Welcome everybody to my commentary


I've got so much talent, it's a little scary

Is my every random thought insightful? Very

Not just entertaining- I'm a luminary

Neil Patrick Harris- Commentary! The Musical





Saturday, May 8, 2010

The Only Boy


I always get into stuff
Just when it's finishing being cool
I'm never quite brave enough
To take a chance on something new
That's for someone else to do

I'm never too far behind
I follow the trends
But I never take any risks
I'm not ahead of the pack
I'm just with the pack
Towards the back

Tripod - Always Get Into Stuff



Hello ScoFans!

This is something that's been happening around the bloggosphere for awhile now, and in fact I think almost everyone else has had their turn.

So when everyone else has finished, become bored with it, packed up and gone home.. then that's when I'll decide to give it a crack (although after I drafted this the first office tour for about a week went up, so I guess I'm not the only one towards the back of the pack)

Cher of The Only Girl and someone else who I'm not sure who it was started an International Workspace Tour many many weeks ago. I kept saying "I'll do it one day", and I was going to do it last week, but last week was the first of May and I had more important things to blog about (I forgot to mention anyone who liked that song can go here and download it, and about 30 of his other songs, for free- you can also pay for others if you choose to), so here is my workspace, albeit delayed by a week.

The title of this post is a play on Cher's "Only Girl", because as of last Friday I am the only boy in my office other than the boss (which means I am the only boy in "The pit".. you'll see what that's about later)

I know you're excited, you always wanted to know what an accounting office looked like right?


This is the tea room. It's the first room you see when you enter the building (from the carpark, obviously not from the street. We don't want our clients entering the building in the tea room. That's where we go to complain about them and the stupid, frustrating things they do. They can't hear that, they might think we don't value their money.)



This is the area that we affectionately refer to as "The deads". It's where we put the files of all of our clients who have moved on to a better place.. like the accountants up the road. Bam!

Ow. I hurt my own feelings.

I like referring to it as the deads. That way if someone comes looking for a file, I have a chance to say "I think we killed them", and the other person knows exactly what I mean. And they don't call the cops.



That's my desk. I'm pretty sure that file was open because I was pretending to be busy. I can tell because there is a closed file on top of the open file, so I'm not sure how I was getting any work done.

Wanna see what's in my drawers?



That's my top drawer. That's where I empty my pockets to when I arrive in the morning. That "Chewy" thing you see would be a muesli bar, which becomes afternoon tea. The purple highlighter hasn't worked in over 12 months. The "Tax Schools" brochure you see there was probably for last years seminar.


That's my bottom drawer. You can see there the book from last years Tax Schools seminar, as well as my dodgy umbrella. In a strong gust of wind, that thing is useless, and I'm better off without it. I have an umbrella at home I use on the really rainy days, that one is back up in case I get caught looking to head home during a light shower (but racing home with that thing in a storm is a far better alternative to... *shudder*.. staying at work)


These are the shelves that sit behind my desk that help to keep me organised.

Top shelf = waiting on info from the client
Second shelf = info has come in, waiting for me to start working on it
Bottom shelf = waiting on a response from the tax office / ASIC etc

As you can see, I'm very efficient. My clients and the government bodies I have to deal with.. not so much.


These are my other shelves.

Top shelf - Files that pretty much "live" at my desk for one reason or another
Second shelf - Printer paper and current tax books
Bottom shelf- Old tax books for reference

So yeah.. I'm pretty organised, right?




WRONG!



That's my desk from side on. Apparently I decided it would be fun to try and build a fort. I'm not sure at what point I realized that by building a fort around myself to lock other people out, I would at the same time be trapping myself at my desk.

But I'm not the only one to leave files just laying about.



That's our boardroom. That's where, in theory, we could be taking some of our clients with a team of us and a team of them and discussing their business and their tax situation and whatever.

Every now and then (like if we have a new client coming in that we want to land) we'll tidy the room up and put on a show.. but mostly it's just used as storage for files that my boss was looking at, at some point he's forgotten why he was looking at them, and so they've been moved there until somebody runs out of stuff to do and picks them up.

This is one of our interview rooms though.

It's where I see most of my clients. They have no idea of what's happening out the back. They wouldn't even realize there's hideous green carpet through most of the office (You all noticed that, right?). There's a few pictures there (from shows my boss has been in or just classic pictures most people have seen) which clients will use to strike up a conversation, there's a graph of the share market's performance which I can use to try and make tax clients financial planning clients, but other than that it's pretty bare.

There's also plenty of these pictures around the office.

My boss loves his trains.

And now for "The pit"

The pit is a large room that is home to eleven employees. It's the big open area at the back of the office where all the work is done.

This is the view from the front looking back..


My desk is about half way along. It might be easier to see from the back.


Yep, that one there with the monitor on.. that's me. I took these photos on a Friday morning (I'm always earliest to the office on a Friday) so that's why the place is pretty quiet.
And that's the few places up the side. Those people are lucky enough to have walls.

Some day, I hope to have walls of my very own some day.

And for anyone who was wondering what was on my background and trying to make it out over the other desks, I'll save you the trouble..

Anyone who knows what that is gets a million ScoPoints.


What are ScoPoints?

