bo-ring

I had a temp job yesterday that lasted five hours, as a "working interview".

Thank God for small miracles that the shift only lasted five hours. This job was so boring and tedious it was almost funny.

Almost.

The staffing agency woman told me to get there at 8:45 to start at 9:00. Since the job was local, there was no real commute in order to get there on time. So far so good, right?

I ended up sitting in the conference room for an hour or so all by myself, with no watch on or clock in the room to help pass the time. Everyone else, it seemed, was told to come in for 10:00. Good thing for me I brought a book to read, just in case. I'm always prepared that way. If I hadn't brought something, I would have walked out. Maybe I should have.

I was in a training class with about nine other people for about an hour or so learning the ins and outs of data entry for this particular company. Then we went out onto the floor where there was about 25 other people busily typing away.

I got put on a project where I entered basically the same information over and over again, excepting some date changes. Now I realize that data-entry, in and of itself, is not an exciting job - but this was just pure idiotic. They even said we could bring in a walkman/ipod/portable music device to help pass the time but even that wouldn't have helped much.

I actually worked for three hours typing in stuff and absolutely can not see how people can do this job for eight hours a day, five days a week. I picture this job being the kind that would lend itself to some frustrated current or former employee walking out of the elevator and blowing everyone away with an Uzi or something.

Scary that that imagery would even enter my mind.... but it did.

Yikes.

Once I got out of there I called the woman at the staffing agency and politely told her that I would not be going back for a second, full day of boredom and that my time, mind and talents can be better spent in other pursuits.