♥Mad Plumber
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Member since March 7th, 2007
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What Do You Do Aboard A Sinking Ship?Posted 1 year ago
A few days ago, I was unsure if I had significant news to report. Today, much to my chagrin, I sure I don't.
I drove forty miles to interview for a position as a programmer for a newly-started PC repair store. The owner was interested in making games using the DarkBASIC language. I had no experience or knowledge of the language, but I assured him it was definitely not beyond my grasp. And despite that I was grossly ignorant to many of the hardware questions he posed for me, I managed to get the job right there. Hey! Maybe things are turning around! No more sweating my ass off in the damn boiler room! Somebody's actually going to pay me more than minimum wage for my college skills! Now, I didn't quit my job at the college because I knew it would be utter foolishness to bank on this ... and today confirmed my judgment. There was a big clue from the interview with the fact that NOBODY, not even the owner, made an effort to dress nice. You don't go to work dressed in your Generation X black garage band t-shirt! Jesus, you don't need to go to school to know THAT! Today, I observed the virtual non-existent business that is conducted there. And when I was left to monitor the phone, the only customer calls I received were from irate customers. In fact, later in the day, one of the customers who called came in to complain personally about how his laptop that was supposedly repaired ended up catching aflame! I couldn't help but sympathize with the customer and began to wonder if this guy really knew his business. Until close, it was just me and the secretary (or whatever she is). She opted to turn on the radio. No ... no ... no ... no ... no! It wasn't Rush Limbaugh, folks, but it was close enough. And you know, I may not be the most ethically-minded person in the world, but if you're working for a fledgling private business that is aching for commerce, there are certainly more constructive things to do than to play Space Cadet Pinball. So, the writing is on the wall. Even worse, I went to Amazon and bought a book about DarkBASIC! If this thing comes, what the hell am I supposed to do with it!? I asked my CIS professor in an e-mail if I should try to cancel it or keep it. I'll find out later. |
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3 comments
Comment from ×123foo, 1 year ago (#34007)
http://community.livejournal.com/gamedevelopers/212292.html
Comment from ♥Mad Plumber, 1 year ago (#34321)
Comment from *wolfgunner01, 1 year ago (#33454)
Comment from ♥Mad Plumber, 1 year ago (#33523)
Their savior, huh? Oh, you better not say that; you'll give me delusions of grandeur! "Blessed are the cheesemakers?" Well, I can always see. It's really hard to combat the "don't care" attitude that is thriving there.
Thanks for writing!
Comment from *capntsubasa, 1 year ago (#33431)
The dressing up (or not dressing up) thing doesn't really bother me much... Heck, I work at a huge company and some of the fashions I see at work on a daily basis would make Marilyn Manson do a double take... The irate customer calls are troubling though... Maybe it was a bad day, but, then again, maybe it wasn't.
All I can say is do your absolute best and try to make a good impression. If, after having done your best, things still head south, make sure you know the way to the life boats... Seriously though, good luck in your new job. I sincerely hope that things improve..
Cap
Comment from ♥Mad Plumber, 1 year ago (#33519)
The job is nice, but there is really a part of me that can't stand to sit idly by without grabbing this guy and saying, "WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER WITH YOU!? You can't run a business like THIS!! Aren't you the slightest bit concerned that place is on its way down the sh*tter!?"
Oh, hell, I never put on nice clothes. I've got a closet full of disintegrating Cabela shirts and tees with stupid slogans. I don't matter when I'm at the college because nobody ever sees me. I'm stuck in the attic space trying my best to keep cool. But, I would still argue that when people are out in the open to interact with customers, there should ought to be some dedication to looking neat. But you're right: the first problem is really the apparent incompetence of the service at the store.
Well, on the bright side, it's another source of income (even if temporary) and it's a programming position to post on my résumé for once, so maybe I got one more credential when I try again for somewhere in Atari or Activision or something.
Thanks for writing!