Saturday Senses



You go to a job interview and they have you seated in a waiting room for over an hour. In this room there´s a watercooler, a coffee machine, some magazines, candies, crackers, 5 other candidates and the receptionist. It´s the end of the day, you´re tired, really hungry and you have a headache.



[taste]:: You´re so hungry you can actually hear your stomach. There are the crackers and the candies, the coffee machine and the watercooler. All this across the room and the place is really silent. You don´t know how longer you´ll have to wait. Do you prefer being very hungry with a headache or go grab some crackers and candies, maybe coffee and water? Heck, I'm dispensing with the P.C. behavior and blazing a trail for the crackers and coffee. If I'm that hungry, my stomach's gonna start growling and raising hell any minute!



[touch]:: Let´s say you decided to go for the crackers and candies, because you were really starving. How many do you grab? How much is just enough in a situation like this? I'm grabbing five crackers because the coffee will expand them in my stomach and give me that full feeling. I'll take one candy to counter the caffeine breath.



[sight]:: After an hour, you have already looked at all magazines from 1995, your eyes have scanned the room a hundred times and you´re having trouble keeping them open, being as tired as you are. All the other candidates are already gone. What do you do to to avoid falling asleep? I start humming folk songs I learned at camp. I start a 'To Do' list in my head and I start nitpicking the room and redesigning it.



[smell]:: You are finally called in to your interview. The interviwer hasn´t said a word yet and instead is looking at some papers, maybe your resume. You´re just sitting there and a secretary comes in, puts some papers on the desk, says something quick to the interviewer and leaves. The second she´s gone, you smell something funny and, boy, it stinks big time... It wasn´t you, but you´re sure the interviewer can smell it too and if it wasn´t him, he might be thinking it was you or the secretary. What to you do? Do you say anything? No way am I just sitting there; "There appears to be a strong odor. I wonder where it's coming from?"



[hearing]:: The interviewer finally opens his mouth. This guy looks really scary and intimidating, but the second he starts talking, you feel an uncontrollable urge to laugh: he talks very fast and has a funny voice that contrasts with his physical appearence. You know you shouldn´t laugh, but you can´t help it and a giggle slips out. How do you handle this? I remain smiling and looking directly into his eyes, daring him to inquire about my laughter. I'm betting he won't ask, because by looking him directly in the eye, he'll know I'm not fearful of him or embarrassed by my laughter.