ScoPoints are the system I use to help me rank people in my mind. They'll come in handy if you're ever in a burning building with someone else I know and I'm trying to work out which one of you to save.

You're right, there's no way I'm running into a burning building. No matter how many ScoPoints you have, you're on your own.

For more ScoPoints you can also show off your workplace and join up with Cher's International Workspace Tour (if you too are towards the back of the pack).


Taking a chance
That's just not for me

If there's four levels of cool
Then I'm at level three

It goes freakishly cool people first
Cool people next, then there's me..

And then my mum (Happy mothers day mum!)

I never try to set the trend
'Cos I've been hurt before
The only time I went out on a limb
It didn't work out for the best
A bandanna round my chest
Over a vest

Tripod - Always Get Into Stuff

18 comments:

  1. Wow. I like this going to work with Sco! lol :)

    As for the Sco points, guess I'm out cause I don't know the answer. But I get at least a point for being first comment, right? RIGHT!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for the tour, I always wanted to see the inside of an accountant's office. Now my life is complete.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Damn! No Sco points for me cuz I have no idea what that's from and I don't actually have a workplace to take pictures of. :(

    ReplyDelete
  4. I liked the tour thanks!! Pretty creative, too bad I miss out on the Sco points, I haven't a clue as to what your screen saver is :(!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yay! I LOVE it! But of course I have a few comments for you. Would you expect less?

    - I notice your desk is completely void of any and all personal effects. Paricularly a photo of me. Sads.
    - glad to see your 2nd shelf is clear. Way to get the job done
    - super thick tax books = boring
    - I always have stacks of files on my floor too!
    - train pictures? he has odd taste in art
    - the green carpet has GOT to go. Who do I have to contact about that?
    - no idea on the screen saver. Must be some Auzzie show. No ScoPoints for me - this time. But I will earn some. I will.

    Thanks for playing along! You're officially off the hook now.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am brimming with excitedness that you did a work tour. It's all very white. And papery.

    Curious what my current ranking on the scometer is?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wow thanks for the tour around your office Sco. Despite the green carpet and the fort of files I wouldn't mind being having you as an officemate. It would be fun to actually hang out with the Scoman! My office is super small right now. We have 7 people inside my office and whenever someone needs to get through, every one needs to get up. We are like a bunch of sardines with no personal space.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Fascinating. Are all the files on the floor the ones that belong on that empty middle shelf? ;)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I have to say, I felt a little dirty when you asked if I wanted to look in your drawers.

    No I don't know what that is on your monitor, but I was WONDERING what it was before you showed the closeup. Does that win my anything? And I've already done an office tour, so I'm pretty sure I already have some ScoPoints in my file. Can you tell me where I currently stand?

    ReplyDelete
  10. I love this! I wish I wasn't laid off right now so I could include photos of my office. Every job I've ever had, I always snap photos of my desk and other areas around the office.

    Bummed I don't know who the girl is but you have a cute wallet :)

    FourthGradeNothing.com

    ReplyDelete
  11. It's the I.T Crowd!!! Wallpaper / background whatever you want to call it... What I want to know is WHY two monitors? Is one for work Sco and the other to surf the net? If so... I like the way you roll #Rad

    ReplyDelete
  12. Enjoyed the workplace tour. As I work from home when not driving around visiting my clients my workplace tour would either be my desk here at home, which is also in my bedroom or the inside of my car. Both are way too messy to photograph and put on the internet.

    I was actually thinking the bright green carpet made things sort of cheerful, but I guess if you had to work there all day it might be more hideous than cheerful.

    ReplyDelete
  13. No...Alissa is clearly super sweet...but perhaps color blind. The green carpet is horrid! I was expecting to see you somehow defile your workplace. Pretending to make out with a secretary in your "fort" or something. Slightly disappointed. Anyhoo...a glimpse into your life was fun. Since I'm the only one that comes here for a visit from our blog...I'm expecting...no demanding your vote for team Blueberry Muffin Top! Alas, I know Charisse is the funny one and you secretly want to vote for her...sigh. Holly:)

    ReplyDelete
  14. This was pretty awesome!!!

    I loved everything; except, there is only one problem: where is your stereo????

    ReplyDelete
  15. I see the green carpet, and I need to know if the curtains match.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I tried my best to make this anonymous cause I am scared of the 3 letter beast that starts with and I and ends with S has an R in the middle thus by proxy I am nervous around accountants, but I need help, can you help me, your awesome decorating skills make me think you may be in my budget, which is bartering for twizzlers. let me know.

    ReplyDelete
  17. oh I laughed out loud when you said you were organized then zoomed out - HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I like you even more with your organized chaos :)

    Love that you call the workspace the "pit" - I work in the basement of a little craptastic home-turned office - I think I should come up with a name for it - maybe the "dungeon" - I think my boss calls it that anyway - so it's perfect! :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. "Have you tried turning it off and on again?!!"
    Great show, I've seen all 3 seasons on Netflix and eagerly awaiting more!

    Loved the office tour idea, I'd like to do something like that one of these days...but having to clear the pictures with the commanders & possibly public affairs seems like too big a hassle for this lazy blogger. :P

    "He looks like a magician..."

    ReplyDelete

Every time you comment, I love you a little more...