Choo choo! All aboard the Complain Train!

Piscian

Elite Member
Apr 28, 2020
1,604
1,635
118
Country
United States
I'm in an awkward situation with my work where they're officially requiring everyone to return to the office next month. My problem is
A. I have a compromised immune system, it's bad enough to where if I get a nasty cold there's a 50/50 chance I need hospitalization so if I do get covid the chances of me being one of the 5%s is high.
B. Though vaccinated I'm not a 100% immune, its more like 80-90 and
C. Several of my close co-workers are openly refusing to get vaccinated.

My next step is to work with HR to determine whether or not they'll have to fire me or give me an exemption. What makes this really frustrating is that there's nothing I can do about how it will affect my persona at work. No matter how valuable I am, or that I'm exempt I'll be looked at as that employee isn't a team player. The anti-vaccers just a get a free pass because its somehow their right to endanger everyone else at work.

*not attacking anyone on here whos refusing to get vaccinated, I just don't want to spend 8 hours a day sitting next to you.
 

laggyteabag

Scrolling through forums, instead of playing games
Legacy
Oct 25, 2009
3,300
982
118
UK
Gender
He/Him
In November last year, me and my girlfriend got COVID. It wasn't too bad. Lots of coughing, and the 2-week long headache was a pain in the ass, but we got through it. Problem is, since getting over it, everything smells like cooked onions. Coffee smells like onions. The smell of nothing now smells like cooked onions. My girlfriend's nail varnish - which is a smell I used to really like - now smells like the strongest, most concentrated smell of onions. Everything is onions. And I can't stand it anymore. I can no longer cook with onions.

On a similar note, since we contracted COVID, I have been working from home full-time. Last week, I was asked to come into the office 2 days a week. Not bad. Better than full-time at least. November to April - not a bad turnout. Now, the head of my department wants a team-wide, face-to-face meeting, in a place that is... 1h 30m away from where I live. In a big city. At 9am. I don't really get stressed - im a super chilled out person, except for one thing: Driving somewhere that I have never been - especially when it is busy. I might just take the train. Im pretty sure that Teams and Zoom were created for exactly this purpose.

Finally, this one is a bit of a pet-peeve. Twitter has two views. Top Tweets, and Latest Tweets. For whatever reason, Twitter wants me to use Top Tweets, which is when Twitter shows me what it thinks I want to see. I don't want that. Every time I change it to Latest Tweets, a few days or weeks later, it'll swap me back to Top Tweets. It has been doing this for a few years now, and I have no idea why it thinks I would still want this, after literal years of telling it that I don't want that.
 
Last edited:

Xprimentyl

Made you look...
Legacy
Aug 13, 2011
6,193
4,470
118
Plano, TX
Country
United States
Gender
Male
I'm in an awkward situation with my work where they're officially requiring everyone to return to the office next month. My problem is
A. I have a compromised immune system, it's bad enough to where if I get a nasty cold there's a 50/50 chance I need hospitalization so if I do get covid the chances of me being one of the 5%s is high.
B. Though vaccinated I'm not a 100% immune, its more like 80-90 and
C. Several of my close co-workers are openly refusing to get vaccinated.

My next step is to work with HR to determine whether or not they'll have to fire me or give me an exemption. What makes this really frustrating is that there's nothing I can do about how it will affect my persona at work. No matter how valuable I am, or that I'm exempt I'll be looked at as that employee isn't a team player. The anti-vaccers just a get a free pass because its somehow their right to endanger everyone else at work.

*not attacking anyone on here whos refusing to get vaccinated, I just don't want to spend 8 hours a day sitting next to you.
That sucks. My office decided mid-pandemic that everyone working from home was working really well, even officially moved out of our home office to save on the mortgage of a building we found we didn't need. I was told the plan was we'd work remotely permanently. Then we [the company] got bought, and our new owners started a hunt for a new office space we're expected to be in by the end of the year. I've no real COVID concerns (yours are truly valid,) but I like (well, "prefer") working from home and don't want to return to a daily commute and working right next to everyone simply because "job." Say what you want about this pandemic, but if nothing else, it has shown us how much of our daily lives prior to were predicated by extremely arbitrary expectations and stale standards. My company spent +$1M a month for office space we know now we never needed; now, because "corporate," we're headed right back there, and we're a company who could really stand to save at this point.

