Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Teh Interwebz

Hey, get this! They let you use the internet at my new job.

I mean, don't go crazy. You can't check your Yahoo! mail or your bank balance or get on MySpace or anything. Amusement-wise, the internet still consists pretty much exclusively of NOAA.gov (not that meteorology isn't a fascinating science). But - but - you can actually use it, any way you see fit, to do your job!!!

You're supposed to be able to use it for work at my old job, too; otherwise, why do you have internet access? But you never did. Your usage was so closely policed that visiting any external website meant asking for written approval from your supervisor, and/or facing a grilling by the agingly-staffed IT group (much more comfortable in a mainframe environment than with this newfangled internet doohickey), and generally jumping through so many hoops that you just said the hell with it and did without the information. Sure, you could just wait and look it up at home on your own time; but who would be that dedicated to an employer who so obviously regards you with mistrust and contempt?

I'm being unfair. There's a good reason for this internet use policy. It exists to ensure that the division is not wasting any taxpayer money. They're very big on not wasting taxpayer money over there. Massive. In fact, the word "bloated" springs to mind.

After I accepted the new position, but before I actually started, I emailed my new boss some questions about the big upcoming project I'd be working on. Her answer referred me to several different websites. I was scandalized. What was she trying to do, get me fired?

But I'm getting used to it. Our group is going on a study tour of a particular city; my team is planning the event. It behooves me to be educated about the attractions we'll be visiting. I sat there and read all about a very cool Vietnamese Buddhist temple today. I've been visiting sites for CVBs, hotels, airlines, resorts, restaurants, amusement parks, and museums. How am I not getting in terrible, terrible trouble? If it weren't for the red shirt, I'd think maybe I was dreaming.

Well, that, and the fact that my supervisor emailed our group the dress code for the upcoming conference, including Thursday night's Hawaiian-themed celebration dinner. "No coconut bras," she added sternly. And I think we all know who that was aimed at.

I'm pretty sure I'm not allowed to visit LeatherDreams.com, either.

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1 Comments:

At April 01, 2008 8:48 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

LOL!

 

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