sinking in

it finally sunk in today (or at least started to) that, very very soon, everything in my life is going to change.

what brought this on? it was my last day of work.

this seems...kind of silly. i mean, i enjoyed my job, and i liked [most of] the people i worked with, but it was a part-time student position--it's not like it's part of my identity. am i going to miss my administrative/research office work, or pine after the good times with my coworkers? no. so why is this affecting me so much?

my best guess is because i've had this job for two and a half years. two and a half years, people! that's more than 10% of my life! and because of the nature of the company--highly successful healthcare IT--the environment and culture were very edifying for those of us who wear the label "geek."

i planned on taking time after i clocked out today to explore all of our campus (which has expanded significantly since the last time i did that, two years ago). this was inspired by the sign that's been sitting outside my office for the past week or so:

(i suppose i should explain: our office buildings--11 thus far--are named alphabetically after celestial entities. i work in building A, andromeda; the cafeteria is building C, cassiopeia, etc. building H was just recently opened--and there's significant construction still going on--and so people are still trying to find their way around.)

don't say that doesn't make you smile! people made jokes about it being a stairway instead of a tunnel, and about staying away from the light at the end. it's cute. plus, you just know that whoever makes the signs was having a good time with it:

so i went off to explore buildings H, I, J and K. except, i forgot that "last day of employment" meant that i had to turn in my access card, which meant that i couldn't unlock any outer doors after 6pm, which is when i finished work and went wandering around. so, i only made it inside H (heaven) and K (kohoutek). bummer.

the buildings are all themed. my first office was in a NYC-themed building; others have jungle, garden, western, and other themes. when i explored kohoutek, it was pretty easy to recognize its asian theme:




(can you see the wire sculptures in this picture? they're elephants! they'll be topiaries when the vines grow up.)

however, as for heaven's theme, the best guess i have is SHINY!

i'm sure those little white things don't show well in the picture, but those are all fiber optic cables. the ceiling is sparkly!

and check this out--

instead of taking the stairs or the elevator, you can take the slide!

awesome.

it's a cool place. a neat environment--encouraging creativity and fun. not bad for a bunch of dorks. =)

oh, and rather randomly, here's a photo of our office's recycling bin on top of the bookshelf next to my desk. it was raining rather hard this afternoon, and then it started to rain through the ceiling. onto me. and my computer. =)