Humoctopus!

Run for your lives!

Phone systems are awesome, especially when they have LCD screens involved. Yesterday at work, the message in the image was supposed to be tested on two phones in the IT department; but was accidentally sent out to ALL CAMPUS PHONES, along with the audio message “There is a humoctopus in the building! He is going to suck your blood. Run for your lives!” that could not be muted. Sitting at my desk, trying to force my brain to create the alchemical reaction necessary to generate ideas by deadline, this message was a welcome moment of hilarity.

However, since it was sent to all campus, it also showed up in… the President’s office, Board meeting, etc; and, even more hilariously, in the Early Childhood Learning Center, where it terrified the small children. I mean, I totally understand – it would be brown trousers time for me, if I were 5 and the Official Phone announced that there was a blood-sucking humanoid cephalopod loose in the building – but I think that scaring the children was sort of the icing on the awesome mistake cake.

I feel bad for the backlash IT is suffering, but I applaud their use of humor in the workplace. As my friend in IT put it, “You and I are anarchists, so we believe this is a healthy thing to have happen; unfortunately, not everyone is actually in possession of a sense of humor.”

I hope you will all join me in using the Humoctopus to symbolize hope, entertainment, mischief and interdepartmental fun!

Daily Life, Humor, Work | Jessie January 8, 2009

8 Comments to “Humoctopus!”

By Dr. Nociceptor, January 8, 2009 @ 6:51 pm

Oh no! One of my creatures has escaped!
By Kegan, January 12, 2009 @ 11:07 pm

“accidentally” sent out

It’s like the paintball incident…you just know the conversations-over-beer to upset-stuffheads ratio will quickly make the choice obvious.
By Jessie, January 13, 2009 @ 8:49 am

Absolutely. The payoff was far, far too good to pass up.

To make matters even better, I even make a button pattern from the octopus monster image, and have been distributing them amongst the IT department and others who found the event amusing.

Apparently, people have been either extremely excited about them, or absolutely irate about them.

My work is done.
By Foofus, February 4, 2009 @ 2:43 pm

I’m actually the creator of the Humoctopus icon and sound files. It started as an inside joke, but it has now become a surprisingly popular feature of the product. Anyway, since you’re enjoying his company so far, I thought I’d share a little more Humoctopus trivia.
The Humoctopus is a powerful, but tortured creature:

http://www.foofus.net/defcon/humoctopus1.png

Prone to introspection and violence:
http://www.foofus.net/defcon/humoctopus4.jpg

He parties with celebrities:
http://www.foofus.net/defcon/humoctopus6.gif

He has escaped the bonds of time:
http://www.foofus.net/defcon/humoctopus3.jpg

He is working on his own comic book:
http://www.foofus.net/defcon/humoctopus5.jpg

Cheers!

–Foofus.
By Dr. Nociceptor, February 27, 2009 @ 11:51 pm

Poor Goose!

Are you really, really the creator of the Humoctopus? For reals?
By Jessie, March 3, 2009 @ 10:49 am

Foofus, you’ve brought our campus community no end of delight (well, those of us possessing a sense of humor, in any event). IT just announced today that they’ll be performing another test of the campus emergency system; we’re all hoping they have the guts to grace us with yet another humoctopus sighting.

If not, then those of us sporting the humoctopus as our personal icons will have to rise up against our stuffy bureaucratic overlords. Or at least bitch about it a little.
By Gordo, June 11, 2009 @ 3:09 pm

Hello. I am Gordo. I work in the NTP munitions division at FoofusNet. My companion, the Humoctopus, thought that you might appreciate my latest work.

Gordo