when the working day is done, oh girls... they wanna have fun

The past month has been a complete beeyotch, workwise. I spend nine to twelve hours a day working, most of those hours in meetings, and then trying frantically to catch up with all the work that didn't get done during the aforementioned snooze sessions. By the time the weekend rolls around I'm faced with mountains of household chores that need done, a yard turning into a jungle, and a little man that wants to suck up as much time with his "old, fun" mommy as he can.

One of the yearly requirements for all employees of The Winnebago is to complete a series of mandatory training. They make it very convenient for us by providing the classes on-line so we can do them whenever, and wherever, we find the time. Time is the one thing I don't have nearly enough of, so... Do you see the problem here?

The other day management sends us a gentle reminder to complete our classes that reads something like this:

"...if not already completed, please work on the mandatory training. I find
taking them during boring meetings kills two birds with one stone."

Uh, okay. So what you're saying is we shouldn't need to pay attention in the meeting therefore nullifying our need for attending in the first place? Okay, yeah!

For the record, I won't be getting to any of those "mandatory trainings" anytime soon. In fact next week, I won't be getting to very much work at all. I am taking a few hours off (I say hours cuz I'll still be monitoring email periodically and attending required meetings) to spend some much needed girl time with her majesty. She'll be here in two days. W00t!!

We've kept the schedule pretty open at this point but I can assure you there will be a lot of Rock Band/Guitar Hero playing, beer drinking, movie watching, pool playing, yakking, smoking, visiting the carnies, eating, shopping and otherwise girlish fun for 5 straight days. Because when the working day is done, oh girls... they wanna have fun. Oh girls, just wanna have fun!

that which has been seen...

Okay, I've got a gripe! And before anyone decides to bash me for my gripe, please read through the entire post. Then - and only then - if you still want to bash me.....go for it!

Where I work we have three buildings that are connected to each other by breezeways. I work in the building in the back behind the main building. Pretty much everything that serves the entire site is located in the main building - the cafe, coffee bar, smoker's lounge, security office, etc. - so when we want something we stroll through one of the breezways to get to it.

And that's where I was today.....when I saw it. You know what? That which has been seen can never be unseen. It's a pity, really. I was walking back to my cubicle with my yummy spiced chai tea in hand and up ahead there she was.

Picture this. White t-shirt, several sizes too big, with what looked like an also too big khaki fishing vest over the top. Black sweatpants that were really too short to be pants but too long to be capris. And these gawd awful fuzzy pink slipper looking shoes, sans socks. I swear they really were slippers but didn't get close enough to validate my guess. All of this was being worn by a fellow working "professional". And it isn't even Halloween. Jeez, oh man! C'mon!! Just because you're fat doesn't mean you have to come to work dressed like you literally just rolled out of bed.

I know some of you are thinking I'm bashing on fat people, but I'm not. There's a huge difference between being "fat", "big", "obese" or "overweight". No matter what you weigh, your height, your shape, or any other physical feature.....it DOES NOT give you the right to dress like a slob. Especially when you're at work.

So there's my gripe. And as Lesley says - my blog, my rules!

sunday sweeps - Volume I

Well here we are, the end of the first week of the new year.....already! Sheesh! I sporadically posted Sunday Sweeps last year, but since we're into a new year and can start anew again, I'm going to attempt to make every Sunday a collection of random stuff that I didn't get around to posting during the week. We'll see how that works. Now on to the randomness.

The new year started quietly around here.....just the way I like it. I don't typically stay up to see the new year in. Just not my style. My folks had left New Year's Eve morning after a two week stay with us, the kiddo was in SoCal with his father, and I had the place to myself. Aaah! Since I don't make resolutions - for the new year, or otherwise - I debating on reposting my out with the old, and in with the new post from a couple years ago, but obviously didn't. So, if you want to read it, or re-read it if you've been with me that long, here's your chance. New Year's Day, after a quite morning at home, I headed down to the mall to see what I could nab with some of the awesome gift cards I scored for Christmas. My trip to Victoria's Secret was a bust (no pun intended) as they were ending their annual week of 50% sales and didn't have a single item in stock that I wanted. I had a little success at Macy's and Eddie Bauer.....oh, and Bath & Body Works too.....then headed home for some much needed R&R.

