31 December 2008
Out with the old, in with the new
So the last four months have just blown by. In those four months, I've had a new baby. Which, in and of itself, really explains why I've been so busy. But on top of that I've gotten some new responsibilities at work and our company launched a major new project that took up an inordinate amount of my time. The "busy-ness" due to that project ebbed and flowed but during the ebb times I had to cram in all my other responsibilities so I stayed busy all the time.
I still managed to participate in NaNoWriMo (what was I thinking?) and almost drove myself into the ground, but "won" anyway. So there!
The new year is going to bring even more responsibility at work which is both good and bad. More responsibility = recognition (yay) but it also = more work/stress (meh). Yet I'd rather have it than not, all things considered.
I will also be having fun watching my kids go through another year and trying - trying - to get more writing in. I was able to do NaNo because it was a fixed amount in a fixed time but the stress of doing that on top of a major project at work with a month old baby at home when I hadn't been doing much writing before that was unfun. It just emphasized to me - again - that it's better to do some every day to stay in the habit and if I do some extra that day, yay!
With all that said, Happy New Year's Eve. See you on the flip side.
I still managed to participate in NaNoWriMo (what was I thinking?) and almost drove myself into the ground, but "won" anyway. So there!
The new year is going to bring even more responsibility at work which is both good and bad. More responsibility = recognition (yay) but it also = more work/stress (meh). Yet I'd rather have it than not, all things considered.
I will also be having fun watching my kids go through another year and trying - trying - to get more writing in. I was able to do NaNo because it was a fixed amount in a fixed time but the stress of doing that on top of a major project at work with a month old baby at home when I hadn't been doing much writing before that was unfun. It just emphasized to me - again - that it's better to do some every day to stay in the habit and if I do some extra that day, yay!
With all that said, Happy New Year's Eve. See you on the flip side.
11 September 2008
Quarter, shmquarter
I really should stop saying things like "next quarter should be easier" and just accept that it won't. We're becoming the go-to team around here and while that's a nice compliment, it means that we're ALWAYS busy with new projects. And probably will be for the foreseen future. At least the overtime has gone down a bit.
Still not getting much writing done, but am experimenting a bit with Google Docs to see if writing for a few minutes here and there at work (during lunch, breaks and whatnot) will keep the pump primed and motivate me to write when I get home.
Still not getting much writing done, but am experimenting a bit with Google Docs to see if writing for a few minutes here and there at work (during lunch, breaks and whatnot) will keep the pump primed and motivate me to write when I get home.
30 June 2008
Another Quarter, Another Post
Yes, I know I haven't posted in awhile.
This past quarter has been somewhat easier than the last three. Somewhat. Talk about damning with faint praise. The stress level was way down, but the need to write hasn't come all the way back yet and what there was, was allocated towards actual writing and not blogging. Blogging has always been a "leftover" thing for me. In other words, whatever energy I had leftover when I was done writing for the day went to blogging.
In a lot of ways I'm only doing this post because I feel somewhat obligated to report on another quarter after my last post, and at least acknowledge that it was much easier.
I've been doing some writing. Not much, but it comes under the category of "plugging away". A couple hundred words here, a thousand there, etc. And not even everyday either which is what I'm more disappointed in than any word counts. I'd be happy with 50 if I was writing everyday. Need to get back to that.
This past quarter has been somewhat easier than the last three. Somewhat. Talk about damning with faint praise. The stress level was way down, but the need to write hasn't come all the way back yet and what there was, was allocated towards actual writing and not blogging. Blogging has always been a "leftover" thing for me. In other words, whatever energy I had leftover when I was done writing for the day went to blogging.
In a lot of ways I'm only doing this post because I feel somewhat obligated to report on another quarter after my last post, and at least acknowledge that it was much easier.
I've been doing some writing. Not much, but it comes under the category of "plugging away". A couple hundred words here, a thousand there, etc. And not even everyday either which is what I'm more disappointed in than any word counts. I'd be happy with 50 if I was writing everyday. Need to get back to that.
03 April 2008
Sigh of Relief
Oi. The Quarter From Hell is now over.
After my last post, my boss came up to me and said, in essence, "That project you planned to do over 3 months - yeah, that one - now needs to be done in a month and a half. Oh, and you still have to do all your other usual work as well."
