Spider....spider...go away

In case I never told anyone, I HATE bugs. HATE THEM....as in I don't care if they're a 'good' bug or a 'bad' bug. They give me the heebie-jeebies. Spiders especially. To this day whenever I see a spider I will freeze and scream bloody murder until I have someone rescue me from the impending doom of the spider. Which of course means SQUISH AND FLUSH (SOMETIMES DOUBLE FLUSH) so it is not going to return.

So you can imagine my chagrin and horror as I get a call from a co-worker this morning telling me about the MASSIVE, HAIRY ARACHNOID sitting outside the office and the non-cooperation of MALE co-workers to dispose of this menace. You can imagine my shock when another coworker E-MAILED ME THE PHOTO of this menace.

Anyway, in this horror and during the terror-reign of said

arachnoid (at right) this is the e-mails shared between Claire and myself. Please note this insect is still at large and FREAKING us out.

The e-mail:

Claire:There's a great big giant spider in the hallway. If you zoom in, you can appreciate the effect.

Me; WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?

WHY ARE YOU TAKING PICTURES OF THAT THING?

AND MORE IMPORTANTLY WHY ARE YOU SENDING ME THESE PHOTOS? I AM AFRAID OF SPIDERS!

Claire: So am I! BUT NOW IT'S MISSING. MISSING!!!!

Me: WEEEELLLLLLLLLLL,

WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE FROM YOUR DEPT KILL IT WHEN IT WAS THERE?????

NOW IT IS ROAMING FREELY IN THE BUILDING ABLE TO TERRORIZE INNOCENT PEOPLE.

AND WHY ARE YOU TAKING PHOTOS OF IT? SHOULD WE POST THEM IN THE BUILDING AS MISSING? I WONDER IF IT IS RADIO ACTIVE. (LIKE YOU KNOW…AS IN SPIDER MAN?)

Claire: I like to take pictures of freaks of nature. You know, for posterity. We didn't kill it because we would have needed a shovel. You're right - now it's roaming freely, planning its attack in taking over the building. and eating all of our faces.

So if anyone would like come to our office, hunt wrangle and kill this 8-legged freak, please feel free. Because now I'm envisioning this thing launching from the ground or ceiling, and chewing our faces off.

WOW! Complete turmoil at the company

So it has begun. Yesterday the company which I work for was hit was a massive lay-off. Yes there has been visible scale-backs in certain areas and some random firings as well. And of course the scuttlebutt is always running like wild fire. But I don't think people really expected it to happen.
And it was so vague with how they decided who to let go. People who had been with the company for quite some time were let go, part-timers were let go. Some managment and union members were let go. We just got a memo sent out that the transportation service (for long-distance employees) will be ceased in May. So like I just said to a friend of mine, that will force people to commute ontheir own dime, and cause possibly more employees to stop working for the company, cutting posistions. It makes you wonder.

Recognizing the signs of hating my job

Everyone has good and bad days in their career. Some people are blessed to LOVE what they do for a living, and where they work. Some people HATE their jobs and having to do what they do for a paycheck. And some people just don't give a damn about where they work, what they do as long as they get a paycheck. I used to fall in to the category of being someone who loved their job.
Used to. Those are the key words. The entire first year at my company, I loved getting up and going in to the office. People used to be able to say 'hello' to one another without worrying about getting caught saying 'hello'. You would be busy all day, and be able to goof around with a coworker. If you had been assigned a project, and needed an extension on it...you didn't mind working late to finish it up.
The second year of being at my company brought about A LOT of changes. People are not allowed to talk to people in other departments without a comment being passed. Management does not crack jokes or even allow you to crack jokes any longer. Conspiracy theories and back-stabbing have gotten to become so out-of-hand it is pathetic. Salary increases are not coming down the pike, and employee moral is down. Hiring freezes, and company globalization has taken hold at my location.
Come August, I will be with my company for three years. And every day I pray to have the strength to come in and give a damn about my performance. But it is getting harder and harder.