The work week totally sucked with the holiday stuffed there in the middle, and the next three days seemed to drag on like months. I did get a little good news at work, but I'll have to back up to a month or so ago to fill you in. Most of you know I'm working on contract right now. Well, my one year contract ends at the beginning of May, but since The Winnebago (the place I work) is still reorganizing (read as screwing up people's lives by laying them off) my business unit decided they'd no longer need me after the end of February. Gawd I love contract work.....not! Anyway, with all the shuffling that's going on, there's this other group that seems to need some additional help and is supposedly going to pick me up until at least the end of March, maybe a little longer. We'll see. I hope it all works out cuz I'm really not looking forward to being out of work again, and this time of the year sucks for finding a job.....decent or otherwise.

Yesterday was spent watching and playing (on the PS2) football. Did you see Seattle hold on over the Redskins? Woot!! Sorry to disappoint you, Chag. Unfortunately I can't say the same about Pittsburgh. Of course now this means we'll be heading to Green Bay next week (yikes!). As for the playing, good gawd that Madden '08 is a bitch. I was so totally confused and frustrated it completely killed the fun. Of course having a 7 year old trying to explain how it works doesn't help. Especially when said 7 year old has owned and played Madden '07 for a full year and plays it frequently. {sigh}

And that's about it for the week. Time to get off my arse and squeeze in some laundry and kitchen clean-up in between watching the games of the day. Hope you're weekend's been a good one!

sunday seven (2nd installment)

It's time for another installment of the Sunday Seven - seven items that don't necessarily say enough by themselves.

1. The week went by like a flash and the evenings even faster. Monday night was the first "open" BOD meeting of the school year, and since they were discussing the budget I really wanted to be there. In hindsight I'm not sure why I thought they'd actually have one ready. I mean really, it's only the beginning of November and school's been in session for only two months, so what's the rush. Sheesh! Of course Wednesday night was Halloween and all the hoopla associated with it. Then Friday night the little man's social calendar kicked into high gear with the first of two birthday parties for the week - this one back at our local skating rink. Today's party is at Rat Hell, but I'll keep that one for a separate post of its own. And then, of course, the NaBloPoMo madness ensued. (See #2)

2. Despite Tim's total lack of confidence in me (phffft!) I've somehow managed to keep blogging every day of the month, so far. Yeah, I know! We're only on day 4, but whatever. I'm doing it. Which is more than I can say for some of the others who signed up for it. I found the NaBloPoMo randomizer and installed it on my sidebar (see it sitting over there?), so yesterday I started running it and checking out different blogs I may not have known about before. WTF? Some people haven't even started posting, some are linked to "private" blogs where you have to request access (uh, notsomuch!), and others have already given up. Losers. But getting past those, there's a few I've found enjoyment, and more importantly entertainment, in reading so I've listed them out in their own section on my sidebar (look over to the left again). I'm sure I'll keep adding more as the month goes on and, as my list grows longer, so does my feedreader.

3. Speaking of Tim (aka LA Daddy), LA Family have now welcomed the newest member of the family - LA Baby - to the wide world of wackiness. Congrats my friend! I look forward to meeting her some day, but don't get your hopes up that it'll be the day you celebrate the big 4-0!

4. Also on the celebration bandwaggon is my Super Sweet 'n Sassy Snackie who's celebrating her youthful 36 today. Make your way on over and cover her with birthday kisses. MUAH!!!

5. Friday I had other sorts of kisses in mind. Those would be of the *kiss my ass* variety. Now before I start my bitching about work, let me just make one thing clear - I love that I have a job. I'm just notsomuch in love with my job anymore. Somehow in the past two months my responsibilites have shifted so much that what they really hired me to do is now falling third on my priorities list. Why? Well, that's because they keep going through reorgs and reshuffles and downsizing and whatever other term you want to use for walking around with their heads stuck up their ass and not being able to see what the real problem is even though it's staring them right in the face. The real problem is there's not enough people to do all the work that needs to be done, yet they keep disposing of them. I am now carrying a workload of one and three-quarters persons, and before you all think I'm just complaining that they're overworking me, let me clarify. It's not the "load" that bothers me, it's how it's structured. All three main responsibilites I have are, for the most part, totally unrelated to the others. This makes it very difficult to pay full attention to any one of them, let alone the fact that I've got customers - both internal and external - screaming at me and begging me to "be expedient". Um, last time I checked I was just one person. Maybe I need to clone myself? But what good would that do? They'd still only pay one measly little salary for me. I almost walked on Friday. But I didn't. And tomorrow I'll drag my tired ass back into the firey pits of hell for another week.