Gee. Thanks.
All I can really say is - I survived. At least I didn't have to work TOO much overtime. Maybe only 20 hours total. Mostly due to the fact that, appearances to the contrary, I really am pretty organized at work and was able to just work faster. Problem is, my stress level hit TILT. But only just. It wasn't at TILT like it was last December. What helped was that two very minor assignments got waived to the second quarter which really helped in the overall scheme of things because even though they're minor, they still take awhile to do right. And they're the kinds of things that if you don't do them right, it's very noticeable. Naturally that was time I didn't have available due to Project Which Must Be Done At Ludicrous Speed.
Thank goodness I have a wife that understood why I vegged out in the evenings when I got home. I've been a much more pleasant person to be around since that project was completed, I hope.
Needless to say, there was slightly less than No Chance that I got any "recreational" writing done. I have high hopes of this changing this quarter because my boss has sworn in blood that I won't have a PWMBDALS this quarter. Hope springs eternal, as they say. We shall see.
After my last post, my boss came up to me and said, in essence, "That project you planned to do over 3 months - yeah, that one - now needs to be done in a month and a half. Oh, and you still have to do all your other usual work as well."
Gee. Thanks.
All I can really say is - I survived. At least I didn't have to work TOO much overtime. Maybe only 20 hours total. Mostly due to the fact that, appearances to the contrary, I really am pretty organized at work and was able to just work faster. Problem is, my stress level hit TILT. But only just. It wasn't at TILT like it was last December. What helped was that two very minor assignments got waived to the second quarter which really helped in the overall scheme of things because even though they're minor, they still take awhile to do right. And they're the kinds of things that if you don't do them right, it's very noticeable. Naturally that was time I didn't have available due to Project Which Must Be Done At Ludicrous Speed.
Thank goodness I have a wife that understood why I vegged out in the evenings when I got home. I've been a much more pleasant person to be around since that project was completed, I hope.
Needless to say, there was slightly less than No Chance that I got any "recreational" writing done. I have high hopes of this changing this quarter because my boss has sworn in blood that I won't have a PWMBDALS this quarter. Hope springs eternal, as they say. We shall see.
Labels: work
12 July 2007
Death of a Laptop
Yes, indeed, my old and trusty Toshiba Satellite laptop died recently. I am now writing this from my brand spanking new Toshiba Tecra.
The Satellite was already starting to hiccup a bit due to a dying FL inverter. I merely....er....hastened it along, shall we say, by having a double mishap. I tend to use my laptop at work a lot since it has Apache, MySQL, and PHP on it. And, no, the computer at work doesn't - long story which doesn't need to be told now.
At any rate, so I was working away at some code and someone called for my attention, so like an idiot I scooted my chair away from the desk without first making sure of the location of the computer power cord. There was this thud and I looked back at my desk to see the laptop on the floor, swooning. The monitor had flopped down to "fully open" - essentially parallel to the floor. The DVD drive drawer had popped out. Arrrrgh.
I pushed the DVD drive drawer back in, fiddled with the computer for a bit, and concluded it had survived. So I resumed my usual computing.
Only to repeat the same exact procedure two days later.
*bang head on desk*
That was too much for the hard drive. It didn't break...exactly. It started acting its age, though, and had a tantrum and refused to work as fast as before.
That, combined with the monitor issues, was enough of that. I ordered a new computer Monday of last week and got it Friday of last week. I've since then been busy catching up with all the things I needed the laptop to do. Fortunately, the old laptop is still working - somewhat and under severe protest, but working - so I was able to hook it to the monitor of the desktop (yes, the FL inverter finally and completely died) and get my data off of it.
Big sigh of relief.
I do have backups, but it had been a little while since I'd done one due to hecticness on the home front what with the house buying process. Things had been busy at work so I did have quite a bit of un-backed-up stuff. If I had lost that stuff, it would have bitten the big one.
HOUSE UPDATE:
We've closed on the house and will be moving in a few days. Once things are settled down on the home front, I'll have more time to write. I'm still managing to get a few hundred words a day done - not really that much on a day-to-day basis but in the grand scheme of things it's good because I'm trying hard not to break the habit of writing something every day and so far so good.
