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The Iain Rawson Experience, part 2

Dr. Randy's Diary - 25th December 2002


I woke up at 2:37 AM and 56 seconds with a shocked expression on my face. Nobody was around to see it though. I fetched a spoon and began tapping the pipes for around 30 seconds to a minute. This was intended to wake everyone else up - I didn't stop to find a reason, but I expect it was to show everyone my shocked expression. A few minutes later I remembered everyone had gone home around midnight, which was strange seeing as everyone lived here but I hadn't questioned it.

Two days before on the 23rd; we were meant to be working, but earlier in the day I had spotted a fag machine on Operations Deck 4 and we had gone to investigate. After a long debate we decided Dr. Hendy had the longest arms, so he reached up inside the vending machine to grab the products. None of us smoked, but it seemed like a good idea anyway. Rog and I were on lookout for random inspectors even though we were the only ones who worked here, Hendy all the while trying to get his hand up the crack.

Suddenly the TV in the lounge behind the glass switched itself on and a moment later a microwave buried under beer cans and GQ magazines began cooking a six-week old box of McCain crinkle cut fries. It was like a higher power had created a complex and technically unfeasible super-security system to stop the cigarettes in the Operations Deck 4 vending machine being pilfered.

We made our way to the terminals which we thought controlled the security system.



The Institute - Terminals

The post-it note labelling system we had designed last year had failed miserably when we had a game of Post-It Note Treasure Hunt and Dr. Shields managed to win by collecting all 7,000 of the notes throughout the building. We emptied the satchel of beer and chips we'd brought onto the floor of the terminal room and promptly began spreading it over the machines and generally trashing everything with science poles and our dastardly imaginations.

Back in the lounge we took time out to play a game of pool and australian charades, which is alot like every other type of charades with one major difference.

The cigarettes were stashed in our long pockets. There was no reason for them to be there, but they were. A friendly game of pool soon turned into a friendly game of darts which sooned turned into a friendly game of darts that would decide who got the unwanted Christmas Eve shift. Dr. Jay suggested we played darts with short-straws but I wasn't having any of it. I then lost.



The Institute - Corridors

It was Hardcastle's shift the next day so I went to my room, which is where I carry out my night shift anyway and slept for exactly 24 hours and then went to relieve Dr. Jay on the christmas eve day shift. I tell him to go home and see his family. So then i'm lying on the sofa, slobbing, holding the remote with a duvet covering me, a pizza and 6-pack of lager resting on my chest waiting for something to happen. I fall asleep. I wake up and look at my walkie-talkie wristwatch to see the time 2:45 AM. I instinctively turn to Channel 5, but the TV snaps back to Diamondique on QVC, I repeatedly turn back to Channel 5 but it keeps coming back to QVC. I was getting pretty pissed off, so I went to the microwave.

IT. WENT. MENTAL. I tried to cook a Chicago Town Triple Cheese Pizza on full power but when I opened the door I found a small piece of paper with the words 'two three seven' printed in Greek. From this I could only conclude that I was woken up when they wanted me to wake up.



Written by Jay and Randy