Technology

He lifted himself from his chair, letting out a tiny groan as his joints creaked and cracked in protest. He had been sitting for far too long. He needed to stop doing that, force himself to get up every thirty minutes. That’s what the doctors tell you. He could hear his wife’s voice repeat in his head.

He grabbed the stack of papers from his briefcase and walked through the jungle of fabric walls. He hated cubicle life. He remembered fondly of the days with an office of his own. A door he could close for some privacy. A large window that would shine natural light across his face all day. Now it was fluorescent lights, clickity clacking of fingers on keyboards, and mystery lunch smells wafting through the room.

He signed and continued his walk, nodding at each head that popped up over the fabric walls reminding him of a game of whack-a-mole. He walked into the room lined with photocopiers, printers, and fax machines. The smell of toner was over powering and a tiny ache shot across his forehead.

He walked over to the closest machine and punched in his code. Nothing happened. He tried a second time with the same result. He grimaced and tried the next machine. Again, the same result – nothing. He moved from machine to machine punching in his code more aggressively each time. Cursing under his breath he gave up.

Defeated he walked out of of the printer room, back into the sterile office and back to his desk. He’d have to call the IT department… again.

May 1, 2019 - Challenge writing using words; lifted, briefcase, and photocopiers.