6. I started my Christmas shopping. Afterall, there's only 50 shopping days left until the big day. LOL But that's not the reason I started shopping. We went to Target to pick up the kiddo's new glasses and I got a little distracted by the $1 bins. Everything's just a buck, so how can you not buy stuff. Seriously though, with giving little gifts to teachers, neighbors, and friends at work, stocking up on the inexpensive goodies as I see them is the best way to go. As it gets closer to the holiday I might tell you what I got, and what I'm doing with it.

7. And finally, even with the time change (you didn't forget that, did you?), I'm seriously behind schedule with all the crap that must get done today. But before I wish you a Super Sunday, here's a few topics you can look forward to reading (or avoiding) in the coming weeks, not necessarily in this order.

• bullying has a whole new meaning
• i've been tagged... again
• reading and writing
• lights on or off?
• embarrassing moments
• thankful

Enjoy your week!

duck & cover

I don't post much about work, and there's a good reason for that. I work with a bunch of cliquish, entitled freaks. Now don't get me wrong here. There are people that work at the same company as I do who are some of my best friends. But the group I work with - they're a whole different breed.


There's this big ass deal about safety where I work, and the safety nazis in my building really, really go overboard with it. They conduct monthly walk arounds of the cubicles making sure we are being safe. They stop you in the hallway and remind you it's corporate policy to have a lid on your drink. They politely request that you take the elevator instead of the stairs if you are carrying something in both hands. And then there's the quarterly mandatory safety audits.


During our Monday staff meeting our head safety nazi informed us we were having an earthquake drill sometime later in the week. You would have thought we were asked to prepare for the Miss America pagent or something with all the questions being asked. "What do we do if we're in a conference room?" "What if I'm in the elevator?" "What about if I'm in the shower?" "If I'm outside, where do I go?" OMFG!! Are you serious? Have you not ever participated in an earthquake drill or an actual honest to god earthquake before? As always, the safety nazis took all these questions seriously and set out to get the answers.


A couple of days later we get an email detailing what we should do if we are here or there or wherever during the drill. We were also given the day and time of the drill because, ya know, we need to plan accordingly since major disasters such as earthquakes give us time to prepare during the actual event. Uh, yeah! My favorite answer of all was to the question "What if I'm in the elevator?" If you find yourself in the elevator during the earthquake drill, wait for the elevator to reach your floor, step out of the elevator and huddle against the nearest wall holding your hands over your head. Are you serious?? Yeah, because during a real earthquake the elevator is going to function flawlessly and actually arrive at your destination. Gack!!


The day of the drill finally arrived. And so did the predetermined and announced time.






(silence)






(blink blink)






Several minutes after the scheduled time and obnoxious siren blares at ear deafening levels. And then, the voice. Someone actually droned on for several minutes providing instructions of what to do, where to go and whatever else they wanted us to hear while they had us captive under our desks, conference room tables, sinks, doorjambs, etc. And then it was over. Not a single safety nazi walked around to see if anyone was complying with the drill. WTH?






(blink blink)

hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work we go

Despite popular opinion that my job is top secret and not keeping me busy enough, I thought I'd shed a little light on my current "occupation" and denounce any myths floating around out there. I'm in a new career field for me - purchasing. And I work for "The Winnebago". (You didn't really think I was going to really tell you where I work, did you? Silly readers!) Of course all my other careers (as varied as they've been) have had certain aspects of purchasing involved, but this time that's what I do according to title. What I really do on a daily basis is anything but purchasing.

Here's a typical day in my worklife:

7:30am - Arrive at work, log-in to desktop computer (no laptop for me this time around) and wade through the 20-40 some odd emails that have accumulated from the day before.

8:00am - After a quick scan of emails, deleting whatever I can, I launch our SAP system and check for new orders that need to be placed.

