?Whatcha doin??
?Codin?
?Whatcha codin??
?Video games?
I have been fairly bored at work as of late, mainly due to the holidays steadily approaching, so the above is an often repeated conversation vince and I have had recently. Poor guy. Eventually he shot me the look that meant, ?Seriously woman, I?M CODING,? and I went on to bother other, more available programmers with my annoyance. In one of my 'annoy the productive folk' downtime moments, vince sent me this link to Techs Unite. It?s a site devoted to the unionization of technology workers.
Last year when I was one of four IT folk who had their raise held up, I was simply told, the Powers That Be felt IT people were a dime a dozen and if we didn?t like it, we could move on. It?s a similar attitude that makes organizations like Techs Unite more common. Sure, there is quite the flood of IT geeks on the market, but how many are qualified and do their job well? Then again, does it really matter? Some IT jobs can be summed up with the simple word that is ?Reboot?. It?s a shame, but many people make a living off that word. Incidentally, I did get my due raise months later after Product Development got involved.
I?m not quite sure if I would approve of tech unions. Coming from a non-union state like Texas and later moving to a union infested state like Illinois, I can see both sides of the coin with a degree of knowledge. Unions played such an important role in this country when they first arrived on the scene, but now? Now it seems like it?s just another entity to take advantage of the old school rules. I?ll tell you one thing, dear reader, when I call Dell support and I?m connected to my personal Indian representative, it?s very clear in the forefront of my mind that some Texan lost their job to this far away individual.
A few Monster Monday notes?
Monster House: There's always one asshole.
Monster Garage: Dig the street lane lines at 91MPH
American Chopper (repeat): It kills me deep within my soul to see them paint beautiful chrome pipes.
Finally, this picture is on my security badge at work. I think I look like a precious, innocent 8 year old, but for some reason, the consensus seems to fall to the devilish, up to no good brat opinion. Me? Nah.
So with the recent discovery of Microsoft employee blogs by some members of The Red Cape Brigade, I can?t help but feel a twinge of pity for the team leads, designers and architects in Redmond. Man, do they have some interesting comments in store for them.
I only hope they will come across in a productive and polite manner and not be so, so?well, so Red Capish to these poor unsuspecting souls at Microsoft. In other words, behave gentlemen! Don?t be a dick. It?s an easy way to live your life. Four simple words?
I wonder what kind of capes Microsoft developers have?hmmm.
Our Corporate office is located directly across the street but it seems worlds away when I walk through its vacant halls. I rarely have to go over there, but when I do, I feel as if I?ve been run through a decontamination shower and my personality has been sucked from my soul.
It?s a very sterile, cold atmosphere. A trip to Corporate means a stark reminder of what work environments lay waiting for me out there once my tenure is over in Video Game Country. The business casual attire, that uncomfortable aura surrounding teams of uptight number crunchers and that ever unpleasant stench of Corporate America; it just sends chills down my spine.
During Executive Reviews, I get a small taste of the corporate culture I so desperately try to avoid. The Marketing Zombies come waltzing into town and they bring all the Almighty Managers with them. The women?s bathroom is soon overpowered with cheap smelling but expensive perfume; the halls are filled with people who don?t acknowledge my existence and then there are the demanding men who think I?m a secretary and couldn?t possibly perform the most basic of IT tasks.
At least during Reviews, I am comforted at the thought that these well dressed invaders will soon move onto their next victim, but with the suits across the street? There is no escape from that.
So what's my point you ask? Well, I?m convinced email, fax machines and other technological conveniences are simply the invention of simple folk trying to avoid being in the presence of their Corporate counterparts.
______________________________________
A few miscellaneous bits for your consumption, dear reader?
Monster House tonight: I only have one thing to say about this episode and that is: Best build team EVER! Steph rocks!
Why did not one, not two, not even three, but at least six people today feel the need to make fun of my black, beat up, ancient Chuck Taylor?s with the brown leather laces? At least I got one compliment (thanks, woman).
Finally, I decided this weekend that I wanna be really rich. Aside from wanting a house, a home theater that rivals any movie palace and these rims for my truck, I think I?ll probably want more at some point, so why not be rich, right? Just one problem?the gig I will enjoy doing for the rest of my life, well, it just ain?t that lucrative folks. Man, I hope these stock options pay off.
Man?Steve Francis has got to be one of the greediest ball handlers out there to date. I didn?t get an exact count throughout the game, but by the end of the forth quarter, the Rockets made 4 runs in a row, with at least 15+ seconds to spare and Stevie Franchise is running the ball all on his own. The Raptors defense is not spectacular by any means, but that didn?t stop the Ball Hog from tossing up several shots without a second thought that maybe, just maybe he wasn?t the only one on the court. Have mercy!
With 7.2 seconds to go in regulation, it should have been a breeze for Houston to pull out the win. A failsafe layup? A quick stop jumper? Nooooooo, Mr. Franchise has to fuck around and toss up a pathetic, near out of bounds, off balance chunk to the hole. Fine, we all saw it in his Rookie year and the year after that. Sure, these youngbloods wanna prove they have what it takes to compete. This is his fifth year! Grow up already. He should have figured out by now that what it takes to compete is teamwork! Somebody needs to sit this boy down and force him to watch Hoosiers over and over again.
Alas, the Rockets have their third loss of the year. 101-97 in double overtime.
Thank you Mr. Francis.