My boss (a corporate shill) says the "hallway conversations" are helpful, and is looking forward to going back (at the same time he's leaving our group for another opportunity within the company,) but you know what? I don't feel they are. They're 80% bullshit and 20% valuable content that could easily be communicated in a quick and easily documented email... which is the lesson we learned a year ago. I don't need to talk about the weather or "your weekend" for five minutes just for you to ask me a question you could have asked in a two-sentence email.

I'm not anti-social, but I AM anti-wasting time. This pandemic has been rough, but it's shown me that my function can be performed just as well, if not better, from my kitchen as it can from an office after traffic, finding parking and walking into an uncomfortable desk and immediate proximity to a bunch of people that benefit nothing from my immediate presence.
 

laggyteabag

Scrolling through forums, instead of playing games
Legacy
Oct 25, 2009
3,300
982
118
UK
Gender
He/Him
That sucks. My office decided mid-pandemic that everyone working from home was working really well, even officially moved out of our home office to save on the mortgage of a building we found we didn't need. I was told the plan was we'd work remotely permanently. Then we [the company] got bought, and our new owners started a hunt for a new office space we're expected to be in by the end of the year. I've no real COVID concerns (yours are truly valid,) but I like (well, "prefer") working from home and don't want to return to a daily commute and working right next to everyone simply because "job." Say what you want about this pandemic, but if nothing else, it has shown us how much of our daily lives prior to were predicated by extremely arbitrary expectations and stale standards. My company spent +$1M a month for office space we know now we never needed; now, because "corporate," we're headed right back there, and we're a company who could really stand to save at this point.

My boss (a corporate shill) says the "hallway conversations" are helpful, and is looking forward to going back (at the same time he's leaving our group for another opportunity within the company,) but you know what? I don't feel they are. They're 80% bullshit and 20% valuable content that could easily be communicated in a quick and easily documented email... which is the lesson we learned a year ago. I don't need to talk about the weather or "your weekend" for five minutes just for you to ask me a question you could have asked in a two-sentence email.

I'm not anti-social, but I AM anti-wasting time. This pandemic has been rough, but it's shown me that my function can be performed just as well, if not better, from my kitchen as it can from an office after traffic, finding parking and walking into an uncomfortable desk and immediate proximity to a bunch of people that benefit nothing from my immediate presence.
This pretty much mirrors my experience.

When my boss called me up and said that he wanted me back in the office, he made it sound like it was for my benefit. "Im worried about you", "you never getting to speak to anyone" etc, etc. I literally live with another person, and I have friends outside of work - I don't need workplace communication to survive.

Obviously I didn't want to not sound like a team player, so I was all "yeah, sounds great! Cant wait!" but I honestly would have preferred it if he was just upfront with me, about just wanting me back in the office for a few days. None of this buttering me up bullshit.

But yes, office spaces are almost entirely redundant for a lot of positions. I can take calls from home, I can access all of my systems at home, I can work just as efficiently, if not better, sat at my own desk, in my own chair, in my own house, without needing the early mornings, commutes, finding somewhere to park, poor weather, packed lunches, etc.

My brother works for a major UK bank in their IT dept, and they have all been working from home full-time since March last year, and their is 0 interest in getting them back. I used to work there.

Im honestly at the point where if I was asked to come back in, full time, I might just end up looking elsewhere.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Xprimentyl

Piscian

Elite Member
Apr 28, 2020
1,604
1,635
118
Country
United States
I don't really get stressed - im a super chilled out person, except for one thing: Driving somewhere that I have never been - especially when it is busy. I might just take the train. Im pretty sure that Teams and Zoom were created for exactly this purpose.
I'm severely directionally impaired and have a lot of anxiety about it. Like you spin me around three times and I'm instantly lost so whenever I have to drive or go anywhere I don't have memorized I'm always like hours early because I'm terrified I'll get lost in the city or something and miss the appointment. Still haven't gotten that duel I was promised with Ranma.
 

Gordon_4

The Big Engine
Legacy
Apr 3, 2020
6,026
5,322
118
Australia
Minor compared to most, but, a pox on hotels that lock their televisions down so hard I can’t even change from their shitty free to air to a HDMI port.

Also fuck online retailers who’s ordering system isn’t linked to their inventory system so I can reserve two of something and get to the store and be told there’s only one. And furthermore - while I appreciate retail is rough - the kind of shop assistant who has a visibly frustrated customer in front of them because they only have one of something they want two of, that then asks in the dopiest voice “Do you still want it?” is the sort of person it should legal to lamp with a bluefin tuna.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Xprimentyl

Xprimentyl

Made you look...
Legacy
Aug 13, 2011
6,193
4,470
118
Plano, TX
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Minor compared to most, but, a pox on hotels that lock their televisions down so hard I can’t even change from their shitty free to air to a HDMI port.

