And the Crack Widens

There are defining moments in life which clearly distinguish those with balls from those without. Yesterday people's reactions to the announcement that we had to abandon our cars in the sagging broken garage was just such a moment.

The announcement came at 4:00 just as everyone was thinking about going home. The dutiful group immediately started looking for alternative ways to get home without even questioning how ridiculous it was.

When my boss asked me how I was planning to get home and I responded that I was going to drive my car out and would dare them to shoot me if I did, she looked at me aghast as if to say, "How could you possibly question authority?"

I loved the comment from Ulysses yesterday to the effect that we have more to fear from the government itself than from terrorists these days. Now there's food for thought.

I decided to sit tight for another hour and make my move at 5:00. Just as I was preparing to lave, an announcement came on freeing those of us parked in the basement or ground floor of the garage. We were told to leave through the other (South) garage.

Here's the real joke: When I went downstairs to leave, the guard casually asked me where I was parked. As long as I SAID basement or ground floor, I was free. There was not a single guard or police presence in the garage. I could have driven out of there from any level and used any exit I chose. Which is exactly what I did.

The bottom line yesterday was that many people went home without their cars. Many of them do not live anywhere near public transportation. There was no announcement about reimbursement for travel to and from work or that they were even required to come to work. They were told this morning that sometime today they would be able to remove their cars.

Balls be damned, we have a real problem here that goes way beyond our cars. That picture on top of this post is THE REAL THING. Today when I arrived at work, both the North and the South garages were closed. We were allowed to walk through the North garage to get to our building. As we did, we saw a bunch of blue supports that had been installed floor to ceiling in part of the garage.

The scariest thing I learned today was that this crack was first reported 10 days ago. I guess we're just lucky the garage didn't collapse in those 10 days. But what actually caused the CYA panic that finally ensued yesterday?

I'm curious to see how the agency deals with this dilemma. Will they have to tear down the garage and start over? Will they continue to find cracks in the two garages and the two associated buildings? Will this in any way be resolved before I retire?

A comical thought: Maybe they need to reconsider the idea of demolishing our previous 50-year-old buildings. Despite the fact that the water wasn't fit to drink, the plumbing was unreliable, and the there was asbestos above the lowered ceilings, the roof was never in danger of falling in...