New home

Well new office, new desk, new pass and new rules….

It seems to be living up to its reputation so far for swanky-ness. I walked into the main foyer this morning and was ushered into the main canteen on the ground floor to collect my pass. Free fresh coffee on offer as well so I grabbed a mocha as one does. I then got in the lift to go up one floor without thinking I could just take the stairs. Me and one guy from the company on the 4^th floor (we are not alone…) got in and it started going down not up. Picked someone up from the car park level, back up to ground floor and more people get in. Then about to go and the doors open again and then the people say “oh no we’ll get the next one”. At this stage the original guy in the lift and me are pissing ourselves laughing thinking we may never leave this lift again. As I fought my way out onto level one I wished him luck in reaching the 4^th floor!

My desk is much of a muchness, I have a lovely view of the fire escape and if I crane my neck can see a small portion of the lake. I’ve got Ms Rigsby sat opposite me but we can’t see each other as the tall desk partitions are back even though we were promised they wouldn’t be. At least I have somewhere to stick up my post-it notes. My phone is new and has a mini computer screen on it and my name! Although it doesn’t seem to work very well. I’ve had several people call me and shout “Hello Nancy?!” down the phone and not be able to hear me. The last woman said I sounded like a Dalek just before the line cut out. Teething problems I think.

Ginger and I had a wander round this morning and it’s all looking very impressive, bit empty and huge at the moment but I’m sure that will change. The main kitchen downstairs has about 15 microwaves in it which seems excessive. Even the toilets are impressive! And it takes a lot for a toilet to impress me.

We are now going green and have a ‘bin-less’ office. I bitched about this this morning until I realised I had voted in favour of this prior to the move. Ah. I suppose it is a good idea. We have no bins at our desks only in the kitchen where there is the recyclables, food waste and general waste. Hopefully people will soon learn that a piece of kitchen towel does not count as food waste and you are able to recycle paper.

We have a small kitchen in our corner which is well equipped and randomly has a photocopier and printer in it as well. So to get my printing I have to go to the kitchen. But at the moment I can’t print to that printer. Which is handy.

Earlier Ginger and I were making our lunch in the little kitchen. It has coffee/tea a kettle, fridge and 2 microwaves. So I am heating up my spaghetti hoops and Ginger her Chinese. Some guy from facilities who is loitering about comes over to tell us off:

“You can’t heat up food up here”

“Er why?”

“Because the ventilation system on this floor circulates it round the other floors so it spreads the smell”

“You mean just like the old building where no one seemed to mind? And where do I eat my lunch then?”

“You have to take it to the kitchen on the ground floor and cook it and eat it there because the ventilation system is different”

“So why do we have 2 microwaves?”

“That’s for heating up porridge and hot drinks”

“So you’re telling me you find the smell of my beans offensive but not my porridge and why would I reheat a coffee?”

“Well, you just can’t eat that here”

Eventually he walked off and we continued cooking our lunch and ate it at the breakfast bar in the kitchen. I can understand them saying you can’t eat it at your desk but I am not taking my tin of beans, loaf of bread and trekking all the way downstairs to cook it and eat it. Fuck that. Ridiculous. I’ll wait for my formal warning before I stop enjoying my spaghetti hoops at the breakfast bar. It was quite nice as well, me, Ms Rigsby, Ginger, Kirstie and Andre all chatting and eating. If I went downstairs I’d be a right nobby-no-mates on my own. Feckin’ jobsworths. It won’t last, there will be an uprising!! “We will rise up and stab them with our plastic forks!”

Work wise I have achieved very little today you’ll be surprised to hear. Too many distractions, too much free coffee to drink, too many places to go and people to find. I’ll start a-fresh tomorrow I’m sure.

Right.