Walking round and round in circles over the same grubby grey carpet held down with crooked nails, frayed parts patched over with strips of gaffer tape and all of it spattered lightly with blobs of old gum. The same off-white walls and MDF separator boards covered in balding grey felt set up to make cubicles around the room with company names stapled up in the top corners. Welcome to the Midas exhibition centre; the dullest place on earth to work as security.Exhibitors from all different companies are coming through the doors in dribs and drabs, carrying boxes and fold away presentation boards whilst trying to fumble around for their clearance passes otherwise Trevor, who got assigned to door duty yet again even though he was promised otherwise, has to radio the boss. Everyone else is either outside in the rain clad in fluorescent security jackets helping delivery trucks pull up or wandering around the floors to make sure the exhibitors are all OK. As for me, well I’m supposed to be circling the basement floor in order to make sure nothing suspicious goes on whilst the stands are being set up, but there’s a fat chance of anything exciting happening anyway since it’s completely empty down here. The main lights aren’t even on and there’s still a faint smell of chlorine from a leakage at some ‘port-a-pool’ convention last weekend. It’s fine by me though because there are rows of chairs set up for a presentation talk later on this afternoon, so I can sit around for a while at least, provided my supervisor radios in first and doesn’t just sneak up on me.
“...Foxy trotter to Mr Tango…Foxy trotter to Mr Tango. Come in Mr Tango…”
You never get 5 minutes peace with this job. The boss thought giving us all humorous nicknames on the radio would liven things up a bit around the centre, but calling someone ‘Bravo hot legs’ then following with a message about one of the visitors throwing up after too much free wine just seems to kill it every time.
“This is Mr Tango. State your business. Over.”
“There’s a woman at the doors making Trev feel uncomfortable. She just unclipped his tie and is now trying to get through without a pass by pinching his behind. Over.”
“Send Treacle up there to take over until she’s gone. Over and out.”
I sit up and search around my blazer pocket for my radio. Unfortunately, I’m the poor soul they decided to call Treacle on account of the fact that I’m the only female member of staff and they find it amusing.
“Mr Tango to Treacle…my lovely, are you there?”
“Yes Dean.”
“I’m Mr Tango. You’re not doing it properly…”
“Because it’s stupid.”
“Women…” he huffed “Anyway, Trevor is being fondled by some bird up at the entrance. Go up there and rescue him will you, dear. Over.”
“Am I any relation to Bambi? No. Over and out.”
I have a bunch of books with short writing tasks and prompts which I never use. This is the place where I can make magic happen with those...when I can be arsed.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Friday, January 02, 2009
I've discovered a blog...
Called the One minute writer. It gives you 1 minute writing prompts to follow for every single day. Todays one was a prompt asking what another person's first impression would be of you...here's mine:
Well you're a chubby one aren't you? I wonder what you're hiding behind all the make-up aside from the faint stirrings of past acne and re-growth of a moustache. Wow that's a lot of glitter, she either works with children or had a fight with a pixie...can I smell candyfloss?
Well you're a chubby one aren't you? I wonder what you're hiding behind all the make-up aside from the faint stirrings of past acne and re-growth of a moustache. Wow that's a lot of glitter, she either works with children or had a fight with a pixie...can I smell candyfloss?
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