Begining of an unhealthy obsession

DISCLAIMER: This post reflects my personal experiences of initial days in my new company. This post is purely based on my perception and is not meant to offend anyone by any means and henceforth doesn’t bind me to any legal and/or financial claims.

I completed 16th day in new office today. I am happy and excited to see the work environment which to me seems promising a good deal of healthy competition and growth prospects with exposure to a world class customer and a cutting edge infrastructure….…I have not been a part of such a big team so far in my career and I am trying to estimate the magnitude of effort I need to put in to make an identity of my own……whatsoever…am quite ready to take the bull by its horns…

On one extreme I thank myself for selecting this platform which is going to be acting as a spring board to my career…while…on the other extreme I am forced to think about the amorphous and sluggish process of the verification that I am undergoing before I am being allotted a project…..I understand the criticality of back ground checks and bear no hostility with it.......but I cannot understand the math behind it taking more than sufficiently long time for a candidate like me who hardly have a long work chronic…..FYI…this is my 2nd company….and since last 16 days…..I am made to sit in a namesake exhibitionistic library…..which doesn’t have any interesting book to read…….I don’t have access to a generic workstation (asking for Internet is way far thing)….. …..I did not have any induction yet so as to give an insight on the company policies and prime business…… to add to my misery.......I have been spending my days on a 1”X1” chair with no cushions/forearm rester/recliner…….for me it is still an unknown territory……my routine work involves….reading newspapers…..solving crosswords….playing sudo-ku……etcetra….etcetra…..and believe me…..I am turning perfect in them day by day…..

One day I was thoroughly enjoying my rare news reading……when a sound…..”knock-knock”…… drew my attention……..I took my eyes out of news-paper and whirled around to find what had taken me away from the subject……I found a house-keeping boy standing behind one of the access doors wanting to get in….as soon as I saw him…..he gestured me to come there and swipe card for him so as to let him enter the restricted area……I made my ascent up the stairs and opened the door for him….he was grateful and thanked me…..I was pleased to know that at least someone here has sense of gratitude….

[but then….I did not know that this generous act would be my unofficial full time work apart from reading news papers in library…..yes, since then I have been helping housekeeping staff to access the restricted parts through my access card…..what should I call it?…a Sr software engineer in Jr. gatekeeper’s role?.…..for me spending all the day in library was bearable……but now do I have to work as a part time gatekeeper for office boys?? Huh……my fate!]

I was told to check with an HR on my BGC status…..I did so by approaching her on her desk…..not sure if she was handling and managing the entire business of organization or that she had been working continually without break since she joining the company she looked so exhausted….and she confirmed my doubt as she disinterestedly acknowledged my appearance and asked my name…..I told my name and just as any other common human being…she didn’t get it….I had to enunciate it 2-3 times which admittedly was sheer fault of my rare multi-syllabic name…..I know since I am used to it and have countered such situations many a times……..”I am here to check my BGC status” I said stating the purpose of my visit……”Jara iska form nikaalnaa” (pull out his employment form)…..she asked an another peer, sitting beside her cube to check my employment form…..I was downright offended by the words she used and felt as though I should correct her unacceptable speech…….but since I didn’t know if she was a regular hindi speaker…or those words were inadvertent……I kept mute….stood still for their majesty to pull my details…..while I wasn’t completely out of the agony caused by this absolute discourtesy……I got another one……”aadhe ghante me aana….” (check with me in half an hour)……she spoke and turned her face to her computer monitor….. evidently requesting my immediate dismissal from the cube….I said “OK” and left the cubes in fury……my internals were on fire……I declared to myself that I’ll not enter those cubes unless I am told to do so otherwise……whatsoever be my BGC status…..I was least interested to know…..I was upset and made my steps back to library which was my designated place…..I sat fixated to my chair, overturning news papers for no particular reason……simultaneously thinking when did the misfortune strike me that I joined this organization……was this the beginning of an unhealthy obsession?