• Annoying co-worker is still as annoying if not more so. But it doesn't effect me as badly as I just tune him out, because I DON'T CARE.
• I don't plod along in my duties at break-neck speed like I used to, or stay late every night like I once had.
• Each morning, I dilly-dally at my home until the last possible minute before leaving for the office.
• Co-workers who need me to type items for them, annoy me as they just don't care if I am working on something else.
• I try to avoid walking through the building (to go potty, or to the mail room, or for tea) to avoid seeing people who work in the building. Because they want to socialize. And I DON'T WANT to.
• I am exhausted every night and worn down every morning from the stress of working in such a negative atmosphere.
• And I call in sick just because I don't feel like going in to work. And I don't feel guilty about it.

The bulleted items above have made me realize how UNHAPPY and how much I HATE my job. And now I have to face the decision on either staying and being miserable or making the move, and moving on. But I am all but positive my mind is made up...and it is time for me to move on.

The evils of being a dedicated & hard working employee

Ok, so I have to admit that this one really is because I opened up Pandora's box several months ago. I have been with my company for just over two years, and when I started at the company loved it. I had loved my boss, at the time (who is now refered to as 'Big Dick' or 'Big Bad'.) After working for him for several months, he moved me over to the other office, to work for another manager whom I was petrified of, only to realize how NICE and GREAT a man & boss he is. This man is 'The Chief'. anyway, I have reported to 'The Chief' for most of my career with the company, in a posistion which is basically internal customer service, as well as doing admin support work for him too. I was given the task of tracking/posting vacation, handling payroll, etc....but then when a certain cretin/co-worker/bain-to-my-existance came over...HE got those duties. When that happened I was pretty much reduced to the internal customer service crap, and filing as well as handling some duties with daily reports. I would love to go in to more detail as to my posistion or what I do, but you never know who's reading this.
Anyway the office I work in, is so much fun. My best friend works there too, and we bicker/fight all day long. Another co-worker constantly reminds me 'how old I am'....because he's only 21. There's a manager who is just a hysterical fruit-loop who comes out with the craziest of things, and then 'The Chief' gets in on it too. Do we goof around all day? Absolutly. Do we get it done by the days end? You bet your ass for the most part we do. However I've grown bored with what I do, and longed for something a bit more chall,enging. Something that deffently pays more than what I make. But what held me back was not wanting to leave my comfort zone, or any of the freaks I work with. Plus I know how my boss counts on me, and don't want to leave him stuck with inept employees. So back in August these two women from a different department approached me about an open posistion in their department that I'd be 'perfect' for. And I admit it. I toyed with the notion. But it was the day before I was leaving for vacation, and I wasn't sure if I really was wanting to work in that nest of vipers, which is the department looking for a new employee. So after my initial quary to the manager of that department, I informed her I was going to be going on vacation for 10 days and didn't want to hold up her interviewing. Before I had left for vacation, I touched on this matter lightly with 'The Chief' who told me that if it was in my best interest, he wouldn't hold me back.
So I went on vacation (back in August) and decided that I was not going to apply for that posistion. Yeah, what the hell was I thinking? Because the woman I had spoken with went to 'Big Dick' when I was on vacation and began to ask about me. Which flagged his suspisions, andhe approached 'The Chief' to see if any of this was true, and why was I looking to leave the department...etc. 'Big DIck' is big on paranoia, and conspiracy theories. And 'The Chief' told him that I toyed w/ the notion of branching out but opted not too. However when I got back from vacation, found a request from 'Big Dick' to meet with him. And totally blindsided, I went. And thus the 'offer' for the promotion was presented to me. Because you see, 'Big Dick' has not had luck with his employees. One employee just up and quit in the middle of the day last summer, then Claire transfered to a different department. Then the director of our department gave 'Big Dick' a girl from upstairs who this past summer pulled a Houndini as well and abandonded the posistion. Which leaves 'Big Dick' with just one employee who care about, and like but is as dumb as a bag of rocks, and so incompetant she can't even take a message down. (If you've been following the blog I think you'll know who this one is.) But I digress. At this meeting with 'Big Dick' he explains to me that they are not going to be hiring any other help on for my posistion, enabling to move me up the chain. That he knows I am bored out of my skull, and that he really needs me with him, as he has no support. And if I do not take this posistion, that I could possibly be phased out because 'changes are coming' and yada, yada, yada that I have no choice but to accept the promotion (and pay increase) to be his Administrative Assistant. I am also to keep this a secret, and not even tell 'The Chief.' He also wasn't able to tell me when this transfer back to him would be taking place, as due to my leaving the posistion they would have to hire my replacement, and I would have to train that person.
But people....as we know, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Because with this new posistion I am now under 'Big Dick's' thumb. I am not to socialize with any of my co-workers or friends from different offices or departments. (This includes 'The Chief', and my best friend) during business hours, I am not to discuss anything that goes on in my (Old) new office with anyone, and I am, and I quote 'being asked to refrain from taking my breaks with any other employees'. Do I need to repeat myself? Refrain from taking my breaks with any other employees.
So...there will be no laughter, no music, no smiling or making eye contact with anyone. Let alone 'Squirrel', if and when he works at my building. Not that he mentioned 'Squirrel', but you can get the idea from all else I have just mentioned. (See past posts on the guy I like. As that is his nickname, unbeknownst to him.) 'The Chief' can't believe this is going down, and there are alot of other crap that I can't even get in to on here because (a) t is just too much to post, (b) who knows who may be reading this, (c) it is just so petty.
Now I am in the process of training this older, and scary woman who they brought over from a different department of my company to fill my spot. She is just not hppy being there, doesn't want to learn, and when she decides to go to the restroom, treks across the building anddisappears for a good 20 minutes. I found out Friday night that she saw me and Claire talking in the restroom (which we were) and then she had the nerve to go bitch to my friend that I left her for 30 minutes to discuss her. UH-SHAH....I don't think so. Theyve also interviewed this girl who more than likely will be hired to take over my other duties and act as back up to old-lady. And I am glad if they do hire this person, because she has a brain and can help out 'The Chief'.
However now I will be required to train two people, and I am not happy about being forced to take this transfer. I was the one who originated my posistion, so although it is mundane, and frustrating, and not a rewarding posistion I don't want to see anyone else have it. And they'll all be having fun, and goofing around with all my friends in the back. People I am no longer allowed to even glance at. And what if the people I worked with decide they like her better than me or even worse (that she's a better worker than me)? And to top it off, I'll be stuck with 'Big Dick' and inept employee who is on her way out anyway? Doomed is what I am. DOOMED. All because I do a damned good job and 'Big Dick' couldn't face losing another employee.

