We're not a different species, I promise.
I apologize, but I need to rant.
So, people have this stereotype of engineers being awkward and weird. You know what, that's pretty true. We're not really people. We're basically robots that also like science fiction, sports and junk food. We don't really operate like normal people. Whatever. That's just how we are. It's why the world has cars and planes and cell phones and lasers that can be used for surgery.
Engineering is not easy. Engineers are in the lab on Friday night at 10:00 when most of the rest of the undergrads are already three sheets to the wind. Engineers take 200+ units and are struggling to keep under the MAXIMUM unit load when others are struggling just to take the minimum. Why the heck would anyone chose this?
There are two kinds of engineers in the world. The first is someone who likes being good at something, and figuring out who is good at another thing so that the two of you can sit down at a table and say "I need this. How can we make it?" They say, "That's interesting. I know how to do this. But what we probably need is someone who can also do this." And you find that person and they say, "This is cool. I've never thought of this before. How about we also do this?" And you realize, to do that, you also need this person, who you bring in and they say, "Cool! Let's do this!" And when all is said and done, you have something real and tangible that you made and you hadn't even dreamed of before. I had the pleasure of going to school with these kinds of people, and now, in two different jobs, working with these kinds of people. It's why, even though I don't always love my work, I love the people I work with, and still give a damn when they ask me to do something.
There is a second type. There's the people who like being smarter than everyone and telling them what to do. These people are not interested in being helpful. They're just interested in knowing the answer, and very frequently, telling you you do NOT have the answer. They sound very much like members of Congress when they are hearing testimony at hearings. They're not interested in answers, they are interested in making statements. And you know what, they can, because it's very easy to say "you're wrong!" You know what, being an engineer means that most of the time, you don't have the answer. This is because, very frequently, you don't even have the right question. Remember that whole "let's do this, what about this" that I was describing above? That's fun. It takes very particular kinds of jack-asses to sit in on that process and say "you're wrong" every time you are wrong.
I have never wanted to work in a big office because people can become "institutionalized." Red was right, some people just can't work in the real world because they become institutionalized. They're told when to eat, when to sleep, when to crap. Big corporations are worse than prison. They tell you how to act and how to think. When this happens to an engineer, the results are disasterous. They stop being helpful. Their job becomes to say no. They make crap collaborative partners. And when you're in a corporation, this means this cancer spreads through conference calls and emails with multiple people cced, and memos, and corporate culture evaluations, and procedural meetings and more things that make me want to stick sharp objects in my ear. In the age where we are most connected and best able to communicate, we have somehow forgotten how to talk to people instead of throwing tantrums. What. The. Heck?
So please, please, please, dear people. If you ever encounter one of these engineers, please don't judge the rest of us by them. We're not all like that. We're just trying to make things better. I promise.
In other news, have I mentioned that I'm seeing a woman who makes me deliriously happy and kisses way better than even Sex-Goddess!Randomfanficcharacters?
Ginormous TV is Ginormous.
If the Sharks don't snap out of this funk soon, my health will decline rapidly.
Daylight savings time means MOAR ULTIMATE FRISBEE!!!
I'm suffering from writer's block. Chapter 24 of Long Road Home took WAY too long, and Chapter 25 is being a butt. I can't seem to focus when I sit down to write these days. What happened to my brain?
Must eat before the conference call. Hopefully I won't have stuck anything sharp in my ear, because I might be having dinner with a beautiful woman tonight (Or tomorrow night. Or both. Why choose?)
Peace out.
So, people have this stereotype of engineers being awkward and weird. You know what, that's pretty true. We're not really people. We're basically robots that also like science fiction, sports and junk food. We don't really operate like normal people. Whatever. That's just how we are. It's why the world has cars and planes and cell phones and lasers that can be used for surgery.
Engineering is not easy. Engineers are in the lab on Friday night at 10:00 when most of the rest of the undergrads are already three sheets to the wind. Engineers take 200+ units and are struggling to keep under the MAXIMUM unit load when others are struggling just to take the minimum. Why the heck would anyone chose this?
There are two kinds of engineers in the world. The first is someone who likes being good at something, and figuring out who is good at another thing so that the two of you can sit down at a table and say "I need this. How can we make it?" They say, "That's interesting. I know how to do this. But what we probably need is someone who can also do this." And you find that person and they say, "This is cool. I've never thought of this before. How about we also do this?" And you realize, to do that, you also need this person, who you bring in and they say, "Cool! Let's do this!" And when all is said and done, you have something real and tangible that you made and you hadn't even dreamed of before. I had the pleasure of going to school with these kinds of people, and now, in two different jobs, working with these kinds of people. It's why, even though I don't always love my work, I love the people I work with, and still give a damn when they ask me to do something.
There is a second type. There's the people who like being smarter than everyone and telling them what to do. These people are not interested in being helpful. They're just interested in knowing the answer, and very frequently, telling you you do NOT have the answer. They sound very much like members of Congress when they are hearing testimony at hearings. They're not interested in answers, they are interested in making statements. And you know what, they can, because it's very easy to say "you're wrong!" You know what, being an engineer means that most of the time, you don't have the answer. This is because, very frequently, you don't even have the right question. Remember that whole "let's do this, what about this" that I was describing above? That's fun. It takes very particular kinds of jack-asses to sit in on that process and say "you're wrong" every time you are wrong.
I have never wanted to work in a big office because people can become "institutionalized." Red was right, some people just can't work in the real world because they become institutionalized. They're told when to eat, when to sleep, when to crap. Big corporations are worse than prison. They tell you how to act and how to think. When this happens to an engineer, the results are disasterous. They stop being helpful. Their job becomes to say no. They make crap collaborative partners. And when you're in a corporation, this means this cancer spreads through conference calls and emails with multiple people cced, and memos, and corporate culture evaluations, and procedural meetings and more things that make me want to stick sharp objects in my ear. In the age where we are most connected and best able to communicate, we have somehow forgotten how to talk to people instead of throwing tantrums. What. The. Heck?
So please, please, please, dear people. If you ever encounter one of these engineers, please don't judge the rest of us by them. We're not all like that. We're just trying to make things better. I promise.
In other news, have I mentioned that I'm seeing a woman who makes me deliriously happy and kisses way better than even Sex-Goddess!Randomfanficcharacters?
Ginormous TV is Ginormous.
If the Sharks don't snap out of this funk soon, my health will decline rapidly.
Daylight savings time means MOAR ULTIMATE FRISBEE!!!
I'm suffering from writer's block. Chapter 24 of Long Road Home took WAY too long, and Chapter 25 is being a butt. I can't seem to focus when I sit down to write these days. What happened to my brain?
Must eat before the conference call. Hopefully I won't have stuck anything sharp in my ear, because I might be having dinner with a beautiful woman tonight (Or tomorrow night. Or both. Why choose?)
Peace out.