I watch the ripples change their size
But never leave the stream
Of warm impermanence
And so the days float through my eyes
But still the days seem the same
And these children that you spit on
As they try to change their worlds
Are immune to your consultations
They're quite aware of what they're goin' through

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Story Bone

Sure, you've heard of making a meal out of the free food giveaways at the grocery store. "Would you like another eighth of a pizaa slice?" Sure!

And you've heard about how when a big meeting that has sandwiches, bagels, or donuts to ply vendors or clients ends and the food is put out in the break room that the rest of the working people, the ones who are not normally in meetings because they're working, decend on such scraps in a fashion to make carrion vultures blush with embassasment. "Sandwiches in the break room!" Stampeed!

But how about a character that makes his lunch by grazing the candy and snack bowls around the office. They go around in a loop to gather up what they can, maybe timing their rounds to the best places (pretzles, chocolate, or those strawberry candies) to when that person is away (lunch, meeting, or bathroom).

2 comments:

Ken McConnell said...

Steve, this really hits home with where I work. Except it's not managers who go to the meetings it's the people who actually work for the company. All of us contract workers get to fight over the food remaining.

As a contract worker (ie someone with no holidays, no benefits and small wages) I find this practice belittling. So I never eat their leftovers.

Some people I work for are food whores and have no shame. But I can't stoop that low. I can afford my own lunch even on my paltry wages.

Steve Buchheit said...

Ken, here where I work now, we don't have that much opportunity. When there is food for us workers, it's meant for us workers. When I worked for Ernst & Young, however, it was a different story. If you played your cards right, you could probably scavenge off lunch 2 or 3 days out of 5. If it was the Good Stuff(tm), ie. deli sandwiches, you could hear people running. I also have to admit when the boss sprung for bagels, I would take two. But, 1) I like bagels, and 2) for three years I brought in my own donuts for everybody (a dozen for 8 co-workers) about every other week. He stole that idea from me when he saw that I was stealing his thunder as team builder.