Insomniac's Dream Sequence

Today is a slow day. Most of the people have gone home. The heat is off in our building as repairs are being made.

I work in Information Technology. I am a support technician.

I am that guy who shows up at your desk when you have computer problems to whip your machine back into shape.

It has been a slow day. But that can change at any moment.

At the drop of a hat, my slow day can turn into a flurry of emergencies. The urgency (real or imagined) of a person needing to work from home and encountering an issue before they leave.

Hardware or software failing to work properly late on a Friday afternoon before the long weekend.

The sudden loss of vital data due to a mistaken keystroke or a software glitch.

There is no certainty to anything. There is no planning more than a couple of minutes ahead. There is no way to tell what I will be doing an hour from now. Thirty minutes from now. Five minutes from now.

There is no certainty. There is only uncertainty.

Every. Single. Day.

This is the life I lead. This is the path I’ve chosen.

While you’re off for the year sitting at home. When you go home early to enjoy the holidays.

I am at work. I am in the basement. I am here.

Just. In. Case.

I am insurance. I am protection.

I am as much a therapist and teacher as I am a technician. I rely more on soothing feelings and explaining technology than I do on technical knowledge to repair a problem. I am here to make everything better again to the best of my ability.

It is not always possible. There are things which can’t be undone. Wrongs which can’t be righted. Errors which can’t be repaired. Parts which can’t be fixed.

The human body is composed of thousands of parts working in harmony. A computer is composed of hundreds of parts working in harmony.

When our bodies break down, we get sick or injured. When we break, we need help. When computers break, they too need help.

There is no always a quick fix. There is no always a cheap fix. There is never a fix to meet the cost and time desired.

I’m sitting in the basement. In the cold. In my coat. With icy fingers. Tapping on this keyboard to keep them moving. Earphones as ear muffs.

I’m waiting for the uncertainty. The inevitable need for me to help. To repair. To explain. To add. To remove. To setup. To break down.

To leap into action at a moment’s notice. To assist the best way I know how.

I am here to make your life a little better and a little easier. I am here to help you get back to work. I am here to decrease the friction between you and the technology you use.

I am here. Waiting. In the cold.

Just. In. Case.

I am the insurance.

I am the protection.

I am the teacher. I am the therapist. I am the technician. I am here to help.