The company that acquired us about a year ago apparently has an ergonomics policy and our chairs were deemed unfit for habitation as they didn't fit the requirement that our chairs have 1000 adjustable points (I may or may not be exaggerating the number of adjustable points required). Our previous chairs were two adjustable points short of the requirement. Our new chairs have the required 1000 adjustable points, but not the same points as the previous chairs. Why it is I can't switch my new chair's back support from "solid" to "allows me to lean back" in the new chair with 1000 adjustable points is beyond me but apparently it fits the policy.
Update: I figured out how to make that adjustment.
Here is the model of our new chair. Our chairs are in black.
Thus ends my chair of doom.
Great Stories from Work: The Chair of Doom
My old work chair had one downside. There was a trap built into it. If for some reason you chose to put your feet under your chair there was a lever you could bump with your foot. This resulted in the chair's vertical controls to release and the chair then dropped with your full weight on your foot that at the time your foot is in a nice awkward vertical position. The result being you were sort of thrown forward out of your chair (to release the pressure on your foot) on to your desktop or if you were most lucky the floor.
Great Stories from Work: The Testing
A few months ago we got some paperwork we had to sign. It was from a customer, an unusual event. It basically said we read and understood the customer's rules for accessing their network. It was written by the type of manager who clearly does not understand how to work with people, or maybe think of people as people. Here is an excerpt.
Rule 1: * * * NO SURPRISES!!! * * *
If that seems vague and stupid, yes it is.
It got better with misspellings, incomplete sentences, and so on. We had a meeting, expressed our concerns, and signed the paperwork. Stupid, but whatever, the customer's problems are 100% their own incompetence anyway. I could call them and tell them that their network was down and going to somehow result in a nuclear detonation that would destroy the earth they'd just ignore me and thank me for calling.
So a few months later (last week) a different customer makes a request of our company. This one is even more insane. They want us to 1. Take a drug test. 2. Sign some paperwork that gives them access to our credit report. The customer would then determine who could and could not access their network. The drug testing info and credit info is administered by companies hired by the customer. This isn't my employer doing it, this is totally the customer.
Our company's position is that we can sign the paperwork and continue to work with the customer, or choose not to. The only catch is that if somehow this became our only customer we'd risk ending our job. Word has it the same possibly goes for failing the drug test.
This one has not flown well with us. Pretty much everyone in our group has thrown up the big "no way". I'm fairly sure at most one dude might fail the drug test, but I guess you never know. The real issue is our disappointment with this shit being passed from the relationship between the customer and our company, to the customer and us. I work for my employer, if he wants a drug test or credit check whatever. However, I'm not going submit to every stupid examination that every customer comes to us with. Particularly when it seems as if people at my employer are just making promises on our behalf "oh yeah they'll piss in a cup for you guys" without actually engaging us.
As far as I'm concerned my employer should provide their own assurance that some weekend we're going to look at our credit score, then decide to get baked, and then of all things decide to connect to a customer network. If the relationship between the customer and my employer is so bad that they can't do that then there is another problem.
Granted there are some exceptions to that. We've got some government contracts that require security clearances and some customers that we visit in person and access sensitive areas. In those cases I'm cool with whatever is required for access, but this case is not like that.
Another issue is that this customer is a fairly high maintenance, lots of bureaucracy, and low responsiveness kid of customer. Much like the other customer I mentioned no matter how many flags you (or the customer) raise about a problem you always interface with the customer's employees that you're fairly sure could accidentally kill them self in the process of tying their own shoes. So if you're one of the few dudes who agrees to the tests and passes, that means every dang issue of theirs is YOUR problem and no matter how big or minor their problems last AGES while conference calls assemble full of people who don't know squat. Also due to some special circumstances this customer has events that need our engagement fairly frequently...
No I don't think I'll do that.
Olympics: Gold Farming
Olympics: Not MP
Funny video of a BBC dude who people think is Micheal Phelps, at least everyone is polite and just taking pics.
Olympics: About Phelps
Our local newspaper ran the headline yesterday that Michael Phelps is thinking about trying "something new" for the next Olympics. Someone needs to let the local paper know that it is over. The dude won, and aside from some Olympic highlight videos we will see thru the rest of the Olympics we can forget about this dude for from four years from now to possibly forever.
Bank Robbery Gone Wr... Lazy?
The Deck
The deck on our house could use some sealing. The wife likes the idea of staining it but I just want to seal it. The wood has a nice grey weathered look. I went to the mega home stores this weekend. That was a mistake. It was a zoo there and I quickly realized that without much assistance I had no clue what I was doing. All the products suggested using a "deck wash" before sealing. I had never heard of that before. My deck isn't covered in dirt...
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