Thursday, June 17, 2010

***IMPORTANT UPDATE***

I had to take a little trip to the 1999 Building this afternoon. While I was there, I went to the information desk and asked about the arms.

First, let me take a moment to mention that the brain trust that runs the information desk was none too geeked about my asking. Not reluctant, not angry, but not particularly inquisitive or bright.^

He did, however, have an answer: it's a permanent mobile scaffolding§ for window washing.

Crack investigative reporter that I am, I was prepared to ask him probing questions - did they find it more economical to hire window washers who didn't bring their own scaffolding? did window washers stop bringing their own scaffolding? did they ever decorate the arms with Christmas lights in a festive nod to the holiday season? could I do that for them?

Alas, I sensed he was in no mood to get all Vanity Fair about it, so you get the Dear Abby version instead.

Still, you had a right to know.


FOOTNOTE (crossed): Screw it. I'm doing footnotes.

FOOTNOTE (double-crossed): Because that's the kind of information service I provide to you, the Rickety consumer.

^FOOTNOTE (careted): C'mon... if you were in his shoes and someone asked you something other than "do you know when the next train comes?" or "which floor for Time Out Temps?" wouldn't you be jazzed?

§FOOTNOTE (swerved): My words, not his. He may or may not be familiar with "scaffolding."

FOOTNOTE (paragraphed): 1.5 column inches. But Abby never did footnotes.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nah, I don't get the feeling he'd do too well on a Jeopardy "Scaffolding" category.

angelosam123 said...

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Anonymous said...

Anyone that looks "not particularly inquisitive or bright" wouldn't know the word "scaffolding", if it bit him on his buttress.

Yvette said...

People said mean things about your footnotes. Turds!

Marin (AntiM) said...

Dear Kim: I've taken to saying, "I'll take SCAFFOLDING for 500, Alec" around the office. Nobody ever knows what I'm talking about, but I feel you'd appreciate it.

I thought of you as I marched up to that information desk, Sarah.

Angelosam (which, in my head, sounds like "Angelo San" and there's a Cobra-Kai thing that goes with it), we'll get back to you in the blog. You may be able to answer many of our scaffolding questions.

Fantastic, Moo. You just don't get enough architecture puns these days. At least I don't.

Mean people suck, Yvette, and I don't cater to suckitude.