Office April Fools Day

Is quite a stressful experience. Once the first prank of the day has been played, even a funny glimpse from a colleague is enough to make you paranoid. It was like being back at school, except this time, as a student and not a teacher. It went on the whole day from first thing in the morning until I left. I'm still wondering what I'll find when I get back there on Monday.

One of the best little pranks played was switching the left and right mouse button clicks on the computer. That confused everybody that had it done to them. Each time they tried to click on something, up pops a menu. Then the look of puzzlement on their face was extremely amusing. This prank was played on me but I returned to my desk before the job was done, hence they didn't have time to close down the program they had used to switch the mouse buttons. It still took me 15 to 20 seconds to realise what had happened though.

Stupid little pranks like sticking down the receiver of the phone, switching the keyboard letters to spell 'ARSE' (prankee didn't even know the letters were not in sequence, at least she learned why it is called a QWERTY and not an ARSE keyboard), flicking the levers on the chairs, taping over the water bottle top so no water can come out, changing the wording of the stamps people use, unplugging of keyboards, locking of drawers and removing the key, hiding of stuffed toys to hang from the blind pullies and various more childish things.

Every time you left your desk, you'd wonder what was wrong when you got back. The little glimpse of eye contact and a cheeky smile was enough to strike paranoia. Had anything been done or hadn't it? It was a very stressful but childishly fun day! I'm glad it's only once a year.

An Angry Night

I'm not an angry person usually but last night (Friday 18th March) had me annoyed for no reason that I can put my finger on. Sure I was out driving amongst the other people who claim to have passed their driving test and probably once knew how to drive. I had also finished a working week and may have been a little bit tired. I hadn't been drinking or lost any money or had any wrong done to me (apart from previous mentioned other road users). I just couldn't quite work it out.

I'm known to be quite a calm and laid back person. Often too laid back for my own good and sometimes it appears that I have no passion for some things. A lot of former students have commented that I'm too relaxed or easy going. It was also something that was said of me when I was playing sport too. (Not when I was a teen though).

I'm hoping it was just a one-off episode and that disappeared once I'd woken up. I didn't care too much for that feeling. Obviously I cared enough to write it in a blog though which says a lot considering the amount of entries I've written in the last few years.

Why Are People Addicted to SMS?

Everywhere that you go, you will see people sms-ing constantly. In the workplace, on the train, at school, on the bus, in the park, in the shops and even when out on dates. This made me wonder as to what is the satisfaction that people get from this relatively recent (last decade or so) pass time.

At Christmas, we always liked receiving presents as we never quite knew what was going to be in them. We didn't care really who they were from, we just wanted to know the contents. A lot of people also rush to check their e-mail, facebook messages and even their mail box. Is it this 'surprise element' that keeps people addicted?

An sms has a little suspense about it. Often, you may wonder who it is from if it is out of the blue. Then once that mystery is solved, people like the surprise of what people have said. It differs from a conversation as we hear the conversation instantly, there's not much of a surprise element. With an sms, you have to wait and this itself makes you wonder as to its contents. Is this why some kids will stay up all night long sms-ing and then continue throughout the day, even in class? They will freak out if their phone is not near them in case they miss an important message.

It is not only teenagers either. Adults pushing their kids or walking through the shops do it too. Even people out on a date. I mean, what kind of impression does this give the other person on the date? It can't be that important that it required immediate attention because if it was, surely they'd call instead? People even argue over sms. What's the point? Things get taken way out of context with sms and people are 'brave' with their words over sms and they are not there to get the angry volumes in response. Surely, if you have just been in the presence of someone you could have sorted out the issue there and then instead of waiting for them to be five minutes away.

It also gives people an additional way to get you into arguments at work and affect your working mood. Why do people start arguments when someone else is not around? Also, why do people feel the need to sms each other every few minutes?

There's a lot of answers for most of these questions but my own belief is mainly that sms can be a useful form of communication but is often used for communications it probably was never designed for.

2011 So Far

This year has seen me downgrade from two jobs to one. After not having just one job for over five years, I decided that I should try it again. Obviously it means less money but it does mean I get regular pay, weekends, holiday pay, sick leave but less holidays. It is also a complete career change. I'm no longer teaching but instead I now work in a government department.

The other reasons for the change of job were mainly financial security. Getting a regular income rather than waiting on the phone to ring each morning for relief work is a big weight off my mind. Lucky I did that too as I spoke to the relief co-ordinater at school and he's only had about 12 days of work for any relief staff so far and it's already week 5 I think in school. That's not even half of the time and he's had to spread that work around his usual relief staff.

My new job doesn't involve me standing up so much so I'm sat down and gaining a little weight. Although we are encouraged to go for a 10 minute break/walk every hour so we're not focussing on our screens too long. Also, I get free parking but we're going to be moving to the City soon. That means I'll either have to walk/cycle/bus/ferry/pay extortionate car parking fees. Also, if I cycle, how do I keep my shirts from creasing whilst transporting them there on my bike? So many things to think about!

I also made a very short notice short trip to Malaysia for 4 days and 3 nights. I booked the tickets one day and left the next. It was a nice trip but I didn't enjoy Malaysia as much yet as I do Singapore. I wasn't as impressed with it. Maybe that's because I'm more familiar with Singapore?

That's more than enough writing for this entry considering how much I have written over the last year or more.

Oh Look What I Just Stumbled Upon

I'd forgotten all about this account. I hope it doesn't feel too neglected. I also just recently rediscovered Multiply! I haven't spoken to some people on there since 2004! Whoops.