I have come to despise the people I 'work' with

Once upon a time, I loved coming to work, at the place where I work. I believe I've mentioned that in several of my past posts about the ninth ring of hell that I work in. My boss, 'The Chief' is fine to work for; a fair boss, and a nice man. However there are other people in my department who just make me want to hurl something (most times the desire to hurl something SHARP) at them. To date, this has been 'Big Dick', who was formally refered to as 'Big Bad.'

Let me digress....I basically have no office support in my department any longer. A (now ex-employee) last summer just upped and walked out in the middle of a morning. Claire transfered to another department recently. The girl whom they moved in to her Claire's old posistion decided to pull a vanishing act (aside from going out on maternity leave.) So we're expecting her to come back at the end of this year, but WHO REALLY KNOWS. So now that leaves: YOURS TRULY, a part-timer (who is refered to as 1/2 the bane to my existance), and another woman who we'll kindly refer to as 'Queen Bee.'

'Queen Bee' now has to spend a few hours each day filling in the slot that Claire used to have. Part-time girl is never here, even when she IS here. And 'Big Dick'? Well, he just is worse than ever, making his usual sweeps through my office, trying to be large and in charge on things he can't even figure out. He has now enforced a nor personal phone call rule for both cell phones or desk phones. I am not even allowed to talk to Claire during work hours, or make eye contact with her if she comes to my office on business related issues. God forbid I have to use the ladies room. OH.....MY...GOD. If the phone goes to voice mail, 'Big Dick' goes in to a tizzy. Then he calls me, looking to see if Part-Time Girl is in my office. Because, you know heaven forbid she do something known as work.

