this sounds much more exciting than it actually is - but isn't exaggerated at all

[deird1]

Currently having issues at work dealing with a... um... lightsaber factory. (Does that work?)


The lightsaber people are, rightfully, fairly concerned about workplace safety. So they've developed some really comprehensive guidelines for working in their factory, that everyone has to follow no matter what.

Unfortunately, the term "work" is pretty all-encompassing.

"Working" at the factory could mean that you're doing product testing to make sure that the lightsabers can cut through steel, remove limbs, and generally melt doors. Or it could mean that you're in the reception area, see a big poster of Luke Skywalker, and want to take a photo. As far as the safety guidelines are concerned, the two situations are both "work" and should therefore be treated exactly the same way.

Which basically means that I need to show up, get my saber-handling qualification, don my quantum shielding vest, set four guards to stand around me and make sure no-one can get close, turn on the big red flashing "Work In Progress! Danger!" sign, fill out a 3 page pre-work report, get the factory supervisor to sign off on it...
...and then take a photo of Luke Skywalker's poster.


We're trying to explain to the official safety guys why this is impractical, but so far we're not getting anywhere.

Comments

[velvetwhip]

Does this involve you wearing Princess Leia hair?


Gabrielle

[deird1]

No, but it really should. :)

[redsixwing]

Your analogy made me snicker, but.. ouch. There has got to be a better way to differentiate work-that-involves-slicing-arms-off and work-that-does-not-involve-slicing-arms-off. Preferably without excessive hyphenation, even.

[deird1]

You'd think there would be...

(Granted, some of the work that gets done in this place really could lead to sudden death, but the stuff I'm doing generally won't.)

[redsixwing]

My work involves a distinction between stuff that could bring down our servers and stuff that probably won't bring down our servers, and it isn't as clear as we'd like, so we have a whole server all to ourselves where we can blow it up if we have to. (Or, y'know, do it by accident. Which has happened! So it's good to be prepared.)

But I suppose if you're already not making a distinction between the production floor and the lightsaber testing area and the lobby, that may be somewhat of a moot point.

Sixwing here from Slacktivist, by the way; not sure I ever introduced myself properly. *g*

[dr_carrot]

Praying for editing jobs for you, praying HARD!!

[urania_calliope]

WUT?

*stomps on closet Star Wars fan*

No, I really shouldn't even know.

[guy-who-reads.blogspot.com]

Not to detract from your over all point, which is entirely correct (standarization sucks on so many levels), but my inner (and it's not very inner, I should say) geek insists that I point out that light sabers are made one at a time, by the Jedi, as a final stage of training.

Perhaps that changes after the events of Return

[redsixwing]

Hrm, nope. X3 They keep right on being made one at a time by the Jedi (or Sith) who will use them.

[deird1]

That's just what we tell the publicity department...