I work downtown Minneapolis in a high-rise building next to the new Twins ballpark stadium going up. I work on the 9th Floor, and actually my company has a rooftop patio on the 13th floor (top of the building). Our offices are a decent way up off the ground, and actually it offers one great view of downtown!
However, it hasn’t been so great as of late. You see next to our building various construction workers, who happen to look like bright orange ants from our windows (not saying they are ants from a social-economic perspective, they just look like bright-orange ants cause we’re so high up – visual perspective; just stick with me here). Anyways, these construction workers have been busting up the pavement and concrete with some pretty big machinery right outside our office. As you may or may not know, it takes quite a big force or blast to bust up pavement and concrete. Which gets me to my problem. Our building is shaking!
So, I’m sitting at my desk in the middle of the afternoon answering emails when I hear a huge *BOOM* outside and the 9th floor solid concrete floor beneath my feet and brick walls beside me begin to shake. And not a small amount, but a decent unsettling amount enough that people start to stand-up from their cubicles so you see their head and shoulders *pop up* as they start to look around like a bunch of frightened Prairie Dogs sensing danger in the wild. Side note: This classic cubical / office maneuver (just described here) is what is commonly known as “The Prairie Dog”.
So back to the blast outside and my whole office shaking beneath my feet. Now I’m not freaking out running across the office screaming, “We’re all going to die!!!” or anything like that. (Actually, that could be interesting.) No, I’m calm. However as this BOOM and shaking is repeated about 5-10 more times it’s not the most comforting feeling in the world. Actually it’s pretty creepy! It forces me to look around the office for reassurance that I'm NOT going to die and the walls and floor around me are NOT collapsing. I'm writing this blog entry, so I guess I'm still alive.
I don’t know that there is really point to this story, or a morale. Other then the construction outside my building is freaking my co-workers out. I guess if you do work in a tall building, quite high up, and feel the office shake around you and beneath you. Here’s some advice. Don’t worry it’s okay to be creeped out, but be aware of your surroundings. You may not be dying outright! From say, umm, an earthquake. It may just be a non-related incident like a bunch of less than bright construction workers outside your building with dangerous machinery and what may seem to be dynamite. No big deal.
