Saturday, March 17, 2012

Chat heads just wanna scream


We don't talk to each other at work anymore; we chat. Online. OK, so we do talk if we're all working in the same office but some of the people I work most closely with are not only in different offices, they're in different towns. That's fine, though, because we're all connected with this Jabber program (rather like Messenger) that lets us send documents back and forth and chat away to each other just as quick as our flying fingers can type. Come to think of it, we even chat to people sitting at the next desk, especially if we're talking about one another. The room may be devoid of actual conversation but you can tell by the sound of ticking keyboards that there's some hot gossip going down.

Each of us has a chat icon – an avatar; a little picture that represents us during conversation. You'd think we would all have an actual photo of ourselves, right? Something respectable and businesslike?

Pffft!

Our chat heads change all the time. Because today's St. Patrick's Day (happy green day everyone!), most the icons were shamrocks or leprechauns. For a while there I had a sheep with an Irish hat on it because I often have one of those Serta sheeps so it seemed appropo. OH! We also have room for a customized slogan beside our pictures. I think the space was intended to say something like "BRACEBRIDGE TODAY" or "NORTH BAY" or wherever because some of us move around from office to office depending on what day of the week it is. Like gypsies, we are.


Naturally we use the quote spaces for all kinds of witty repartee. When I'm a Serta sheep my message is a take-off on the Michael Jackson song: BLEAT IT, JUST BLEAT IT.

Another of my favourite chat heads is a picture of Lucille Ball and the slogan says "YOU GOT SOME ESPLANING TO DO."

I've had a zillion chat heads and slogans. You can pretty much tell what kind of mood I'm in by what's going on in Jabber.

When I'm sick I like to have a picture of Natalie Wood as my chat head and the slogan is a take-off from West Side Story: "I FEEL PHLEGMY."


I have a favourite, though. MY NEW FAVOURITE. It's some kind of meme - don't ask me what a meme is. I have no clue. One of the young guys at work – my pal Jason – tried to explain it to me but he's 12 and I'm a dork and there's just no point. Regardless of what the heck a meme is I fell in love with this goofy stick drawing of somebody with a really big mouth and promptly made it my chat head.

Another work friend, Mizz Sarah, sent me this pix because we were working on a crushing deadline and it pretty much summed up the shrieking fecking panic going on in our heads. The funny thing is, seeing this chat head all the time MAKES ME WANT TO ALL-CAP ALL MY MESSAGES. YEAH, I KNOW IT'S LIKE SCREAMING BUT LOOK AT THAT CHAT HEAD - DON'T YOU THINK THAT THING JUST WANTS TO SCREAM?

So that's what I do at work all day.

And they pay me. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

SO WHAT WOULD YOUR CHAT HEAD BE? ALSO, I AM OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS AS TO WHAT CHAT HEAD WOULD SUIT ME BEST!!! GAME ON PEOPLE!

34 comments:

  1. ARE THEY HIRING?!?!

    I wish someone would pay me to jabber all day. [jealous]

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. IF YOU LIVE IN INDIA THEY ARE TOTALLY HIRING!!!!!!
      (KIDDING BOSS!!!!)

      Delete
    2. IF I WERE PICKING A CHAT HEAD FOR YOU, TIM, I WOULD PICK PICK HUNTER S. THOMPSON. HE WAS MY HERO WHEN I WAS IN JOURNALISM SCHOOL, BTW.

      Delete
  2. I think its great to be able to have a few that change with your mood. That's great. Kind of like someone's post I read from this week where they change their name at Starbucks every time they go in.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WHERE, RON? WHERE'S THE STARBUCKS POST? I LOVE STARBUCKS... MMMMMM....

      Delete
    2. FOR YOU, RON, I WOULD PICK GREGORY PECK FROM TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD BECAUSE HE HAD 'ULTIMATE DAD' STATUS AND SO DO YOU.

      Delete
  3. I'll give it some thought and when I come up with one for myself and for you I'll post it on my blog.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. IF I WAS PICKING A CHAT HEAD FOR YOU, DELORES, I WOULD PICK THAT GIRL 'NINE' FROM THE OLD TV SHOW BLOSSOM BECAUSE SHE TALKS SO MUCH/FAST AND YOU'RE SUCH A PROLIFIC BLOGGER AND YOU'RE BOTH CUTE.

