This is probably the worst job job I’ve ever had to do.

Customer say her PC stopped working. Something popped, and there was a burning smell from the PC.

Sounds like a straightforward power supply replacement.

When I get there, the living rooms looks quite sparse… seems like a lower-class house (not that I care about class).

The PC (it looks very new… its just out of warranty) is in the corner of the living room, on a wooden bench with a tablecloth. Customer has broadband internet.

A few quick checks, and I see the power supply needs changing. I go to the car, get a new power supply, and test it to make sure it works. The new PSU works well, so I tell the customer I’ve found the cause, and I can easily fix it..

She asks how much I reckon it will cost in total. I tell her, and she says she will need to go the the auto-teller, to get the cash.

So I’m left alone in the house (with 3 young kids… I suspect they should be in school). It seems a bit odd.

Anyway, I complete the PSU change, start the PC, and notice the keyboard and mouse don’t work. I get my cheap KB and mouse from the car, and can finally login.

Since I’m waiting for the customer to return, I sit down and start checking the antivirus, etc… as the PC seems a bit slow.

I start to notice movement out of the corner of my eye…

Its a cockroach, climbing up the PC speakers.

As I continue working, I notice more of the critters “exploring” the table… Since I’m no longer making a lot of “noise” from changing the PSU, they seem to decide to start exploring… All up, I’d say the table was a host for about 10 or 20 cockies of various sizes… all exploring the PC, speakers, widescreen LCD monitor, etc…

As I work on the PC, I find I need to flick away the ones that get too close to the keyboard or mouse… Now I think I can see why the power supply failed…

My mind starts to play tricks on me: I think I can feel something in my hair… on a few occasions, I imagine something crawling up my pants leg… but there isn’t anything there.

The customer eventually gets back, pays me, and I’m relieved to be out of there.