Something today reminded me of something that happened to me about 10-15 years ago when I was a slave to the Fast Food Machine in high-school.
I was working the closing shift at the local Kentucky Fried Chicken to make money for car insurance and what-not. Working the closing shift at Kentucky Fried Chicken basically meant spending 8-9 hours alternately covered in raw chicken parts and flour or pulling said chicken parts out of insanely hot splattering grease covered cages.
Along with doing this, there was this danged biscuit oven. It had a timer, and whenever it went off you had to stop what you were doing so you could run over to it and take out the bisquits before they burned. In essence you were just owned by this beeping monster for your whole shift until it was time to spray down the place, drive home, and drop dead into bed.
And now the Pavlovian Zombie part.
One day I was at school and I was completely exhausted from working late the night before. While I was sitting in class, someone’s watch beeped and some weird automatic response took over. I immediately jumped out of my seat and started walking down the isle on my way to go check on the bisquits.
I quickly realized where I was and sheepishly returned to my desk. It was quite embaressing.
You mean besides answering the home phone, “Hello, my place of employment, this is harmless. How may I help you?”
I was nodding off at the job one day and my boss comes up to ask a question and I jump up with “Hello! harmless speaking!” :dubious:
No kidding. :rolleyes:
WHen I had just left a very disasterous relationship, I worked for Budget rentals in Va Beach…my phone number and the office number was almost identical, just the last 2 digits swapped.
I would get calls at home for work [well they thought they were calling the office, not calling me at home to make a reservation…grin] and I frequently will answer the phone like for work if it rings when I am mostly asleep… You know how annoying it is trying to explain to the person that called at 0600 saturday morning that when you answer Hello Budget Truck Rental on auto pilot that you really arent budget?=\ And it makes it really hard when you do get to work and the call and rcognize your voice :eek:
Some of you may know the wonderful place that is Fright Fest ™. I worked in the one nearest Chicago the first year it was here, and we were on a serious shoe-string, never-been-done-locally-before budget. I had the job of controlling a puppet in the front room of the haunted house that explained ‘the rules’. For eight hours at a stretch, I’d sit on a metal folding chair in a dark room speaking through a voice distorter and moving my hand in a puppet tacked to a wall.
How did I know when to do it? Sensors? Cameras?
No.
The house guide shined a light on the puppet. I would see the glimmer around the edges.
The shifts were long, boring, and LOUD (there were a lot of loud sound effects in the house). After one particularly stressful day, I began to come to the paranoid conclusion that maybe there -were- no tour groups out there… Maybe someone was having fun with me by just shining a light on the puppet. But I kept doing it. Glimmer of light, start talking.
Glimmer of light, start talking.
Glimmer of light, start talking…
I still do the phone thing. I’ve worked for the same college three times, so every phone call is answered with “KU <insert name of department>” I get so confustulated.
