Don’t Go There. . . Ramblings on Death by Cubicle

My day job at “The Paper Factory” is a constant source of learning, human interaction, and yes, at times frustration. I love my job at “The Paper Factory”. However, I find myself sometimes taking a Starbucks timeout when I become a bit stressed. Today it was a Mint Mocha Frappuccino. I really do not need one of those, but it sure helped me de-stress. So, what was the source of my frustration? People who do the exact opposite of what you request them to do. It brings to mind the Seinfeld episode where George is at the beach, and he decides to do the exact opposite of whatever his gut tells him to do. He ends up with incredibly good luck . . .he gets a girlfriend, moves out of his parents house, and lands a job with the New York Yankees. However, that kind of opposite thinking may not be productive at work. At “The Paper Factory”, I am in charge of all thing technical. In fact, if it plugs into a wall, I am usually consulted when it breaks. We have an Acceptable Use Policy concerning the proper use of the Internet, as well as restrictions on our firewall concerning sites that are banned. Each time someone visits a banned site, I receive an email telling me the site and the MAC address of the computer visiting the site. The MAC address of the computer is the same as a home address. A unique name number that identifies the computer. Usually when I receive one of these emails, I call the person who visited the site and I coach them on the proper use of the Internet in our corporate environment. Normally they chuckle and apologize for breaking the rules and we both have a good laugh over it. However, today was different. I received an email that clearly showed “Jane” as visiting You Tube to view a video. . . . twice. Now, “Jane” is the biggest complainer when it comes to slow Internet connections. She is always quick to complain when her connection is dragging and she cannot get any work done. However, three times in the past two days I have caught “Jane” going to You Tube. Here is the funny part. Every time “Jane” tries to visit You Tube, a message appears in her browser telling her the site is banned as it is not considered a site acceptable for business use. That does not stop her though. Interestingly, she keeps going to You Tube, expecting that one day I will let my Internet guard down and let her through the You Tube gates. On the other hand, this behavior “Jane” is exhibiting makes me wonder if she is suffering from “Death by Cubicle”. Those of you who work in a cubicle know what I am talking about. If you work in a cubicle, there is no escape from the noise around you. You get the privilege of hearing every body’s phone conversations. You are privy to who is sleeping with who, all because everyone around you spends their time chatting and gossiping, instead of getting any actual work done. I know when I had a private office, I got so much more work done than I do now that I inhabit a cubicle. Even now, when I work from my home office, I tear through the work and can get a weeks worth of work done in one day. . . all because I am not being interrupted a gazillion times a day, and I am not being subjected to the mindless chatter of my co-workers. At the end of 8 hours in a cubicle, I go home feeling like a zombie. Today is no exception, as you can tell from reading this post. Just a day in the life of an IT person at “The Paper Factory”