9:00am - Here's where the fun begins! Go back through the email and deal with all the "Why hasn't this puchase order (PO) been paid?" or "We received your order but need xxxx changes made before we can process it." or "I know this isn't your PO, but if you could just check the status..."

11:30am - Walk with Groove - unless he decides to have a FAW or FOF (I'll let you decide what those acronyms stand for)

12:30pm - Start the process all over until it's time to go home. Oh, and work on clearing my "opens" from prior months.

4:00pm - Get the heck out of Dodge!

Pretty glamorous, no?

So, as I mentioned the other day, my manager called me into her office shortly before quitting time last Thursday. Actually, she sent an email that said "Can we talk before you leave for the day?" Not the sort of email you want to get when you're a) a contract employee, b) just coming back from a break, and c) it's the day before your manager leaves on vacation for a week.

Well she sits two cubes down and across the aisle, so I can hear her on the phone as I'm reading the email. I email her back and tell her to let me know when she's ready. Not 2 minutes later she calls my phone. My PHONE!! Have I mentioned I'm only 2 cubes away from her!?! I answer (tentatively) and am summoned to her cube. After having a minor attack on my walk over there I park my ass in her "guest" chair and she asks "Would you be willing to take over _________?"

Have you ever had someone ask you to do something and know damn well that they aren't really asking, they're just telling you in the form of a question to make you think like it's your idea in the first place?? Um, yeah! Apparently the other part of her group, who I've had nothing to do with since starting and barely get a "hello" out of most days, is drowning (her word, not mine) and needs some help. And I'm the elected savior. Yay me! Notsomuch.

What does this mean for me? Well, it means I'll be doing a workload of at least two, if not three, people, making the same amount of money, still not getting any benefits, and wondering where my next job will be when my contract comes to an end a mere 9 months from now. Sounds appealing, doesn't it?

So this week I'm in training hell, am still taking off early on Wednesday, and have had a change in plans for the weekend. Man, I love Mondays, don't you?

Coming soon: They're back! The carnie adventure continues

wednesday wrap-up (is there even a version anymore?)

It's been ages since I've done a Wednesday Wrap-up and since today I'm off work and I've actually had time to catch up on reading and commenting on all my favorite blogs, I thought I'd do a quick wrap-up before getting my lazy butt in gear for the festivities of the afternoon.

The Birthday Circuit - Bad, I know, but I didn't even post a birthday message to my main squeeze. Happy Birthday Kiddo!! The kiddo brought in his 7th year with a birthday bash at one of the local bowling alleys. And that was just the start to almost a week of birthday celebrating. His actual birthday (the 26th - same as Dan's) was spent dining at his favorite restaurant, The Mayan, and playing with his hot new PlayStation, courtesy of his grandparents. Then last weekend was spent attending two birthday parties for friends. I swear he's got more of a social life than me!

Break-in(g) News! - I am now the proud owner of a new set of front door locks. Thanks to my awesome neighbor who came over on Sunday to help me get the crazy thing installed, I'm resting a little bit easier now. I'll always wonder who was trying to get in, for what reason, and when, but with all my neighbors on alert, the 100+ pound furry protection system I own, and the sparkling new jewels adorning my front door I'm not worrying about it. Not too much at least.

(Not) Flying Under the Radar - My second round at The Winnebago has been educational, frustrating, enjoyable, and as of Monday, rewarding. I know I haven't really talked at all about my new job, so suffice it to say I've embarked upon a new career. The world of procurement. I've done my fair share of purchasing through all my previous careers, but this has been a new game entirely for me. One thing I vowed to myself when starting this job was to maintain a certain amount of restraint. By that I mean not get in there and give more than 100% right from the start. That was a hard decision to make for me because I'm one of those people who feels that if you're not performing the best you can, then you aren't doing what you should be doing. Last time that got me nowhere fast (unless you count heading out the door 3 months before my contract was due to expire). Anyway, I've been holding back. Attempting to fly under the radar. And obviously not doing a very good job of it either. During our biweekly staff meeting on Monday afternoon I was presented with a Customer Recognition Award. Not one but three of my customers sent beaming emails to my manager about me. Ugh! I truly hate being in the spotlight, but what I hate even more is that I can't even get myself to just do what needs to be done and stop trying to fix everything that's broken. Ah well! At least I got a teeny tiny little bonus out of it.