      Delete
    2. Okay...it's up. See if you like any of them.

      Delete
    3. LOVE THEM ALL! YOU TOTALLY HAVE MY MOODS DOWN PAT!

      Delete
  4. Do you want to look like a super intelligent chatter? Use a head shot of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ALEX? SERIOUSLY? DO I LOOK LIKE SOMEONE WHO WOULD HAVE SUPER INTELLIGENT CHATTER? HELLLOOOOOOOOO?

      Delete
    2. IF I WAS PICKING A CHAT HEAD FOR YOU I WOULD PICK LEONARD BECAUSE HE'S JUST AS SMART AS SHELDON BUT SEXIER.

      Delete
  5. Hi, Cathy. OK, I know a meme is a symbol representing an idea that everyone understands. I'm OK with the idea, but havn't kept track of symbols since Luci and Desi. I like it when things are splained. Like Delores, if I hit on one for me, I'll put it right on my blog. I've never liked that meme I have.

    ReplyDelete
  6. HI JOANNE! YOU STRIKE ME AS AN INNOCENT, A BABE IN THE WOODS, A TRULY NICE AND GENTLE SOUL SO, FOR YOU, I PICK BABE - THE MOVIE PIG. DO NOT TAKE THIS THE WRONG WAY - I LOVE BABE AND I CONSIDER IT HIGH PRAISE!
    SPEAKING OF SPLAINING, Joanne, you HAVE to check out the comments on the Going Bananas post... too much fun.
    HEHEH

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ok...what's my chat head, Cathy?

    ReplyDelete
  8. I quite like the sheep at the top of this article, could that be my chat head? ^__^

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I SUPPOSE YOU COULD BORROW MY SERTA SHEEP SINCE I SO UNCEREMONIOUSLY DUMPED HIM FOR THE SCREAMER. TAKE CARE OF HIM. HE'S A LITTLE SHEEPISH SINCE THE BREAK-UP.

      Delete
  9. Your chat head should be.. oh no it was Bonnie Passmore but thats NOT you.. your chat head should be Schroeder ... of Charlie Brown fame. Except instead of a piano he should be at a computer keyboard. Writing away instead of playing.Insted of a love of music you have a love of words.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BP ... HEHEHEHEHEHE ... GAWD THAT WAS FUNNY.
      FOR YOU I WOULD PICK DAPHNE FROM SCOOBY-DO!

      Delete
  10. I love this idea and will have to give it some thought. When I find my brain.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. FOR YOU, EC., I PICK THE DAILAI LAMA (SP?) OR GHANDI OR BUDDHA. SOMETHING PEACEFUL AND CALM AND ENDURING.

      Delete
    2. A nice fat golden buddha with an inscrutable smile has a lot of charm. Thanks.

      Delete
  11. Ah, I see I have fallen well & truly behind here. I am hopeless when it comes to these things, so I can only admire what you've come up with--Natalie Wood/I feel phlegmy? Priceless! And I love, love, love that meme-thingy (I don't know what it means either . . .). Contrast my lot: for ages, my chosen image was a photo of a bird (mostly because I took a lot of such photos). Finally, I took a great leap and found a picture of myself. Pathetic, I know, but there it is.

    ReplyDelete
  12. SUSAN, YOU SHOULD BE HARRIET THE SPY! I DON'T JUST BESTOW HER ON ANYBODY, EITHER, SO TAKE HER AND ENJOY!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am well and truly honored--and I'm sorry it's taken me so long to come back and say so (some peculiar internet thing blocked me from your site, but all is well now, it seems).

      Delete
  13. Um Jabber personalities ... lol, hate to see what would happen if all the co-workers were placed in one room with no keyboards, would there be "silence"? LOL Sounds like funny, Cathy ! and thank you for the Birthday Wishes, it was an all-round awesome day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. FOR YOU CINDY, A BIG BIRTHDAY CAKE. CHOCOLATE! WITH TONS OF FROSTING! Happy Birthday!!!!

      Delete
  14. Never used the program, but I'm envisioning Majin Buu making one of his confused expressions. He's pretty close to me physically already.

    ReplyDelete
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