The Satellite was already starting to hiccup a bit due to a dying FL inverter. I merely....er....hastened it along, shall we say, by having a double mishap. I tend to use my laptop at work a lot since it has Apache, MySQL, and PHP on it. And, no, the computer at work doesn't - long story which doesn't need to be told now.
At any rate, so I was working away at some code and someone called for my attention, so like an idiot I scooted my chair away from the desk without first making sure of the location of the computer power cord. There was this thud and I looked back at my desk to see the laptop on the floor, swooning. The monitor had flopped down to "fully open" - essentially parallel to the floor. The DVD drive drawer had popped out. Arrrrgh.
I pushed the DVD drive drawer back in, fiddled with the computer for a bit, and concluded it had survived. So I resumed my usual computing.
Only to repeat the same exact procedure two days later.
*bang head on desk*
That was too much for the hard drive. It didn't break...exactly. It started acting its age, though, and had a tantrum and refused to work as fast as before.
That, combined with the monitor issues, was enough of that. I ordered a new computer Monday of last week and got it Friday of last week. I've since then been busy catching up with all the things I needed the laptop to do. Fortunately, the old laptop is still working - somewhat and under severe protest, but working - so I was able to hook it to the monitor of the desktop (yes, the FL inverter finally and completely died) and get my data off of it.
Big sigh of relief.
I do have backups, but it had been a little while since I'd done one due to hecticness on the home front what with the house buying process. Things had been busy at work so I did have quite a bit of un-backed-up stuff. If I had lost that stuff, it would have bitten the big one.
HOUSE UPDATE:
We've closed on the house and will be moving in a few days. Once things are settled down on the home front, I'll have more time to write. I'm still managing to get a few hundred words a day done - not really that much on a day-to-day basis but in the grand scheme of things it's good because I'm trying hard not to break the habit of writing something every day and so far so good.
10 April 2007
Deadlines, they are inconvenient but make handy excuses sometimes.
One of the minuses of being a content/technical writer for my department is that I usually have a zillion tiny deadlines every week. I don't mind that, really, as long as they're reasonable. What bugs me is when they're not.
What also bugs me is when someone comes to my desk and says, oh-so-obliviously "mind doing this for me? It should only take you five minutes."
To which I say - depending on the person - either "okay, fine" (because it really will take only five minutes) or "sorry, no can do. I have a deadline for something for xxxxxxxx which is a higher priority than that." I usually invoke the last thing when it's either a) something so frivolous I don't want to waste my time on it; b) something that the said person should be doing themselves and is trying to shuffle off to me for no good reason and I have enough authority/justification for ignoring; or c) something that both the person and I know ding-dang well will take way more than five minutes and I honestly have no time to do it.
Hence my heading that while deadlines can be inconvenient at times, they are also very handy excuses when you don't want to/can't do something for someone and a previous deadline with a higher priority is the only thing they'll accept as a reason for dismissing their precious baby out of hand.
What also bugs me is when someone comes to my desk and says, oh-so-obliviously "mind doing this for me? It should only take you five minutes."
To which I say - depending on the person - either "okay, fine" (because it really will take only five minutes) or "sorry, no can do. I have a deadline for something for xxxxxxxx which is a higher priority than that." I usually invoke the last thing when it's either a) something so frivolous I don't want to waste my time on it; b) something that the said person should be doing themselves and is trying to shuffle off to me for no good reason and I have enough authority/justification for ignoring; or c) something that both the person and I know ding-dang well will take way more than five minutes and I honestly have no time to do it.
Hence my heading that while deadlines can be inconvenient at times, they are also very handy excuses when you don't want to/can't do something for someone and a previous deadline with a higher priority is the only thing they'll accept as a reason for dismissing their precious baby out of hand.
Labels: work
23 March 2007
Week One, Finished
After the first week of full-time work, I am happy to report that my sleep schedule is adjusting. I am no longer waking up confused when the alarm beeps at 6:15 am. I just wake up. (Under the old schedule I was going to bed at 12:30 or so and waking up at 8 am.)
I'm really enjoying the new job and new duties. I am much less stressed than I was before and it's showing in my writing. The words are coming easier now. Not easy, you understand. Just easier than before. I'm still getting used to the new evening ritual though, so I haven't established a firm time where I can say "I'm writing now. Please leave me alone."
It'll happen, though.