I lost a bet on last night?s match up between My Boys, The Rockets and Blood and Thunder Man?s Mavs, so in order to pay off said debt, I have to make the following statement to the world.*
I, Princess Fix IT, being of semi-sound mind, deem the following to be true.
The Mavericks outplayed, outperformed and outlasted the Rockets. The Mavericks showed their undeniable superiority and handed the Rockets their second loss of the season. Mark Cuban is the best owner that ever lived and all owners should strive to be just like him. The Mavericks are by far the best team in the great state of Texas.
That was painful. I think I?m gonna go cry now?
*worlds may vary
I rarely perform life saving feats, but all the same, once every 4 weeks, I am attached to a pager that is hot 24 hours a day for 7 days. It's typically not too bad, more annoying than anything. Our users have very different hours than the rest of Corporate America. 9-5 is not adequate coverage for these guys. Some will work deep into the night, through the wee hours and come in sometime the next afternoon. I am not opposed to this particular way of working, in fact, I wish I were among them as it makes more sense for us to actually be there when our users are around. Unfortunately, emails sent to IT after we leave work are immediately received through the pager. I understand that if something strikes them, they want to get it taken care of immediately so they don't forget about it. Send the email and be done with it. It?s a very logical approach. Well, here's a fuckin? dollar, go buy a sticky notepad, write it down and email us when it isn?t totally inconvenient. I can?t help but see it as a bit inconsiderate. The users have been informed time after time that unless it's an emergency, please try to refrain from sending IT email after hours. It wouldn't be so bad if I could simply ignore the non-critical requests, but as a rule, we are required to answer every email that comes through, regardless of the priority.
Some users have genuine emergencies that must be dealt with immediately and I am ready to respond, but if some fool decides at 3 AM he needs a spindle of CDs ordered, wants a Debug returned or is simply lonely, then it just pisses me off. It comes with the gig, sure, I realize that, but some requests are just plain moronic and offend me as a member of the human race. Take for instance tonight's Moron. Three emails, same user, all ridiculous questions. The question that left me wondering is, "How do I change my password?" Harmless, right? Well, considering he won't have to change said password until Monday morning, is it really necessary for me to drop what I?m doing to tell you we?ll take care of it when we are actually at work? He's not locked out or unable to work. It is in no way, an emergency. All that aside, if you seriously don't know how to change your password after being employed at The Company for several years, step away from the computer, dumbass! Go home because apparently anything related to technology is going to bring your tiny brain into a Chernobylesque meltdown and I don?t have the time to spoon feed common sense into your overpaid mouth. I'm used to instructing people how to coexist with technology, but if you refuse to learn even the most basic of tasks, I have no pity for you, especially after I leave the premises.
*I wrote this Friday night around 2 AM?I guess I was a little bitter :)
Do you even know who they are? What they look like? How incredibly hard they work FOR YOU day in and day out? Sure, I?m in the users? faces every day and I don?t let them forget who I am & what I do, but what about the silent force that is The Networking Boys?
One of our key servers took a shit this week and had the Networking Boys pulling in double\triple shifts. Through no fault of their own, they inherited and saved a situation that could have been really nasty. You?ll never really know how nasty because you aren?t supposed to. They hold your, more times than not, fragile career in their hands and at any moment it may slip away faster that than fat royalty check you signed up for. A competent network engineer saves your ass more than you?ll ever know. That?s their job. They prepare for moments such as these, come battling into the trenches full force and often receive little credit, let alone thanks. They are the Man Behind The Curtain. A collective beast, if you will. Many individuals working in harmony to make sure your day was not a complete waste.
If you have a competent Network staff, appreciate them, thank them for what they do in your name. They may not bring the cash in, but I?ll be damned if they don?t keep it there. So the next time you want to be a Mr. I Know Networking Man and comment on the ?spiked switch? or your slow porn download, think twice. The Networking Boys have your back covered at all times and work damn hard to make sure you stay productive, so don?t fuck around. After all, they know your daily internet habits.
Fine, so you found out about my site. Congratulations, good for you, here?s your fuckin? cookie.
I thought I?d lay out a few things for ya, dear reader.
On this site, you won?t find out any new or particularly shocking information about me that you can?t find out by asking me in person. I know face to face communication can be difficult for some of you, but give it a shot.To be honest, I?m an insanely boring chick, so I?m sure that realization will come through time and I will eventually be left talking to myself.
If I tell a story about work on my site, particularly if it could mean heaps of embarrassment for someone, despite the humorous value of the story, don?t ask me who it is, because I?m not going to tell you.
This is the internet, a public forum and viewable by any to happen across it?s path. I realize that, so I?m not going to say anything here that I won?t own up to right in your face. That being said, I?m also going to say whatever the hell I please as this site is MINE, MINE, MINE, MINE, MINE! Dig it? :)
I have a gushing, schoolgirl love for my new game. It's quite twisted, actually, but so am I, hence a perfect fit. After numerous adventures with my XBOX this week, SSX3 has made all the hassle well worth it. McGroarty saved the day by fixing the unit in question and The Farm Boy also came through in the clutch with the necessary replacement hardware. Man, working at a game company sure comes in handy! I did feel a bit ridiculous having someone else fix something for me, after all, I am Princess Fix IT right? Well, dear reader, I can fix thousands of things, just not the other fifty billion. Bummer, ain?t it? Anyhow, most of my weekend has been spent glued to my latest obsession. I suspect many more hours will be wasted simulating physical activity in a computer generated world. Sweet!
