Temping

Feeling rather down on my lunch break that I couldn’t read what was being written today, I realized that I could at least start in on what I have to say here, and post it later.

First, my thoughts on temping. Temping is tolerably boring.

Representative sample:

I got in today at 8:37 (supposed to get here at 8:30). The first bit of work for me crossed the desk shortly after 9, and was done before 10. I had no more work until after lunch around 1:30, and that was completed by 2:30. I have no network access. My only sources of entertainment are the things I’ve brought with me. My laptop which has Master of Orion 2 (no master of magic), and a livejournal client (I used M-x doctor earlier today for about 30 seconds as a sample of just how bored I am). Howard Gardner’s book, Extraordinary Minds. It’s a good thing that this is a job that simply processes other people’s work, and thus, not a single monolithic project, but a series of momentary distractions from the fitful tedium of my own biological processes, and the lives and office politics of the people whose cubicals surround mine. Otherwise, as warned me against, I might find myself having finished the 2.6 week job on the first day.

That having been said, other than my inability to engage my net friends, it’s better than sitting on the couch at home worrying about the next month’s rent. However. All my noble thoughts of being able to survive on $7.50/hour aside (and I could, but ewwwww), $13/hour isn’t all that much. It also astounded me that the labor I am performing would be thought worth that quantity. Until I looked at it as a daily wage. And what I could purchase with that daily wage. Assuming standard expenditures (rent, student loans, taxes, etc) are deducted automatically from my wages, I would be making about $15/day in general spending money. Minus the $2.20 for the roundtrip commute, minus meals. That leaves me maybe $8 in recreational spending per workday assuming I’m cryofrozen (for free) over the weekends. Again I say “ewww”. So even fiscally, this is a parachute, not a platform, and I’m still falling.

…

Insert supervisor lady telling me that they overestimated the amount of worker they’d need, and underestimated the amount of marketing experience they’d need. Color me amused. Especially when she was all apologetic. And Adecco was all “we’ll place you with the next available company”. And I’m all, ” Don’t worry about it, I have a job offer from a friend for half again what I’m making here; I was coming here because you said you needed it, and I said I’d do it. =)”

I guess playing video games in a cubicle for better than half the day is a clear sign that I’m underemployed. =) I wish them the best of luck with their next sap. Meanwhile I’m going to check out a) the opportunity with the friend. b) bike messengering. And there’s always c) the actuarial tests in early november. =)

Plus adecco was apologetic, so I can probably swing something there, should push come to shove. We shall see.