I'm really enjoying the new job and new duties. I am much less stressed than I was before and it's showing in my writing. The words are coming easier now. Not easy, you understand. Just easier than before. I'm still getting used to the new evening ritual though, so I haven't established a firm time where I can say "I'm writing now. Please leave me alone."
It'll happen, though.
06 March 2007
Calmly, now.
I've finally come down from the high of last Friday. The whole weekend was more or less a normal weekend, but with frequent interruptions of "wheee". Yesterday I was still a little giddy.
I think I'm back to normal now, though. I admit part of the reason for that is I'm tired after working 14 hours yesterday and not sleeping that great last night. In other words, normal. And this will be normal until Oct 16th.
I'm toying with the idea of either going home early on the night of the 15th so I can get some decent sleep before waking up even earlier than I do now or taking my night job off totally that night. I waffle back and forth between the two.
I think I'm back to normal now, though. I admit part of the reason for that is I'm tired after working 14 hours yesterday and not sleeping that great last night. In other words, normal. And this will be normal until Oct 16th.
I'm toying with the idea of either going home early on the night of the 15th so I can get some decent sleep before waking up even earlier than I do now or taking my night job off totally that night. I waffle back and forth between the two.
Labels: work
02 March 2007
Target destroyed, Captain
Ok, so maybe that wasn't the best metaphor after all, but it turns out I got the job. I just got the offer sheet via email. Wheeeeee.
And just for the record, it's easier to impress a technical writer with a 32 page employment contract when said technical writer doesn't find at least 10 typos in it without even looking that hard. I mean, if you're going to pay a battery of lawyers to come up with something that has that much legalese, is it too much to expect them to invest a little of that money in editing? I didn't think so.
Not that it matters since I'll sign it anyway. Just thought it was funny.
As I said, the start date is March 16th. So at that time I can start switching my schedule over to something resembling sanity. Once sanity has been acquired, I can start writing regularly again. Along with all the other things I want to do regularly again. We'll see how much time I am actually able to schedule for writing.
I'm thinking I might be able to do some during my lunch hour at work, but we'll see how that goes.
And just for the record, it's easier to impress a technical writer with a 32 page employment contract when said technical writer doesn't find at least 10 typos in it without even looking that hard. I mean, if you're going to pay a battery of lawyers to come up with something that has that much legalese, is it too much to expect them to invest a little of that money in editing? I didn't think so.
Not that it matters since I'll sign it anyway. Just thought it was funny.
As I said, the start date is March 16th. So at that time I can start switching my schedule over to something resembling sanity. Once sanity has been acquired, I can start writing regularly again. Along with all the other things I want to do regularly again. We'll see how much time I am actually able to schedule for writing.
I'm thinking I might be able to do some during my lunch hour at work, but we'll see how that goes.
Did we hit the target, Captain?
Had my interview 2 days ago. Haven't heard back regarding whether or not I got the job yet. The VP, at the end of the interview, essentially said "have a good day." Arrrrrrgh. Good? Bad? Indifferent? That x% I mentioned in my last post is making me, as Jeff Blue said in Undercover Blues, "fretful and nervous."
And, yes, I know his wife replied "You're describing a baby with colic." That's neither here nor there. *drinks water*
And yesterday was basically, as far as I understand, HR's internal deadline for VP to decide yea or nay. So my manager should know by now, right? Right?
For whatever it's worth, I think the interview went well. But what do I know - I was sitting on the wrong side of the desk when it comes to deciding that kind of thing.
And, yes, I know his wife replied "You're describing a baby with colic." That's neither here nor there. *drinks water*
And yesterday was basically, as far as I understand, HR's internal deadline for VP to decide yea or nay. So my manager should know by now, right? Right?
For whatever it's worth, I think the interview went well. But what do I know - I was sitting on the wrong side of the desk when it comes to deciding that kind of thing.
Labels: work
28 February 2007
Captain! Interview ho!
Just found out yesterday the fabled and legendary VP interview is no longer fable nor legendary, but a truly existing creature. Today, 4:30.
Wheee.
(HR has already set my hire date and they rushed the interview to be before March 1st so that the pay-periods will work out which is why I only just found out yesterday about something happening today. That should probably indicate how much of a formality this interview is, but there's still that small x% chance I say something that screws it up, so cross your fingers for me not crossing my tongue.)
