Tuesday, 20 January 2026 · Gazette

Idle minutes in a Tbilisi warehouse, written down

A writing desk with papers and a typewriter — The notebook from dock three, before the plate was inked.

The yard sits off the airport road, low sheds, a book for overtime that was neater than the floor. The lead wanted a map of extra hours. He did not want a lecture about “culture.” We stood Friday, which everyone already hated.

What the book said

Friday overtime clustered after sixteen. The wrapping table was blamed in conversation. The book did not mention wrapping; it mentioned “dock.” Docks were numbered in paint that had been half covered by a later coat, so the book’s “3” was a matter of opinion.

What standing showed

Trucks for one customer arrived on a slot the yard had never confirmed in writing. People waited with the book open. Wrapping was almost idle. The idle-time plate put an arrow on dock three and a caption: waiting on another firm’s clock. The wrapping table got a thin clean column, which annoyed the people who had enjoyed blaming it.

Workforce productivity insights, in this yard, were a place. Once the place had an address, the overtime conversation changed tone. We did not stay to watch the customer letter being written. That is not our sitting.

If your overtime book is cash envelopes, say so before a mapping. Observation can still pin idle minutes. It cannot invent lines in a book that does not exist.