Nine to Six

I hurriedly pay the auto guy and walk into the office gate and flash my card at the punching machine which recorded my arrival full ten minutes late. As I walk into my office, I see many heads rising as to take a fine look at the gentleman who has entered the office a gross ten minutes late. I walk past those staring glances and into my cubicle and get seated. I open up my little monster and it starts its religious process of booting while I wonder that I will have to spend the next 9 hrs minus 10 min before this 14 inch screen. I raise my head just to look around to see how many are looking around but found every head glued to their monitor with lotus notes(official mail), yahoos, direct.coms and these days some orkuts also. As soon as my machine woke up from its slumber, I too join the bandwagon.

Now after about an hour when all the possible inboxes on this earth had been checked and rechecked and forwarded all the forwarded mails, some blokes arrived at the seat, ting tong...time for tea. They showed resentment over my missing the 9'0 clock tea. Promising that this grave error wont be repeated, I march along with them for the most ubiquitous timepass in any company or brainstorming as some people like to call it. Well the tea break stretched for a little more than half n hour, I was back at my seat, reopened all my mail boxes just in case somebody has forwarded me back my forwards.

So somehow I killed time or may be the time killed itself, witnessing its such usage, with the aid of F5 and the intermittent chais. Anyway the time hobbled along and the most awaited lunch break arrived- a sureshot break for atleast one and half hour, not because of anything else but because of the long queue at canteen. I am least bothered though, as this is the only time when I wholeheartedly get involved in something. After lunch, some strolling around and then back at seat.
Now after doing some hardwork at foods table, the need to take a short nap becomes evident with the first yawn. But the fear of disapproval from boss drives me to look for alternatives. And everytime my search invariably ends at none other than chai and thus starts the second innings of tea. In this way I while away time treading back and forth between tea and seat. Everyday it seems as if we are challenging ourselves to break the previous days chai record. The most disappointing character in this whole story is my bloodless watch which always lets me down and tells me I have more time to take care of than I think. So finally after so much struggle and patience the time arrives and just as I start packing things up, I see my boss stealing a glance at me and then at his watch and then turning away. Pretending to be unaware of his impressions, I decide to sneak out. And as I walk through the office corridors I see those morning heads rising once again and those helpless faces watch me walk out as if the prisoners of a jail is witnessing the release of one of their inmates. I flash my card at the punching machine, walk out of the office gates and spread my arms as if to hug the newly found freedom, ephemeral though......