Last Weeks of Van - Part Two
After a crappy bout of tonsilitis, I'm back in front of the computer - about two months behind with emails.
Anyway, on to part two of my last weeks of Van series. I'm sure you've all been hanging out for this one.
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The Electronic Arts building in Burnaby, BC is incredible. Out the front is a soccer field, a volleyball court and a basketball court. Inside there is an "Executive Lounge" containing numerous arcade games for the free use of EA staff, a private Starbucks, a large canteen (that includes booth seating from which you can watch satelite TV), foosball & pool tables and a gym. Oh, there are also a few cubicles where the EA productions teams work. And I've only seen half the place!
I worked as a production assistant for the soccer games (FIFA 06 etc). The people I worked for, Buz & Annika, were great - and I'm not just saying that because I've added them to my email list. On my first day Buz showed me around the place. It was incredible surveying an office that looked like one I saw on a documentary about a failed late 90s dotcom. Lots of young people in casual clothes, drinking Coke and staring at widescreen TVs. One guy was busy perfecting the look of a graphic television camera, which was to sit next to a field to add to the realism of the game. Others were working on stadium graphics or tinkering with the finer points of game play. I think Buz said it takes 70 people to design each FIFA game. I was quite beside myself to be hired to play a small part in the making of something enjoyed by millions of people. And that small part was to print out the overtime meal vouchers for those hardworking designers who would regularly work well into the night.
The best bit of my introductory tour was discovering that there were no less than 10 different types of tea available in the kitchen - for free! I felt quite privileged - at least for the two days before we ran out of peppermint tea. Then I was just about ready to strike - "The union forever...".
I didn't only print meal vouchers though, in fact there were quite a few things that needed to be done, but that was definitely the most important aspect of the job. I only screwed up this task twice in my month and a half at EA but I knew about it when I did. Don't get between a tired worker and his meal entitlement!
My desk was located in a wedge formed by a cubicle and a wall, a very temporary looking work station but I was quite comfortable in my little niche. A couple of desks down from me were these young guys who I think worked on the NHL game. Well, they spent all their time playing it anyway, and it was good fun listening to them trash talk and yell at each other. Another great thing about my spot was that I only had to walk a few metres to take in the view over the soccer field to the mountains in the north - beautiful. This certainly wasn't a regular office.
One day I turned up to work to discover a band performing on the soccer field in front of a crowd of EA staff. It was "EApalooza", a mini-festival for the employees. People were drinking beer, taking in the sun and having a good time. I don't remember having any mini-festivals in the Aus public service... Anyway, I went about my work as usual until a guy from another area of EA, with a couple of beers in him, came past my desk. He stopped, paused to take in my little corner of the FIFA world, then laughed heartily, exclaiming, "That's the greatest desk ever!" before wandering off.
The classic EA moment for me came one day when a guy in his mid-thirties walked past on his way back to his desk. He was wearing shorts & t-shirt and eating an ice cream.
I didn't like leaving Electronic Arts Canada - the working environment was great and the people good - but it was time to take my data monkey skills overseas once more. Buz was nice enough to load me up with EA merch on my last day - a great way to finish one of the best temp jobs ever.
Try not to come down with tonsilitis while living in a hostel. I don't recommend it. Although I must say the Spanish people were nice enough to regularly check to see if I was still breathing.
Anyway, on to part two of my last weeks of Van series. I'm sure you've all been hanging out for this one.
---
The Electronic Arts building in Burnaby, BC is incredible. Out the front is a soccer field, a volleyball court and a basketball court. Inside there is an "Executive Lounge" containing numerous arcade games for the free use of EA staff, a private Starbucks, a large canteen (that includes booth seating from which you can watch satelite TV), foosball & pool tables and a gym. Oh, there are also a few cubicles where the EA productions teams work. And I've only seen half the place!
I worked as a production assistant for the soccer games (FIFA 06 etc). The people I worked for, Buz & Annika, were great - and I'm not just saying that because I've added them to my email list. On my first day Buz showed me around the place. It was incredible surveying an office that looked like one I saw on a documentary about a failed late 90s dotcom. Lots of young people in casual clothes, drinking Coke and staring at widescreen TVs. One guy was busy perfecting the look of a graphic television camera, which was to sit next to a field to add to the realism of the game. Others were working on stadium graphics or tinkering with the finer points of game play. I think Buz said it takes 70 people to design each FIFA game. I was quite beside myself to be hired to play a small part in the making of something enjoyed by millions of people. And that small part was to print out the overtime meal vouchers for those hardworking designers who would regularly work well into the night.
The best bit of my introductory tour was discovering that there were no less than 10 different types of tea available in the kitchen - for free! I felt quite privileged - at least for the two days before we ran out of peppermint tea. Then I was just about ready to strike - "The union forever...".
I didn't only print meal vouchers though, in fact there were quite a few things that needed to be done, but that was definitely the most important aspect of the job. I only screwed up this task twice in my month and a half at EA but I knew about it when I did. Don't get between a tired worker and his meal entitlement!
My desk was located in a wedge formed by a cubicle and a wall, a very temporary looking work station but I was quite comfortable in my little niche. A couple of desks down from me were these young guys who I think worked on the NHL game. Well, they spent all their time playing it anyway, and it was good fun listening to them trash talk and yell at each other. Another great thing about my spot was that I only had to walk a few metres to take in the view over the soccer field to the mountains in the north - beautiful. This certainly wasn't a regular office.
One day I turned up to work to discover a band performing on the soccer field in front of a crowd of EA staff. It was "EApalooza", a mini-festival for the employees. People were drinking beer, taking in the sun and having a good time. I don't remember having any mini-festivals in the Aus public service... Anyway, I went about my work as usual until a guy from another area of EA, with a couple of beers in him, came past my desk. He stopped, paused to take in my little corner of the FIFA world, then laughed heartily, exclaiming, "That's the greatest desk ever!" before wandering off.
The classic EA moment for me came one day when a guy in his mid-thirties walked past on his way back to his desk. He was wearing shorts & t-shirt and eating an ice cream.
I didn't like leaving Electronic Arts Canada - the working environment was great and the people good - but it was time to take my data monkey skills overseas once more. Buz was nice enough to load me up with EA merch on my last day - a great way to finish one of the best temp jobs ever.
Try not to come down with tonsilitis while living in a hostel. I don't recommend it. Although I must say the Spanish people were nice enough to regularly check to see if I was still breathing.
posted by woden pete @ 7:40 AM
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