Memo:Random #15: Holiday Edition


ThinkGeek Giveaway: The Meh. Flask

This blog is about working awesome, and making your work awesome.

But sometimes–and in some environments–it just isn’t going to happen. There are some hellhole work environments out there. We’re not so idealistic that we don’t realize this.

The Meh. Flask from ThinkGeek helps you get through the day while clinging onto your blatant apathy. After all, that emotional disconnect from your work is the only thing keeping you alive and sane right now.

To win this prize, all you’ve got to do is tell us why you deserve to get apathetically drunk at work. Let loose. Tell us how much of a hellhole your workplace is. And remember: use a pseudonym! You don’t want your boss finding this post one day, right? Make sure your email address is correct–it’s only visible to Envato staff, and we need it to tell you if you win. See this post for terms and conditions.


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N.C. Winters is always drawing. When he isn't making comics, doodling or working as a freelance graphic artist, he spends his time painting pretty pictures for galleries from his home studio in sunny southern California.

Discussion

  1. GeekGurl on the 22nd December

    I’m the only girl in my IT department. End of story.

  2. slnm on the 22nd December

    because I work with a girl who is a software developer and often types only with a single finger of her right hand. and writes down important java package names on a piece of paper. and loves geek humor but fails at it miserably.

  3. Rod Hardman on the 22nd December

    I’m my own boss now so I have no one else to blame!

  4. Enrique Ramírez on the 22nd December

    Freelancing with about 4 clients at a time can be hard. If all of those 4 clients are in different time zones it’s harder. If those time zones pretty much cover all 24 hours of your day, it’s even harder. It then starts to get worst when they ALL demand that you be online at least a couple of hours with them, they all send overnight “small fixes” and they all believe they’re the only client you have.

    Hellhole is when after everything is said and done, you need to chase all 4 different time zones to get payed.

    meh.

  5. Zach Morris on the 22nd December

    Because my boss wants me to manually input 4 months worth of calendar events, and manually update the front page after each one, instead of syndicating both of them from the central calendar system. Why? Because the last guy did it that way, and the words improvement and efficiency aren’t in our vocabulary. Did I mention I get paid minimum wage too?

  6. yes.me on the 22nd December

    ooohh! you just touched to my pain!

    I need to be drunk at work for not to be nervous at the atmosphere any more. I just moved to Poland, I dont speak polish and all guys at my work speaking polish, I don’t understand anything during all day. my boss speaks a little bit english. have serious problems about communication. when we communicate via email, thats kind of okay, with the help Google Translation (my best friend at work!) but when people talk to me (they generally talk), thats putting me in stress. all day is not different a hell for me! it is extremely annoying and tiring. Also these guys has so different way of working for so short time-lines. Drinking few shots during work would make me calm down and make me have better adaptation maybe.!

    Thanks for listening… You guys just made me feel relieve! 🙂

    ps,, thanks for cool give away!

  7. dan stever on the 23rd December

    Ok. I have to say, GeekGurl may have the best argument… But, I think I deserve it. I need to get blitzed here to make it bearable. I was hired almost three years ago to do things I like. Such as: design, layout, graphics, web, etc. What have I done for three years? Numbers. Margin. Excel! Yuck!!! And then, after having to do this for three years, I’m constantly asked over and over again why the stuff I was actually hired to do isn’t done. And it’s not a good answer to tell your boss (they shall be known as “Timmy”) that they keep giving you other random crap to do so that you actually can’t do your job…

    I just really think the flask would be cool. It’d help.

  8. Dr. Love on the 23rd December

    I’m a freelance developer and hardline skeptic and my next big job is building a web site and system for a major ‘omg aliens and psychics are completely real’ organization. If I’m sober for even half of the build…well, I wouldn’t want to be.

  9. twitch on the 30th March

    Twice already, work has driven me to tip back a shot of vodka or two just to get through the day. Here’s why: I work on a Mac model that was released when I was still in high school. It sits on a desk made of raw plywood supported by hollow blocks/ construction blocks. It may look cool but after several scrapes that resulted in torn clothing and blood, I’d rather take your classic cubicle. Attempts at brainstorming with my peers are met with suspicion and phrases like, “But we don’t share ideas.” Wow. My Creative Director (who’s part owner of the company) can’t think of a concept on his own so he harvests from us and passes it off as his. He has never used any graphic design software (I’ve once had to use his computer as mine broke down and found out I’m the first to open the Adobe Suite software on his computer since its installment) nor understand graphic design language like: pixel count, color separation, vector (numerous times I’ve had to define such words to him before he could understand what I was talking about). He plays video games at work the entire day (on his computer and iPhone) and he’s entirely visible to all of us while he does this. On the other hand, any hint of conversation or laughter from his employees is immediately killed and labeled as unproductive behavior. I’m paid minimum wage with no overtime pay and I get my net salary with no payslip to indicate where the rest of my gross is going. An officemate going on maternity leave tried to access our government mandated benefits and found out my boss wasn’t paying any. Which led me to the conclusion that the rest of my pay (minus net) heads into a vacuum inside said boss’ pockets. I still have yet to see a contract as it is still being processed by “HR”. I’ve been here for 5 months already. According to the IT department who once had to backup my boss’s computer, his entire hard drive is filled with games and porn. Folders for porn include: “playtime”, “new research” and he has categories by country and another especially for hentai.

    I am currently in the process of looking for a new job. In the meantime, I occasionally drink a bottle of beer or tip back a shot of vodka to get through the day. A Meh. Flask would very much make my work day a little brighter.

  10. twitch on the 30th March

    Oh great. This is for 2009. Still. Good read, right? Have you ever considered having a mid-year giveaway? =D

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