NIGHTMARE ON FIRST JOB STREET, PART 1

I ticked post-graduation off my list. To this day, i do not know how and what i learnt in my Masters. Communication and Journalism does sound fancy. So i decided to stick to the hype and fancy of the title. Next was the job search, since our institution did not offer campus placement. By reference and persuasion, i ended up in a reputed ad agency in Bangalore  The events leading to this and after make for an interesting read, but later about those.
It was a global ad agency, specializing in direct marketing. Its clients included retail giants in shopping, fashion and apparel. I could not believe my luck. Neither could the others working there. Rarely, does anyone end up on their first attempt at that place. But I did as a junior copywriter. I did not prior work experience nor any internships to boast off. Yet i aced the interview and a written test as well. The call came one afternoon that i had been selected. I was elated. I was on cloud nine. I had no idea what was in store for me.
The first signs of trouble started with the fact that there is no training for such a job. Plus, searching for a place to put up in Bangalore was a nightmare. The first day in the hotel, i was explaining my day to my mum who had accompanied me, and soon cockroaches dropped in on the conversation. That sent mum packing the next day. I, on the other hand, decided to commute by bus from Mysore. So it was for at least two weeks. I would start off by 5 AM, reach Bangalore and wade through traffic to be at work by 9, leave office by 7PM, catch the bus and reach Mysore by 12 AM. I chose bus over train because i could at least sleep peacefully. This put a strain on me and my parents who dropped and picked me up.
I got a rough idea of the work i had to do by the third day. I was to write, in three lines, convincing customers  to redeem points collected b shopping. A company which specialized in redemption offers provided the bread and butter to the agency. The creative head was clear about this and so was the senior copy writer. The creative head was a gem of a person. He lead by example and motivated his team. My senior though, was a different case altogether. He changed my life and my outlook of it, for the worse.