ISOLATION DIARIES PART 39: YEREVAN DAVE

Today, IT are migrating my account, remotely, from Armenia. I can’t help feel that their estimate of 30 minutes might have been a little optimistic.

There’s no way to contact them while it’s happening, or to let them know I can’t log back in whenever it gets to a login page - as to do so would require being logged in. So that leaves me with the option of sitting here at home, watching the spinning wheel... spin.

I always get the feeling that it’s somehow my fault too; that I’ve done something that’s caused the problem. Invariably that isn’t the case, but still, Yerevan Dave (that isn’t his real name) is probably holding his head in his hands right now.

I think of IT support like specialist mechanics. They have knowledge and skills about a thing I use every day. They’re problem solvers and bad news bringers. They tell us to pop open the bonnet, to start the engine, to test the wipers and flash the lights. It’s just that they do all of that... from Armenia now. I miss the days when I could wander over to Tom’s desk with my laptop half open, or longer ago when Nell used to laugh at me. I’ve never met Yerevan Dave.

He did send a group chat though, to everyone currently in this spinning wheel process, shortly before it happened. Instead of ‘Dear all’ he addressed us as ‘Dears’ - like an elderly aunt might her nephews and nieces. Lost in translation.

I wonder why I always feel like I’ve broken it? Am I a meddler, a twiddler of the engine who has a too much of ‘a little knowledge’ and hasn’t worked out that that’s ‘a dangerous thing’? Perhaps it’s just a sort of guilt complex? Though I don’t necessarily do it with other things.

Anyway, I’ve got to remember that this is Yerevan Dave’s job today, so all I can do is sit here and watch it happen until he fixes it, or talks me through what to do.

Quite why they’ve chosen to do this while we’re all stuck at home, I’ve no idea. But then, Armenia is still in Armenia isn’t it? And it would have to have happened at some time or other. I guess it would just be nice to know if I’m not the only one with the spinning wheel. And I don’t think he’s going to tell me that.