Dust to Disk, Bite to Byte

Wednesday is the first day of the weekend for all IT & BPO companies, by which, I mean, they spend all of Monday checking email and forwarding insignificant and purportless emails to our mail boxes. Tuesday is spent checking for movie tickets online and check fares for Happy Diwali 2007. And then, it is TGIW*.

I have in the past had the misfortune of interacting with IT professionals**. Not too long ago, I had to meet another big cheese*** from a bigwig IT megacorp. While I waited for BC to arrive

Salient Features****:

• IT organizations around the world take great pains and spend millions of dollars on security*5, by which, I mean, everybody in the company sports ID tags. While the ladies hang these ugly plastic junk around their necks, it has been observed men store these cards in their wallets*6.
• All IT professionals wear service uniforms*7 to work.
• I spotted a guy who was wearing a dime-a-dozen hoodie, which read, I Love Albuquerque. He*8 was distributing Snickers bar miniatures, Hershey's sticks, Bubble yums, Jolly Rancher gummies and Twizzlers pull-n-peel candies.
• I also spotted a woman in, this is true, a ball gown. She was also sporting a bindi, chudiyan and wearing jootis.

Finally BC arrived. I will reserve our conversations for another time.

Yours hardiskly.

* Thank God Imma Wastrel.

** the thing about IT professionals is, is they stand out in any crowd, by which, I mean, they are usually never allowed.

*** it is true, most IT professionals were originally hoteliers, defense personnel, accountants, biochemists and supervisors at tanneries, bottling companies or power plants. All current IT professionals NOW are Y2K compliant.

**** I could have 'prepared' a PowerPoint presentation too but I am afraid, it is not a viable option on blogspot.com.

*5 while companies ensure that with access cards and SEI CMM level 5 security, no employee or intruder runs away with, say, mouses, monitors, IBM mainframes and magnetic disk drives the size of a household almirahs, they encourage their employees to

• chat on several chat sites and messengers;
• access personal email;
• listen to streaming music;
• and view LIVE! webcam shows.

*6 while some men produce their wallets and shake it vigorously against the photoelectric sensors, others merely turnaround and raise their heinies.

*7 men wear t-shirts and jeans, half-sleeve shirts and khakis or polo shirts and formal trousers. The common-denominator is shoes; sneakers. The ladies wear anything from tie-dye t-shirts to wedding gowns. The odd guy comes into work in a Kalamkari print kurta and a Kangol hat.

*8 he was trying very hard to put on a Jalandhar Cantt.-Yank accent. The cost of owning all those chocolates is effectively cheaper than a cup of chai in Irani cafe. Also, wearing a hoodie in this weather puts anyone at a major health risk; dehydration and eventually death.