A day in the life of a bored intern
The pink cubicle is a comforting amniotic sac, a place where ideas are born and bred. Not in this cubicle though. The only thing bred here is an ugly monster named boredom. The only way to eliminate this object of disdain is to sit in front of the computer and pretend that you have many things to do... write stories, draw pictures on paintbrush. Whatever gets you by...

What I have come to realise while sitting at this wooden desk, and enjoying my solitude, is that interns, to say the least, get little or no respect within a company. Yes, the rumours are true; we get the projects that the boss usually does not have time to handle.

If you are like me, and enjoy doing things independently, and want to get things done as soon as possible, you will most definitely bump into your old enemy - boredom. Unfortunately, everything you do has to be run through by your boss, who doesn't always have the time of day for you. Of course, he is not only your boss but boss of so many people. Much like a Hindu deity, he will have his hands full with telephones, pens, papers, while typing up reports and doing countless other things. And much like a Hindu deity, he is very intimidating... maybe not to you, but when you are working for him, boy, he can become scary.

That aside, it is fascinating. Just when you think he is not going to ask you about some assignment, he will definitely walk upto you and ask you, and of course, being totally caught up in the picture you were drawing or understanding the fascinating features of Microsoft Powerpoint, you will not have a clue what he is going on about.

Where do you fit in this chaotic world? You, unfortunately, are a pain in the rear because he has to balance his own work and be your guide through this entire process. In other words, you are another ball in his endless juggling act, an extra object that he does not have the time to balance.

There are two alternatives within this situation. One, you could play dumb. Simply play the part of a person who has no clue about doing the simplest of tasks and constantly takes many hours to do an easy assignment. But alas, this is not me. I cannot play stupid even if my life depended on it (those who know me may think otherwise). The other alternative you may have is do the little work you may have early on and then wait around for boredom to rear its ugly head, which believe me, happens soon.

Thanks to a certain woman and a cigar, us interns have had a bad rap. I cannot count the endless snickers or sly smiles I have had to endure when announcing the fact, that I am, in fact, an intern. What is wrong with being an intern? We do all the work that people either do not want to handle and we have to struggle with concepts that we have no comprehension of. With no disrespect attached to Ms. Lewinsky, are interns really considered bosses' women on the sly? Anyway, I am not in this position to get some action, rather, get some knowledge about the workplace. Don't hide your chuckles, I can hear you...

The funny thing is, I am working here because I want my resume to look good, to show that I am a person of versatile talents and experiences. This internship would also expand my knowledge and thus help me in my university work for the next two years. This is, of course, theoretically if one thinks that sitting around trying to look intelligent would be useful in the future... however, if you are a government employee I am sure this is nothing new.

This brings me to my next item of discussion, why am I doing a university degree? Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my life in the United States, living in a small dorm room and coping with the insane amount of work, the variety of people, the noise and the craziness that comes with it. But the reality is, I use up four years of my life, to get a piece of paper. Yes, there are certain hitches namely "further education" and "skills in order to cope with the real world" which are attached to this exclusive piece of paper. But again, in the end, it still is a piece of paper. Not any ordinary piece of paper, as mentioned before, it dictates your entire destiny, your future job, pay, probably even your future partner. Ironic thought, isn't it?

So, here I am, sitting at this wooden desk, sitting at the computer, staring at the screen until my eyes get blurry, thinking about things that may affect me one day far into the future. Personally, I think this is the place that time forgot, at least for me. As the old saying goes, "time flies when you are having fun". I rest my case.

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