Also fuck online retailers who’s ordering system isn’t linked to their inventory system so I can reserve two of something and get to the store and be told there’s only one. And furthermore - while I appreciate retail is rough - the kind of shop assistant who has a visibly frustrated customer in front of them because they only have one of something they want two of, that then asks in the dopiest voice “Do you still want it?” is the sort of person it should legal to lamp with a bluefin tuna.
*ahem*

As a corporate employee of a retailer with an online component, linking the ordering system to the inventory system isn't as simple as that. Without a tracking device attached to every single piece of inventory, there's never a 100% guarantee what shows in stock IS in stock. Theft and damages alone account for a huge chunk of misalignment let alone every time you've found a pair of men's socks casually strewn in the women's lingerie section; if you showed up to buy two pairs and only see one in the men's sock section, technically, both ARE in stock, but who'd think to look over by the panties? Just sayin', the alignment between brick and mortar stores and their online representation is far more fluid and volatile than say, Amazon that has it's inventory specifically located for its picking/putting systems.

EDIT: some retailers are making strides. Home Depot has their physical inventory slotted into on-shelf locations which is kind of a middle ground. I had to get a very random item that I would have had no idea where it'd be in the store, but online, it showed it was in a specific aisle, section and shelf. I was able to locate it without bothering staff and was back out the door in a couple of minutes. Still, that doesn't mitigate the issues I mentioned above, and many retailers don't have the kind of inventory that's conducive to such measures, i.e.: clothiers who's rack and shelves might change with a season or for aesthetic purposes.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Mister Mumbler

Gordon_4

The Big Engine
Legacy
Apr 3, 2020
6,026
5,322
118
Australia
*ahem*

As a corporate employee of a retailer with an online component, linking the ordering system to the inventory system isn't as simple as that. Without a tracking device attached to every single piece of inventory, there's never a 100% guarantee what shows in stock IS in stock. Theft and damages alone account for a huge chunk of misalignment let alone every time you've found a pair of men's socks casually strewn in the women's lingerie section; if you showed up to buy two pairs and only see one in the men's sock section, technically, both ARE in stock, but who'd think to look over by the panties? Just sayin', the alignment between brick and mortar stores and their online representation is far more fluid and volatile than say, Amazon that has it's inventory specifically located for its picking/putting systems.

EDIT: some retailers are making strides. Home Depot has their physical inventory slotted into on-shelf locations which is kind of a middle ground. I had to get a very random item that I would have had no idea where it'd be in the store, but online, it showed it was in a specific aisle, section and shelf. I was able to locate it without bothering staff and was back out the door in a couple of minutes. Still, that doesn't mitigate the issues I mentioned above, and many retailers don't have the kind of inventory that's conducive to such measures, i.e.: clothiers who's rack and shelves might change with a season or for aesthetic purposes.
While all the business models you mention do have that issue, I was talking very specifically about an IT parts warehousing business. All inventory is behind the desk and obtainable by employees only. I feel that specific setup should be able to better track its inventory.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Xprimentyl

Xprimentyl

Made you look...
Legacy
Aug 13, 2011
6,193
4,470
118
Plano, TX
Country
United States
Gender
Male
While all the business models you mention do have that issue, I was talking very specifically about an IT parts warehousing business. All inventory is behind the desk and obtainable by employees only. I feel that specific setup should be able to better track its inventory.
Agreed, that makes sense.
 

Baffle

Elite Member
Oct 22, 2016
3,459
2,746
118
Do you mean in the sense of 'rug burns' and 'road rash' or were you burned by the lime in the powdered concrete?
It's a chemical burn. Not too bad, but I got bad burns on my knees from it once, and they've been sensitive to it since. Should stop kneeling in cement I guess.
 

BrawlMan

Lover of beat'em ups.
Legacy
Mar 10, 2016
26,578
11,147
118
Detroit, Michigan
Country
United States of America
Gender
Male
Well this sucks, I had to return my copy of Kill La Kill, cuz the store I ordered through Amazon gave me the region 2/B Blu-ray. The only reason I ordered from that UK store, because there was no warning about it for being a different region and I thought that they had the region 1/A. The price was cheaper too. Which is what the United States, Canada, and Mexico use is Region 1/A. The good news is that they take returns and the process of super easy. I went to my local post office which is literally about 2 minutes away from where I live on a drive. So I had to go to Right Stuff Anime and order Kill la Kill through there, which had the correct region coding for me. It sucks, because Aniplex likes to overpriced their stuff, but I really love the anime that much.
 

