Oh, honestly...

The big boss has just moved out of his office, and is now sitting among us plebs. Apparently, he's been sequestered away from us for so long that he's forgotten what it's like out here. Which led to the not-so-big boss sending us a memo:

Big Boss is now sitting in the open office area and has noticed people around him spending a lot of time
1. on the internet
2. chatting loudly about non-related work topics for hours and hours and hours and hours and hours and hours...
3. conducting other business
4. not being in the office*
5. swearing

Please keep an eye out for this and if you see it happening kindly ask those involved to stop.

*I ask that if you are going out of the office for a meeting, lunch, fresh air, smoke, coffee, run, jog, gym or home you edit your status in Sametime.

Which... just...

*facepalm*

1) The person he's noticed on the internet is probably me. Reason being, my manager was away last week and left me with no work. So, in between getting up every half an hour and walking round the building trying to find stuff to do, I checked my flist and email.

2) The people chatting about non-work topics (who are not me) are doing what people in offices do. They're still getting their work done - so what's the issue?

3) Given that the list of approved reasons to leave the office include fresh air, smoking, and coffee, what on earth would be wrong with having a mental break for a few minutes and making a personal phonecall, rather than getting up from your desk, going elsewhere, and making exactly the same personal phonecall? (Also not something I've done this week - but the people I've seen doing so have been calling people who won't be available outside of working hours. And no-one's ever had a problem with this before.)

4) "Sametime" is the office IM system. I don't use it, because having IMs (never anything important - usually just "Hey!") interrupt me actually distracts me from my work. I'm not going to log in purely so I can leave a message letting people know I won't be available to IM until I... get back to my desk and turn IM off so I can work.

5) Swearing? Seriously?
From what I've heard, the people around here are swearing, on average, to about the same extent that I do right here on my blog. THAT'S NOT MUCH.


I really wish high-up executives would calm down and get used to the real world.

in other random annoyances...

Apple has just succumbed to the "security question" thing. Which is totally fine.

What is not fine is that, like 90% of the security-question-using world, they are setting the questions for you.


Pre-set question that I'll know the answer too: "What is your mother's maiden name?" That one I could answer in my sleep. Absolutely no problem with that. And I'd also be fine if they'd let me write my own questions. I have several things that I know the answer to that would UTTERLY BAFFLE anyone who isn't me.

But no. They're all intent on having questions like:
- What was your least favourite car?
- Where were you on January 1, 2000?
- What is your favourite song?
- Who was your first school teacher?

...and other things that I can't possibly answer. Seriously - how should I know where I was on a New Years Day 12 years ago? And my favourite song changes approximately once a day.

And yet, somehow, I have to pick a security question... and hope desperately that I'll never have to remember the answer to it.