A Bit of This and That
Yesterday, my entire office building, along with a couple blocks in either direction, was completely devoid of any artificial lighting. Or electricity at all. On my way to work, I had briefly noted that none of the stoplights were working. I went into to work and it was dark! It was weird walking the halls to my desk having to squint, feeling like I was working the night shift...
I got to my desk and realized it had just recently gone out. As we all nearly couldn't see a thing, and in no way could try proofreading contracts, there was nothing much to be done at work. Some people's eyes were hurting from the glare of the computer screen being the only thing sending a dim light into their cubicle. I didn't mind at all...it felt like an adventure! My co-workers have no problem referring to me as a dork. It probably didn't help that I kept referring to the situation and the condition of the building as akin to "a big fort."
Well, the afternoon finally rolled around and the building had a lunch put on for all the businesses occupying the building. They said we could take an extra long lunch because of the loss of electricity; this announcement came together with the instructions that, as my company presides in the top floors, no one was to use the upstairs "water closets," as it takes electricity to bring the water up this high. Plus, there was no circulation in the building for lack of ventilation and air conditioning. Some fort, indeed.
Well, after our enjoyable, "Taste of Tuscany" lunch, we made our way back up to work. No one felt like working, especially after finding out 3:00 would be the earliest the problem would be fixed...and even that was no guarantee. For lack of air conditioning, the top floors were getting stuffy. Tracy in a mock panic said, "Heat makes people crazy...and that's when crimes happen!"
After a while of fanning ourselves with FedEx envelopes, we get the brilliant idea to see how far our heavy-duty rubberbands shoot. Tracy and I arm up and start firing away, aiming for a co-worker four cubes and two aisles away. (It's so fun to do this in a dark office building - you have no idea.) We couldn't seem to hit this innocent co-worker, but we kept trying. They were falling willy-nilly around in his cubicle, but he was too fully engrossed in whatever he was doing to give a satisfactory response to being under-fire. Tracy and I kept ducking and laughing every time we thought we'd been found out, but he never looked up; we kept firing away. She chirped up, "See?? Crimes do happen!!" One finally struck him on the shoulder and we ducked.
He came over to replenish my rubberband stash, saying "The funniest thing..I think there's rubber in these florescent lights and with them not being in working order, it's congealing and dropping these bands into my desk..." Yeah, that's it, Fred...
The lights are back on today, I'm sad to say. Maybe that's a good thing for the Minneapolis crime statistics...
_____________________________________
So lately, I've been just dead-dog tired. School, small group, school, etc. - I've just been busy and staying up late to prove it.
That carries over into work. Today is a perfect example.
I slunched down in my "ergonomically-correct" office chair and, consciously unbeknownst to me, proceed to take a "long blink." And who knew one could dream while at work???
It was an intense part - I was hacking through some underbrush of some kind, and my hand touched a creepy fungus (otherwise known as a mushroom) sprouting from the end of a branch. I quickly jerked my hand away from the spore-producing structure. And suddenly awoke with a start as I realized I had just yanked my mouse off my desk in a bumbling crash.
Resembling the "falling of a cliff" feeling, beware of "feeling like you're touching a mushroom" feeling. It can have disastrous (or simply embarrassing) effects. Though I don't believe anyone was privy to this short hiatus in la-la-land.
_____________________________________
So you know how songs can sometimes get stuck in your head? I have a word stuck in my head. Yeah, the word?
Leviathan.
Who gets the word leviathan stuck in their head?? I wasn't even reading Isaiah 27 today! Honest.
Leviathan...
....Leviathan...
_____________________________________
I love banana bread.
Especially in a star-loaf shape. I came into work and my boss had left a star-shaped loaf of banana bread on my desk.
I love my boss.
I got to my desk and realized it had just recently gone out. As we all nearly couldn't see a thing, and in no way could try proofreading contracts, there was nothing much to be done at work. Some people's eyes were hurting from the glare of the computer screen being the only thing sending a dim light into their cubicle. I didn't mind at all...it felt like an adventure! My co-workers have no problem referring to me as a dork. It probably didn't help that I kept referring to the situation and the condition of the building as akin to "a big fort."
Well, the afternoon finally rolled around and the building had a lunch put on for all the businesses occupying the building. They said we could take an extra long lunch because of the loss of electricity; this announcement came together with the instructions that, as my company presides in the top floors, no one was to use the upstairs "water closets," as it takes electricity to bring the water up this high. Plus, there was no circulation in the building for lack of ventilation and air conditioning. Some fort, indeed.