BBQ Fever - We're off to the neighbor's for a BBQ this afternoon. No. The evil spawn won't be there. They're gone on vacation and the neighborhood's been a peaceful haven ever since. This is the party crowd getting together. Last Saturday night we sat around drinking, and talking, and drinking for hours while the kids ran around the neighborhood. All without incident. What fun! And today should be more of the same. It's gonna be damned HOT but with the help of the sprinklers and a new slip-n-slide, not to mention the A/C coursing through the neighbor's house, we shouldn't have to put up with too many sweat beads in our eyes. Now I've got to get off my ass and get my fruit platter put together, dig out my chip bowls, and get this place picked up before the good times begin. I hope all of you are off enjoying some holiday fun today!

Cheers!!

my week in bullets

I've thought about bullets a lot this week. Being shot down. Being the shooter. Trying to catch you all up with my week in bullets. So, here we are. The highlights (and lowlights) of the week.

Neighborly Drama - The evil spawn is up to no good again. This time I got the clear picture after he smacked another neighbor kid upside the head - twice. I finally went down the street to talk to victim's mother, and boy did I get an earful! Not only did I hear about all the crap evil spawn's done to victim, I witnessed a pissing match between Mrs. A and victim's grandmother (a fiesty hispanic woman who ain't taking evil spawn's shit no mo). I know evil spawn is ADHD, and I'm sympathetic to any child living with that. What I'm not sympathetic to is the slacker parent who sets the spawn free to reek havoc and then pisses and moans when she's told evil spawn's behavior will not be tolerated. Get off your lazy butt and control your spawn!

When Trains Collide - Generally speaking my commute to The Winnebago isn't all that bad. Drive across town, pop on the Interstate, and a couple exits later I'm off. This is assuming that two trains don't derail effing up the backroad traffic detouring it down the mountian and dumping it at the tiny little intersection in the basin where the onramp I use is. I'm pretty sure I was on time at least once this week. Of course being on a modified work schedule for the next couple of weeks has its advantages.

The Winnebago - Training is done and I'm in the pits. Seriously. Digging out from under all the crap that rolled downhill from two people ago. My trainer has been trying to dig out for the past 14 months and still isn't done. Now it's my turn to pick up a shovel. And this is all the back end cleanup, not counting the new stuff that comes in every day. I am in email hell. Within 5 minutes I can have upwards of 20-30 new messages in my inbox. And that's not counting the 20 or so that fill up my home email waiting for attention when I get home.

Elections - Most of the home email is related to the election. No, not the Presidential election. The BOD election at school. Somehow I was drafted to be a campaign manager for two new candidates vying for the two open spots on the BOD. The change is seriously needed, but with only two spots open and six total BOD members, it's not even enough to tie the voting at this point. What really needs to happen is ousting the administration. Then again, I'm not totally invested in this like others are since I've decided I'm tired of paying for the priviledge of an effed up administration and would rather have one for free. The kiddo's headed to public school next year.

Final Note - Thanks to all of you for your supportive messages on my last post. It will probably be quite awhile before I'll be able to say much more on the subject I was alluding to, but wanted you to know I have an army of support now and am confident things will work out. So no more thinking of bullets. And no more bullets to write about right now.

Enjoy your weekend!

my brain hurts

I'm home and freakin' EXHAUSTED. Mentally, of course.

The first day was full of all sorts of training - online and in person. This is the first job I've ever been to where I have the distinct advantage of having the person leaving the position sitting there training me. I'll have it down by the end of the week, I'm sure, but like I told Groove when he came to "check up on the lass" I'm taking it slow. Why show them what I can do right away? If I learned nothing else from my first stint at The Winnebago, it's bide your time.

Ran into at least a dozen people I knew (some I kept in contact with) from the last go around and got the "Woohoo! You're back!!" and "Look what the cat dragged in." Lots of hugs. Lots of "We'll have to catch up." Oddly enough it was almost like going to a high school reunion, or what I imagine them to be like since I've never actually gone to any of my high school reunions before.

All in all it was a good day. Though I am a little disappointed in Dan for not giving me my first day hugs.

And now it's time to crack open another cold one, put my feet up, and unwind. I just hope I sleep like the dead tonight or I'm gonna be one tired girl tomorrow.