PANOPTICON

I have a new job and I like it. For the first time I am able to work when I want, wake up when I want, take a break when I want. I had to buy the equipment, which was an investment, but I'll have it paid off soon. I'm going to be good at this job, I know it.

I get to work alone, but I also have to work alone and it gets lonely. The watching helps. Sometimes it feels like I'm not alone because I'm watching people all day only they don't know I'm watching them. I get to see people doing all kinds of things, sometimes I think I'm going to catch someone doing something because they're kinda sneaking around, but most of the time they're just meeting someone else for sex. Those times I log their ID and the time and place and other details and submit that in case someone wants to look it up later. I don't know what they'd ever need it for, but it's not my job to know.

They used to have some kind of computerized brains that did this job, at least that's what my friend told me. I believe him. He didn't know why or what happened exactly, but something went wrong and they killed all the computer brains. I wonder if it hurt them when they did that. I hope not. He also said that even though they could make them safe to do this job, people didn't like them anymore and didn't want them watching or doing anything important like this.

It feels good to have a job that's important. So now we do it. People like me. We're called Perceptors. Cool name I know. We watch for crimes and when we see them we hit record and report it asap. I learned that word my first day of training. It means "RIGHT AWAY GODDAMNIT". We report the crime and based on how serious it is... it's "severity" is the word, we get paid bigger or lesser amounts. Hopefully I catch a murder or a sedition soon. If I got one of those I could pay off all the debt I have on the equipment and have a lot left over. So far I've only caught graffiti, which is medium serious, and a lot of people peeing on the street or in doorways which is technically illegal and also gross, but they don't really care about it depending on what neighbourhood it's in.

When I sit down at my console I open my sister's locket becuase that way if I start to feel sorry for any of the people I'm watching or reporting, all I have to do is look into her eyes and remember what happened and then I don't feel sorry anymore. I don't feel sorry for criminals. I try to only remember happy moments with her and not what happened becuase it makes me too sad to think about what happened. It's a heart-shaped locket and she looks very pretty in it. Sometimes I talk to her even though she's gone and she can't hear me.

Some good things have already happened because of my new job, it's called a Perceptor, so cool. When I applied they gave me a bunch of tests because they said they can't let just anyone do this job if they aren't going to be good at it. They have to connect you to the grid and there was something about something called bandwidth and that was limited they said. I was worried at first when they said there were tests because I've never been very good at them, but it turned out I was worried for nothing because after every one they said I did good and after the whole thing they said I passed. Oh I almost forgot, the best part of the tests was the eye test and they said I had something wrong with them which at first was scary and I guess the guy, the Doctor, could see that I was upset because he quickly smiled and told me it wasn't anything serious and because I hadn't really noticed anything, it was only minor. He offered me a cigarette which I took and we smoked while he explained what was wrong with my eyes. He used the word "defishency" which I remember but I'm not sure what else he said but I don't think it's too important that I know. What's important is that he knows and the people who make the glasses know. That's what was so good is that I got glasses and I only had to pay ten percent of the total cost because now I was "covered" they said, so I could get new glasses in a couple years for only ten percent again if I was still working for them, still a Perceptor. They let me pick the frames too and I made sure to pick the ones that make me look the best. I hope I'm still a Perceptor when it's time for new glasses because this is the coolest job I've ever had.