The Most Entertaining Meal Of The Day
As I’ve mentioned earlier, my company is about to perform a massive “Reduction In Force” in which they’re laying off something like 75% of the company, me included. They’ve been letting people go on a staggered schedule — 15 people here, 20 people there — and the final release is taking place this Thursday, when the last of us will be “free to leave the building” after our exit interview — oh yeah, and after we turn in our laptops, cell phones, pagers, etc.
Management dictated that nobody could use vacation or PTO days this week, so the last few people from my department are all in the office this week, all of us with nothing to do. Seriously nothing to do. Our job has been to convert radio stations over to our software, and with all the stations converted we literally have not a single damned thing to do. So we’re chatting and surfing and IMing and talking on the phone and … we’re just basically here, taking up space and killing time as we wait for Thursday to inch its way closer.
The only bright spot in our day is lunch. There’s a movie theater right around the corner, so that’s what’s for lunch these days. Yesterday we had some nice Shaun of the Dead (two very enthusiastic thumbs up, btw), today we’ll probably try The Forgotten, and then Wednesday it’ll probably be Cellular.
Lunch. It’s the most entertaining meal of the day.
I have one word of advice that will help you keep your job:
Hostages.
(So do you have something else lined up? Are you a software consultant?)
You misunderstand, Jim. *I’ve* been a hostage to this company and now I’m happy to get out — especially with the fat severance check I’ll be getting. Nothing firm is lined up yet but I do have some promising leads. I’m more of a trainer than a consultant, but I’m willing to learn for the right paycheck. ;)
The project i’m on started August 23rd, so far we have done absolutely NOTHING while we wait for our part to start. I have a 2 hour commute (each way), with 7.5 hours of sitting around an empty office. I have been reading 2 novels a day, and due to the fact that my security clearance hasn’t come through yet (government contract), i haven’t even had PC access until Monday when a colleague left and i “borrowed” his account. Firewall blocks out almost everything worth surfing (except chuckstake!). By my reckoning i have done 202.5 work hours (27 x 7.5) without actually doing ANYTHING.
Does this qualify me for employment at the DMV???