-The dim fluorescent lighting is punishment enough-

It would make sense if I were to mail resumes after a particularly trying day at work. But that day was yesterday - today was fairly good, actually. Since another errand took me to an library organization with a job page, I opened that job page in a new window. My screen was bisected, and I was multitasking.

We've all heard the stories about employees screwing around on the net while they're on the clock, just as some of us have probably read The Naked Employee. Whether we are watched or not, the virtual panoptican hasn't cowed the average employee. I don't know a single employee here, management included, that doesn't make off with a few minutes for private surfing.*

And this is not entirely a bad thing. Try a few weeks of data entry with green type on a black screen, and you'll wake up each morning feeling like a cockroach. The Metamorphosis meets Groundhog's Day. Where cigarette breaks once broke up the work day, internet trips fill the void.

Nevertheless, I feel enough shame to invent elaborate excuses for each transgression. It was easy to wander through sites with library or technology news; the job is the justification. Public blogs are another matter, and I still avoid this one during working hours unless I'm feeling particularly cheeky.

I can't begin to imagine what your work environment is like, or how permissive the are (or appear to be) with employees using company time for personal business. It is possible that many of you think I'm overeacting with all this.

Duly noted.

But what larger betrayal is there of an organization than using their time and equipment to search for another job?

*As long as the private surfing doesn't include criminal activity involving minors. Somebody found out the hard way earlier this year.