This email popped up in my inbox yesterday:
To: 'Signing off from Seattle'; 'Boy who works with S.o.f.S AKA Taylor'
From: General Manager of Office
Subject: Elevator snafu
Hey guys-
I spoke with the Property Manager yesterday, and she was embarrassed and apologetic about the elevator problem. She admitted their maintenance vendor is under scrutiny, and she further admitted that the building's and CBRE's (the property management company) communication process broke down yesterday.
I'm sorry this happened, but also glad it was little more than an annoyance. She now knows we're insisting this be solved, and I think she's responding appropriately to that.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
###
What happened, you ask? Oh nothing... I just got stuck in an elevator with a colleague for 40 minutes.
The other day, the office building people hosted a holiday party for all the building residents on the second floor. Quite nice of them, if you ask me.
My agency is on the 12th floor.
That afternoon, I was walking towards the kitchen with my water bottle in hand with the goal to fill it up with water. (Water is essential to life, you know. Remember that.) Anyway, I bumped into my co-worker, Taylor and he asked if I wanted to go downstairs and grab some food from the party. I said, "Sure!" because perpetual diet or not, I can't pass up free food. It's like, in the Bible or something- thou shalt not pass up free food. So I put my water bottle down on a table and walked to the elevators with Taylor.
We get into the elevator, laughing and chatting about random things and hit the second floor button. It starts going down and we keep chatting when all of a sudden, the elevator lurches to a screeching halt at the fourth floor.
Silence
We look at each other in horror.
We were stuck in that elevator for 40 minutes. Apparently, there's only one elevator technician in Seattle and the operator who took our call was outsourced. I kid you not, he asked if the building was in Seattle, Washington. (What did he think we would say? "Actually, we're in Seattle, Greece.") When the technician arrived, it took him 10 minutes to find parking.
Fun times, I tell you. Fun times.
Taylor and I had the craziest conversation in that elevator. When we were told that there was only ONE elevator technician in Seattle, he said, "Maybe there's an elevator technician's guild!"
"Like the Freemasons?"
"Yeah, exactly! And they have special titles for each other, based on ranking..."
"Like the Army? Instead of elevator technicians, they're called vertical administration officers and..."
"Instead of eagles and lines, they wear elevator buttons..."
"And the higher the floor number..."
"The higher the rank!"
Taylor and I had all the rankings planned out by the time we were 'saved'. The craziest part was, when the elevator started moving again, it took us up to the 10th floor. The doors open, we stepped off, and there was no one around. No technician, no building manager... no one. Not that we were expecting a parade or anything but it was weird.
Of course, we hopped back into an elevator (a different one, natch) and went downstairs and got food.
Oh yeah, when we got back to our floor, people clapped.
Heh.
The lessons learned from this? If you're going to ride the elevator, for any reason, short trip or not, bring your mobile and an amusing co-worker. Otherwise, you're screwed.
Edited to add: Also, a mad thank you to our GM- thanks for looking out for us!
-Signing off from Seattle
To: 'Signing off from Seattle'; 'Boy who works with S.o.f.S AKA Taylor'
From: General Manager of Office
Subject: Elevator snafu
Hey guys-
I spoke with the Property Manager yesterday, and she was embarrassed and apologetic about the elevator problem. She admitted their maintenance vendor is under scrutiny, and she further admitted that the building's and CBRE's (the property management company) communication process broke down yesterday.
I'm sorry this happened, but also glad it was little more than an annoyance. She now knows we're insisting this be solved, and I think she's responding appropriately to that.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
###
What happened, you ask? Oh nothing... I just got stuck in an elevator with a colleague for 40 minutes.
The other day, the office building people hosted a holiday party for all the building residents on the second floor. Quite nice of them, if you ask me.
My agency is on the 12th floor.
That afternoon, I was walking towards the kitchen with my water bottle in hand with the goal to fill it up with water. (Water is essential to life, you know. Remember that.) Anyway, I bumped into my co-worker, Taylor and he asked if I wanted to go downstairs and grab some food from the party. I said, "Sure!" because perpetual diet or not, I can't pass up free food. It's like, in the Bible or something- thou shalt not pass up free food. So I put my water bottle down on a table and walked to the elevators with Taylor.
We get into the elevator, laughing and chatting about random things and hit the second floor button. It starts going down and we keep chatting when all of a sudden, the elevator lurches to a screeching halt at the fourth floor.
Silence
We look at each other in horror.
We were stuck in that elevator for 40 minutes. Apparently, there's only one elevator technician in Seattle and the operator who took our call was outsourced. I kid you not, he asked if the building was in Seattle, Washington. (What did he think we would say? "Actually, we're in Seattle, Greece.") When the technician arrived, it took him 10 minutes to find parking.
Fun times, I tell you. Fun times.
Taylor and I had the craziest conversation in that elevator. When we were told that there was only ONE elevator technician in Seattle, he said, "Maybe there's an elevator technician's guild!"
"Like the Freemasons?"
"Yeah, exactly! And they have special titles for each other, based on ranking..."
"Like the Army? Instead of elevator technicians, they're called vertical administration officers and..."
"Instead of eagles and lines, they wear elevator buttons..."
"And the higher the floor number..."
"The higher the rank!"
Taylor and I had all the rankings planned out by the time we were 'saved'. The craziest part was, when the elevator started moving again, it took us up to the 10th floor. The doors open, we stepped off, and there was no one around. No technician, no building manager... no one. Not that we were expecting a parade or anything but it was weird.
Of course, we hopped back into an elevator (a different one, natch) and went downstairs and got food.
Oh yeah, when we got back to our floor, people clapped.
Heh.
The lessons learned from this? If you're going to ride the elevator, for any reason, short trip or not, bring your mobile and an amusing co-worker. Otherwise, you're screwed.
Edited to add: Also, a mad thank you to our GM- thanks for looking out for us!
-Signing off from Seattle
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