Drathnoxis

Became a mass murderer for your sake
Legacy
Sep 23, 2010
5,412
1,883
118
Just off-screen
Country
Canada
Gender
Male
It's a chemical burn. Not too bad, but I got bad burns on my knees from it once, and they've been sensitive to it since. Should stop kneeling in cement I guess.
Ah, I never actually knew cement could burn you, so that's good to know.
 

Dalisclock

Making lemons combustible again
Legacy
Escapist +
Feb 9, 2008
11,227
7,006
118
A Barrel In the Marketplace
Country
Eagleland
Gender
Male
Found out recently that the reason my heating and AC bills are high during the Summer and Winter is because when the bank that we bought our house from(A foreclosure) installed the heat pump and fan unit onto the existing ductwork, they somehow fucked up by hiring the cheapest contractor who decided to bypass the actual heat exchange coils in the vent system. So for the last 5 years our vent system has been a glorified air circulator that has been semi-functional at best at actually cooling/heating the house. We'd kinda assumed the high bills were as a result of heat leakage and having to heat the amount of space it does, but there's also been plenty of other stuff to deal with since we bought it. Ironically, it's never gotten TOO hot or cold due to other, mostly passive, temp control methods such as thermal, reflect curtains and opening/closing windows based on outside temperature.

It's going to cost $3000 to fix but considering our heating bills have been hundreds during the high usage months that'll pay for itself in not too long. I'm just steamed that it's yet another thing the bank cheaped out on in order to get the house sold and annoyed at myself for not really noticing until now.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BrawlMan

Piscian

Elite Member
Apr 28, 2020
1,604
1,635
118
Country
United States
Two of my coworkers got covid this week, one post vaccination and I just ate with them Wednesday. I can't help but feel like they're rushing the reopening. I gotta quarantine for two weeks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dalisclock

EvilRoy

The face I make when I see unguarded pie.
Legacy
Jan 9, 2011
1,840
537
118
That sucks. My office decided mid-pandemic that everyone working from home was working really well, even officially moved out of our home office to save on the mortgage of a building we found we didn't need. I was told the plan was we'd work remotely permanently. Then we [the company] got bought, and our new owners started a hunt for a new office space we're expected to be in by the end of the year. I've no real COVID concerns (yours are truly valid,) but I like (well, "prefer") working from home and don't want to return to a daily commute and working right next to everyone simply because "job." Say what you want about this pandemic, but if nothing else, it has shown us how much of our daily lives prior to were predicated by extremely arbitrary expectations and stale standards. My company spent +$1M a month for office space we know now we never needed; now, because "corporate," we're headed right back there, and we're a company who could really stand to save at this point.

My boss (a corporate shill) says the "hallway conversations" are helpful, and is looking forward to going back (at the same time he's leaving our group for another opportunity within the company,) but you know what? I don't feel they are. They're 80% bullshit and 20% valuable content that could easily be communicated in a quick and easily documented email... which is the lesson we learned a year ago. I don't need to talk about the weather or "your weekend" for five minutes just for you to ask me a question you could have asked in a two-sentence email.

I'm not anti-social, but I AM anti-wasting time. This pandemic has been rough, but it's shown me that my function can be performed just as well, if not better, from my kitchen as it can from an office after traffic, finding parking and walking into an uncomfortable desk and immediate proximity to a bunch of people that benefit nothing from my immediate presence.
My company wants to go to a 'desk-renting' system, where you book a desk for x days/hours and you have to leave afterwards. Not immediately terrible until they also announced they expect us to be in the office a minimum of 3 days per week. Me and a few others said "fine, then we want permanent workstations all week". The response? They don't want to do it because they intend to reduce our floorspace to save money. So we said "fine, dibs Monday to Wednesday every week forever". Immediate clapback because apparently they can't permanently assign desks to people like that because there's an expectation of keeping certain divisions grouped together so each assigned "group area" will grow or shrink week to week depending on how the employee group at large wants to schedule themselves. Essentially saying I might just not be able to book a desk on any given Tuesday and instead have to work 6 hours on Thursday in the office, then 2 more Friday to make up the difference, scheduling a new desk/timeslot 3 days in advance every day.

This kind of scheduling bullshit rivals what I deal with on real projects that actually make profit. I am probably going to take a government job if they go through with this.