On Wednesday evening, one of the building maintenance guys at my place of employ, The San Diego Union-Tribune was taking a good, old-fashioned hand saw to a wall in the newsroom that leads to a room that allegedly contains "Air Handling Equipment." How do I know this? Well, that's what it says on the nearby door.

Why is he using a hand saw? Well, because a power saw would make too much noise and kick up a lot of dust, he told me. Understandable.

Several hours later I pass by the place where this guy was cutting a hole and what do I find? He's taken a large piece of plywood, painted black with a few random strips of duct tape, and covered the hole he'd just made.

Why?

I've got no idea. It's one of those mysteries of the universe.

But, being a newsroom full of jokesters, what appears next to the plywood the next day? A small label reading:

Title: Duct tape on Black
Artist: Unknown

Today, taking the joke one step further, it appears as though the art work has been sold for $25,000 to the business editor.

That they pay him enough to afford that just reinforces the fact that I'm woefully underpaid.