Well, after our enjoyable, "Taste of Tuscany" lunch, we made our way back up to work. No one felt like working, especially after finding out 3:00 would be the earliest the problem would be fixed...and even that was no guarantee. For lack of air conditioning, the top floors were getting stuffy. Tracy in a mock panic said, "Heat makes people crazy...and that's when crimes happen!"
After a while of fanning ourselves with FedEx envelopes, we get the brilliant idea to see how far our heavy-duty rubberbands shoot. Tracy and I arm up and start firing away, aiming for a co-worker four cubes and two aisles away. (It's so fun to do this in a dark office building - you have no idea.) We couldn't seem to hit this innocent co-worker, but we kept trying. They were falling willy-nilly around in his cubicle, but he was too fully engrossed in whatever he was doing to give a satisfactory response to being under-fire. Tracy and I kept ducking and laughing every time we thought we'd been found out, but he never looked up; we kept firing away. She chirped up, "See?? Crimes do happen!!" One finally struck him on the shoulder and we ducked.
He came over to replenish my rubberband stash, saying "The funniest thing..I think there's rubber in these florescent lights and with them not being in working order, it's congealing and dropping these bands into my desk..." Yeah, that's it, Fred...
The lights are back on today, I'm sad to say. Maybe that's a good thing for the Minneapolis crime statistics...
_____________________________________
So lately, I've been just dead-dog tired. School, small group, school, etc. - I've just been busy and staying up late to prove it.
That carries over into work. Today is a perfect example.
I slunched down in my "ergonomically-correct" office chair and, consciously unbeknownst to me, proceed to take a "long blink." And who knew one could dream while at work???
It was an intense part - I was hacking through some underbrush of some kind, and my hand touched a creepy fungus (otherwise known as a mushroom) sprouting from the end of a branch. I quickly jerked my hand away from the spore-producing structure. And suddenly awoke with a start as I realized I had just yanked my mouse off my desk in a bumbling crash.
Resembling the "falling of a cliff" feeling, beware of "feeling like you're touching a mushroom" feeling. It can have disastrous (or simply embarrassing) effects. Though I don't believe anyone was privy to this short hiatus in la-la-land.
_____________________________________
So you know how songs can sometimes get stuck in your head? I have a word stuck in my head. Yeah, the word?
Leviathan.
Who gets the word leviathan stuck in their head?? I wasn't even reading Isaiah 27 today! Honest.
Leviathan...
....Leviathan...
_____________________________________
I love banana bread.
Especially in a star-loaf shape. I came into work and my boss had left a star-shaped loaf of banana bread on my desk.
I love my boss.
posted by Jennifer at 11:31 AM
7 Comments:
Well it sounds as if you had quite the adventure in your dark cavern/office. Poor Fred, such an innocent victim of Minneapolis crime, although sadly not even knowing he was under attack. I too am a big fan of bannana bread although I cannot say that I have ever tried it in a star shaped loaf. I continue to lift you up in prayer.
Jen- you and I are two peas in a pod. Just the fact that I could follow your dream, feel the environment, taste the- air, and feel the mushroom before the jolt of real life...
or maybe it was all these redbulls.
I'm glad you posted the story... refer to the email response....
And rubber band shooting, while in the office, with lights off, at random people, is my favorite past time.
Frank thought I should suggest an alternative design of afore mentioned computer accoutrement...and name it The Mushroom Mouse.
So really, I could become partners with Bill Gates in my brilliant designs for the new, up-and-coming mouse of the future -- fashioned after those dang cute toadstools.
Ha! Joanna...redbulls are not always your friend... But then again - if you're trackin' with me...carry on, we must be doing something right. (Can we be French Peas?)
You have good taste in past times Frank.
You've never had banana bread in star-form?? I'll be praying for you Ben.
In honor of the shark post... refer to this video.
Jen - you seriously have a gift for writing !! I was caught up in the story and missed a couple calls....well, I hit DND on my phone because I couldn't find the good "stopping point" in your story. HI larious!!
Wish that I could have been there for the mysterious rubberband shootings.
In a cube farm, that is an occasion for prairie dogging.
Def : Prairie dogging is when a loud noise, or a mysterious object or an odd smell leads to persons who in an intense frame, and extremely focused on their computer screens....to stand up abruptly and look around to see just where it came from. :)
PS - the mysterious "smell" that leads to "prairie dogging" is typically called "crop dusting" by those who work at cube farms.
Jen you are too sweet in saying such things!
But that is so funny - I've always laughed at how much the office looks like little prairie dogs when people suddenly poke their heads up and glance this way and that.
I like the term!! Nice one.
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