. As far as the Internet usage, that is a retarded statement. We all need breaks from work whether that be coffee breaks, smoking, lunch, Internet, or outside. Since my only breaks are Internet breaks (I never take lunch), I don't feel that I am doing anything wrong.
Tags:
* comedy * humor * funny * silly * entertainment * pop culture * work * corporate * hell
* corporations * business * engineering * boss * internet * email * serfdom * computer * painful
* technology * programming * C++ * debugging * Office Space * Staten Island
The employees have routinely referred to this place as prison and getting another job as making payroll. When I speak about it to a former work friend his heart starts racing and his palms get sweaty. I can see a crazed look in the eyes like a dog who is just about to go into attack mode. Yeah. This place haunts you even after work hours, a constant dread that hangs over you like a fog that never goes away. Why haven't I left? Well, remember when technology companies could do no wrong? Well that changed five years a go. The market is slowly improving, but jobs are still scarce. For all intensive purposes, I'm currently trapped in this hell hole.
Last week the boss was out and all hell broke out. Suddenly I found myself fixing bugs like a mad man. Meanwhile, I see mention that company ABCD is having issues with the same product. I read the email, saw I wasn't responsible for setting up a meeting and just left it at that. I figured someone else would handle it. Since I'm not one for remembering other people's responsibilities, I completely forgot about it.
Well, a day later (Friday), my boss' boss comes by. I was taking one of those hourly breaks. Programming and debugging code could be quite draining at times. You need an Internet break just to clear your head. The computer I was working on, takes 10 minutes just to start up, so I figured, "What the hell, let's see what is going on in the wonderful world of yahoo news." Well Mrs. S (my boss' boss) caught me.
"Did you setup that meeting with ABCD," she asked with her hands on her hips.
"Ummm... no. Let me do that right now," I said. I didn't even stop think who was supposed to do it.
On Monday my boss returns from vacation and he tells me he needs to talk to me about company ABCD. Then he pulls out this email from Mrs. S which read something like this....
"I went over to ask Mike if he setup a meeting with ABCD. He was on the Internet, and he quickly closed his browser. I suspect it was not work related. I am not sure if he called ABCD."
Well, I did call the contact from ABCD although I got his answering machine. He didn't return my call until Monday. I didn't have the phone number so I had to play blues clues with tech support to get it. After the confrontation with my boss, I look through my email. I wanted to know what the hell happened. That is when I realized that it was never my responsibility to contact ABCD.
Needless to say, I'm pissed. I talked to my boss and showed him the email which supported my case. He responded by saying that perhaps Mrs. S and I needed to get better acquainted (Eyes rolling). The situation is even more weird since Mrs. S and I never interacted before. That's quite odd since she has been here for over 5-6 months. Since I have no recourse I decided to just let it go. There is no point in talking with Mrs. S about it. She seems like the type who makes up stories and won't be too pleased if I mention to her that her assumptions were wrong. Besides, I am the type who can't hide my anger about injustices. F*ck it. As far as the Internet usage, that is a retarded statement. We all need breaks from work whether that be coffee breaks, smoking, lunch, Internet, or outside. Since my only breaks are Internet breaks (I never take lunch), I don't feel that I am doing anything wrong.
Tags:
* comedy * humor * funny * silly * entertainment * pop culture * work * corporate * hell
* corporations * business * engineering * boss * internet * email * serfdom * computer * painful
* technology * programming * C++ * debugging * Office Space * Staten Island
posted by Mike K at 8/01/2006
4 Comments:
did he take your swingline stapler?
that type of thing leads to arson I hear.
A bad day... It happens. I'm sorry. But I understand, too
Mike, Budd, my fellow writer sent me the most hilarious song..I am gonna play it for you on friday with a pic of the swingline stapler....I can't resist after hearing the song...
sorry I didn't post the promised song but I was busy chasing a hacker who was mirroring all of our sites...got him and his ip is posted up on mine if you care to report him to blogger.
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