please, no fire

The last thing you need, if you're a small agency in the midst of all-nighters handling a nationwide campaign, a relaunch and assorted things, is the possibility of having your office burn down.

I walked into work today to find all the power off at the office, my staff looking peaked and forlorn, and the stench of burnt wiring in the air. Immediately, I flashed back to the time in my previous company when the gym/spa above us blazed away into cinders - our computers were damaged by the subsequent water and we could not work for almost a month, having to relocate temporarily to a cybercafe (which led to moments when designers assigned work ended up playing counterstrike in an effort to raise their own morale). The lost opportunities were enormous, since we had to decline projects because we had to select those we could service in our dressed down digs.

This time, the admin rushed to our office and fixed the problem temporarily, isolating the damn set of lights that triggered that smoked my people out.

Nerves are shot, but there's still much work to be done, so here we are, pretending the acrid smell is part of the working environment.

Gah. Everyone should get hazard pay.