Lousy Microcosms

Lousy Microcosms (PM xxii)

There is an undertone of hatred

and hostility here that

has soaked into the walls

and the very office

furniture.

The President hates us

all,

with our petulant whining

and our slew of insignificant problems

that take up too much

of her day,

resulting in lost time and a

smaller bonus.

The senators dislike us

for the same reasons but are

not as far removed from us to

hate us yet.

Those that have moved up from

our place

forget forget what it was like to face

the weather,

and don't remember the actual time

it took when the loads

got heavier.

They don't make much more

money than us and we are better

protected,

so why is their entire day

focused on babysitting a bunch

of adults?

The pages hate the runners

because they only work

four hours a day,

the runners hate the pages

because they sit around on their

asses all night and talk. They

make too many mistakes and

make their jobs harder.

The regents put too much

paper up and put magazines out

late so the runners have to

work harder and can't leave

earlier.

The knaves are slow,

and they gossip too much when

they should be working.

There are also untouchables,

the walking wounded,

bent over hunchbacks with

broken hips and sprained

shoulders, gimpy knees,

obesity and heart disease,

alcoholics and drug addicts,

barely able to walk and always

on the verge of being

fired.

They meander through the easiest

work, like ghosts punching a

time clock, every tissue used

until the fire is extinguished.

The horror... The Horror...

MCC