The Diet Coke of Evil
Iain-O-Vations
08:40, Sat 7 Mar 2009
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OMG, OMG, OMG! It's an actual blog post!!! Ah, like you care. ;) I hate to be bored. And I love finding neat little ways to solve problems or just make things work a little better. Anyway, I've done some small projects at work that I'M proud of, even if nobody else really cares, and I decided to photographically document them and include them in my resume, in case I should ever find myself looking for a job again. I'm feeling pretty positive about myself and my work right now, and that seemed like a good time to write a blog (less chance of it turning into a bunch of pissing and moaning), so I figured I'd share my little projects (and the attendant photos) with whoever still actually reads my blog. (Is it still a blog if you don't actually blog regularly? I think mine is more like a quarterly report or something.) Also, I'm killing time until my sushi and beer get re-refrigerated. These are by no means ALL of the projects I've done, they're just the most easily photographed (and I forgot to take a picture of the drawing I did of my guitar as a store display. Damn) I've done a lot of computer related things, which wouldn't mean much to most people, and done some physical rearranging, which WOULD have made decent photos, if I'd had the foresight to take a "before" photo. I'm certainly not putting those heavy-ass shelves back or digging out all that stuff I put in the overhead storage just for the sake of a "before" photo, though. Anyway, without further adieu, here are some of my at-work projects.
At work, we have a candy bowl. It's filled by the employees (honestly, mostly me and Nancy) out of our own pockets. We keep it near the register so that anybody can take some candy they choose to. It's a simple way to make the customers happy, it makes us feel pretty good, and it's just nice to have around if you happen to enjoy candy yourself.
Earlier this week, I bought a bag of Riesen, because I like them a lot, and I thought the rest of the staff would dig them too. They went over pretty big when I took the bag out of my backpack (with an appropriate dramatic flourish) so I felt pretty good about my choice. Everybody had a piece, and there were smiles all 'round.
Later, a customer came in and placed an order. I wrote up his work order, rang him through the register, handed him his copies of the work order and receipt, and wished him a nice day. He returned the sentiment, and then REACHED HIS BIG SAUSAGE FINGERED HAM FIST INTO MY CANDY BOWL AND YANKED OUT A HUGE WAD AND STUFFED IT IN HIS POCKET. Suddenly I had that look on my face where you smile, but not with your eyes. You know the one. That son of a bitch took nearly ALL the Riesen. Because they were sitting on top. Because I had JUST BOUGHT THEM.
It's not the first time that's happened, but it WAS the last straw. I had some free time. I was looking for something to do because I hate to just sit and wait for people to come in. That's why I got out of tech support, for Christ's sake. I don't need that shit. Anyway, I resolved to make a little sign for our candy dish, and set about figuring out how to do it. This is the result:
and with candy:
We have a photography studio for a neighbor. (Bugs and Butterflies, if anyone is interested. She specializes in children and does excellent work.) She often has her photos printed in an 8" x 8" size print, and brings them to us to be framed for her customers. She orders the same size mat and frame style nearly every time. Because her photos are mounted on a thick board, we have to build up the space behind the mat around the photo. Last time she brought us one of these orders, I decided to get the jump on the next time, so I made some kits with the mats, backing, and build-ups pre-cut, and the bar-codes included. The next time she comes in, I can have her job ready 15 minutes after she places the order, if that.
Sorry for the shitty color. I haven't used my camera in a while, and it just did not occur to me to adjust the white balance. Maybe I'll take a better picture next time I take my camera to work:
We have a wide array of pre-cut mats. Like ridiculously. I don't know if any of you have ever gone mat-shopping, but usually, you get 5x7, 8x10, and 11x14, and that's about it. We seriously have 70 some odd standard openings. This is a GREAT advantage in getting work done quickly and in helping the customer visualize the final project, but it's kind of a pain in the ass when you're looking for JUST the right mat for a customer, especially if their job isn't one of those sizes that you use all the time. It's also a bit of a drag when you have to put stuff back and you're staring at this giant wall of basically pretty similar white objects and you have to figure out where your specific white object goes.
Finally, (after only seven or eight months) I hit on the idea of labeling those bitches. The owner had been pretty clear that he wanted a clean look, but I figured as long as they were sort of out of the way, maybe on top where you don't really see them from a distance it should be okay, and the practical benefit could be enormous. So I made those too.
As you can see, these original adhesive backed ones have suffered some wear and tear. Some of them have been moved once or twice, some of them have been written on, and almost all of them are at least a little dirty. I'm currently re-doing these mounted on a stiffer board and attached with Velcro to make them more easily replaceable.
A while back, it occurred to me that it might be nice to have some corner samples of our available mat colors like other frame shops have to help customers visualize their work orders on those occasions when we DON'T have a pre-cut mat available that fits their artwork. I cut the first ones out of damaged and faulty leftover mats because we didn't have the capacity to cut our own mats at that point, and included a bunch that have a lift already in place. Since then, we've gotten a computerized mat cutter, so I've created a pattern for making these which is much faster and easier than trying to do it from scraps.
After making the mat samples, I found they were often in the way. Unfortunately, we have very limited space, so our design/customer service tables often also do double duty as a framing work space, and they really aren't sufficient to the task. To save on space and minimize the clutter, yesterday I built this mat caddy. Like the candy sign, it is made entirely out of scrap matboard, foamcore, double-sided tape, and linen tape. Also a couple of bump-ons (rubber or felt bumpers that go on the back of the frame in the bottom corners to protect your walls). I would imagine the total cost of this thing in materials is around three bucks. It did take a while, so the labor would have cost more, but I was getting paid for my time whether I did this or played Tetris, so I'm not figuring that into the cost. Considering it's about 50% paper and 50% foam, it's surprisingly stable and sturdy.
caddy alone:
and with mats:
These kinds of things are the reason that no employer who has hired me has ever wound up regretting that choice. Besides, it's fun, and I get to be a little creative. It's kind of like playing with lego, except that you can do it when you're pushing 30, and nobody thinks you're immature. Don't tell anybody, OK?
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01:39, Sun 8 Mar 2009 .. Posted by WelshPixie:D
Only advice my grandfather gave me about being in a job, heheh;
'Make yourself indespensable. Hide the keys to the filing cabinets if you have to, but make sure they can't live without you.'
^.^
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02:24, Sun 8 Mar 2009 .. Posted by thedietcokeofevilSee, I've one-upped him. I learned how to pick the lock. ;)
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03:16, Sun 8 Mar 2009 .. Posted by bebbetLego rules, how ever old you are! :D
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04:45, Sun 8 Mar 2009 .. Posted by saraiI saw a PostSecret once that said "every time I'm at the dentist I resist the urge to get down on the floor and play with the box of Legos" and I was thinking why resist it? if my dentist had a box of Legos I'd sure be building things while I waited :D
Oh and kewl projects, it looks like all of them are beneficial to your workplace.
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08:32, Sun 8 Mar 2009 .. Posted by thedietcokeofevilyeah, I'm a big fan of Lego. I don't have any now, but before I left Italy I had three or four of those Technics sets. And I friggin loved 'em. The Ferrari was badass. Ditto the big yellow crane.
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09:36, Sun 8 Mar 2009 .. Posted by saraiWe have a bunch of the Star Wars Lego technics, yeah a destroyer droid, pit droid, one of them infantry droids and R2-D2 as well, too much fun!! :D
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