Internship Immersion Photo Essay

The beginning of every day is a mixed deal. Usually I had to wake up early, due to swim practice Mondays and Wednesdays, or because I have to iron clothes, which I should do the night before but that never happens. Then, once I’m all half asleep, I have to get on the great, loud, and monstrous trolley to take me from the Old Town transit station, to 5th Avenue trolley stop. The trolley is always full of interesting characters, such as an older woman that I saw twice who always had a young Labrador wearing a vest that said “Autism Dog in Training” that knew how to give its owner its leash on command, which I think is genius. There was also the guy with a stain on his shirt that fell asleep every other day and snored every so often, which got so irritating that I almost got off and got on the next trolley that came.

My workplace was an interesting one indeed. Upon arrival, it seems like a very high class, “This means business” type of appeal, but once you get in to the actual office room that I work in it seems a little more inviting. With a Tesla Coil/Buddha, lava lamps on every desk, people in business casual attire, and nice, comfy chairs, it seems a little cozier and a little more fun to work in. The people are also very inviting. My mentor came in to work wearing Crocs almost everyday he was in, and all of the people that worked under him (he is the “overseer” of the software division) are just regular guys who happen to know a lot about computers. Lastly, you have the lunchroom with free tea and coffee, vending machines, and 3 refrigerators.

The project that I am working on in conjunction with my partner is an inventory system that is capable of keeping track of anything and everything. The idea first sprung from the offices addiction to RC Helicopter flying, where flights take place every hour or two in our office room (The Bus). It happened one day before I got to work, the people in the Bus talked about the helicopters and how they can’t keep track of all the spare parts they have, thus spawning the idea of the inventory system. Of course, we aren’t just going to use it solely for helicopter parts. This inventory system can and will also be used for hardware and other general stuff that is in the software development peoples interest. The lunches were always a treat over internship immersion. Be it Indian, Pizza, Ramen, Salad, or Burgers, all of the food was great. Because of our location downtown, we had every genre of food at our disposal, and it didn’t cost me a thing. The people at my office were great guys because they paid for every lunch we went out for. I did offer to pay multiple times but eventually I just gave up and accepted it with a big thank you. Sometimes though, we ate inside the office, whether because of the fact that only me my partner and my mentor were there at the time, or because we wanted to just keep working. Eating inside the office was also quite delightful. Every so often, the office would order something like Italian for someone’s birthday and not finish it, leaving it for the people in the software division to finish off. This was especially great when I didn’t bring a lunch and everyone else was staying in.

This whole experience has taught me a few things about the business world. The first is that it is usually a very fun place to be if you get put in with the right team and job. Second, if you get into a position where you are really needed, you usually feel great about yourself at the end of the day because you helped a greater cause. Third, lunch is usually very satisfying. And the fourth and last thing is, if you office area is bland and boring, you can usually make it more fun to be around by adding things such as lava lamps, or RC helicopters.