Wheee.
(HR has already set my hire date and they rushed the interview to be before March 1st so that the pay-periods will work out which is why I only just found out yesterday about something happening today. That should probably indicate how much of a formality this interview is, but there's still that small x% chance I say something that screws it up, so cross your fingers for me not crossing my tongue.)
Labels: work
27 February 2007
Wherefore art thou, VP interview?
I just got word that my background check came through with flying colors. (In other words, yes, I got that degree at that university at that time. Yes, I had those jobs from that time to that time. Yes, I am who I represent myself to be.)
Still haven't heard about the drug test but who cares. That will so NOT be an issue.
So when am I gonna have the interview with the VP, already? It's driving me nuts.
In other news, we had a family activity last Saturday with the in-laws. A good time was had by all except my WIP. (I am not so obsessive about writing that I write stuff in a PDF every possible available second. Mostly because I don't own a PDF, but I digress.) And since I don't write on Sundays - it's my one hard and fast rule when it comes to when NOT to write - I didn't get any writing done over the weekend. I don't mind, though. With a full time job coming up, I can see in the distance the available writing time jumping up dramatically. And, besides, it was good to see the extended family and unwind from the stress of the previous week.
Still haven't heard about the drug test but who cares. That will so NOT be an issue.
So when am I gonna have the interview with the VP, already? It's driving me nuts.
In other news, we had a family activity last Saturday with the in-laws. A good time was had by all except my WIP. (I am not so obsessive about writing that I write stuff in a PDF every possible available second. Mostly because I don't own a PDF, but I digress.) And since I don't write on Sundays - it's my one hard and fast rule when it comes to when NOT to write - I didn't get any writing done over the weekend. I don't mind, though. With a full time job coming up, I can see in the distance the available writing time jumping up dramatically. And, besides, it was good to see the extended family and unwind from the stress of the previous week.
22 February 2007
A good boy am I?
I've done the drug test and all that. I rather think I'll pass considering the only controlled substances I've ingested lately was last year and that was Lortab for the hip replacement pain.
Just waiting for the interview with the VP of IT.
In this case no news is neither good nor bad, just frustrating. I'm anxious to get started doing "for real" the stuff i've been doing "on the side, when you have time" for the past 2 and a half months. And full time, to boot.
Just waiting for the interview with the VP of IT.
In this case no news is neither good nor bad, just frustrating. I'm anxious to get started doing "for real" the stuff i've been doing "on the side, when you have time" for the past 2 and a half months. And full time, to boot.
Labels: work
16 February 2007
One down, one to go
Had that interview with boss's boss yesterday. It went well. So well that they're already setting up an interview with the VP for sometime next week. Not sure when, yet - I might find out tonight. We'll see.
I'm sure they'll delay it just enough for them to get the results back from their "is he a good boy?" investigations. (Background check and drug test, basically. Not required for contract workers, but required for full-time workers.)
I'm sure they'll delay it just enough for them to get the results back from their "is he a good boy?" investigations. (Background check and drug test, basically. Not required for contract workers, but required for full-time workers.)
Labels: work
12 February 2007
Employment Status Update Warning
It is very possible that one of my "part time" jobs will become full-time soon. My boss has (this past Friday) indicated he wants me to work there full-time. So I just need to interview with HIS boss and then the VP over our department. Then I need to pass the usual gauntlet of "am I a good boy?" checks.
At which point I'll have a full time job for the first time in nearly 5 years. (*counts* Yep. Almost 5 years.)
Assuming I can successfully jump through all the hoops, I'll have a regular AND sane schedule (as opposed to my current regular but insane schedule) and be able to go back to writing in the evenings after the kids go beddy-bye. I'm not sure who's more excited about this possibility, me or the missus. We've alternated back and forth, pretty much, depending on how recently it crossed our minds at various points over the weekend.
At which point I'll have a full time job for the first time in nearly 5 years. (*counts* Yep. Almost 5 years.)
Assuming I can successfully jump through all the hoops, I'll have a regular AND sane schedule (as opposed to my current regular but insane schedule) and be able to go back to writing in the evenings after the kids go beddy-bye. I'm not sure who's more excited about this possibility, me or the missus. We've alternated back and forth, pretty much, depending on how recently it crossed our minds at various points over the weekend.
Labels: work