Anyway, my biggest gripe is being that 'Queen Bee' chips in and spends a few hours each day helping out, she has taken to treating me like HER personal employee. And with that, I share with you an e-mail I got from her, and then also the one I sent back in reply. Perhaps I should not have...but I was so mad, that what my reply was...was the most neutral I could come up with.

e-mail to me: Subject: ADT Alarm Notifications

Hi Rose,

In the event that ADT calls the Helpdesk about an alarm, I want to make sure you know that details of the alarm should be noted and passed on to a supervisor/manager right away. Be sure to find out; what type of alarm, what site, zone, etc. Additionally, it doesn’t hurt to get the name of the person calling. Please don’t forward these calls to anyone, particularly if you’re not certain they are at their desk.

Call me if you have any questions – this email is just a reiteration for future reference.

Thanks!
'Queen Bee' (I had to change her name here for my safty.)

e-mail from me back to 'Queen Bee'

'Queen Bee',
And who would that be? Because basically it’s just me. Can it be established as to what the procedure is if no supervisors are available to take an ADT call?

Working in hell does not even allow you a day off in peace

I don't even know how much of this to post as it is mainly all on speculation. Yesterday I woke up late for work (when on summer hours, I need to leave my house between 7:30-7:40 to ensure I get to the office for 8am.) Yesterday, what time did I wake up? You guess it, 7:30am. At first I rushed around like a chicken without it's head, then said what the hell. I'd take the day (although it was a crappy one, because I had time to do it, and plus I had hoped to sleep.)
Well, sleeping in wasn't happening as mom and Ida wanted me to run errands with them (which was fine.) And by the time we got home, at like 2 in the afternoon, I went upstairs and took a 3-hour nap. So I DID get my sleeping in.
But then this morning as I called a co-worker to alert her to traffic problems, we got to talking and I found out that there was only ONE office support person (and I call her that as she is not an admin. asst. AND because she is only a part-timer in the office. I called in sick, and the other girl who works in the office with 1/2 of the bane of my existance had a scheduled day off. OOOPPS! My bad! But in all fairness, when I called and left the message saying I wouldn't be in, told them to call the house should they need me.
However what is totally weird is that people knew I was out sick yesterday. People who really don't need to know or shouldn't be effected by my being out today. One of the mucky-mucks was in my office this morning when I came in, and he asked me how I was. I found it odd, yet nice that he had asked me. It was very alarming. Then I heard 'The Chief', my boss on the phone with someone whose voice I didn't recognize ('The Chief' was on speaker), and the other party informed him that two other people and myself were out yesterday. So my question is: just how many people know I was out? And why do they know? And who told them I was out? I'm not THAT important to the department, that everyone needs to know my daily activity. Or am I....and they're just keeping it a secret so as not to blow my ego up?
Either way you look at it; even those of us who commute to hell to earn a living are not allowed to take a day off in peace. So I guess that means I really am working in hell.

Craziness in the work place which is filled with crazies!

So I was driving home the other day, and thinking about my blog and how I have been able to update it more frequently, after practically abandoning it. Then it hit me, what had started out as a venting spot for me about my job and co-workers has not had any gripes about what is going on here. So here we go, because I’ve got a bunch to catch you all up on!

1. ‘Big Bad’ (my old boss) will now be referred to as ‘Big Dick’ because; well he can be such a dick. And it’s sad because he used to be so nice, and a really great person to work for or with. But he has these back-stabbing, underhanded ways about him. And he thinks that everyone is like him. For example, one of the departments in my company has food provided for them (such as bagels or cookies, or snacks) and one day there was an excessive amount left over. Well the bagels were brought in to ‘Big Dick’s’ office, and when a co-worker of mine went to snag one for her lunch…there were NONE to be found! Where did the bagels go? Because they didn’t leave the office, and the fridge there was crammed with jellies, and butter and cream cheese. He smuggled the bagels out to bring home, and this wasn’t the first time he has done something like this.


2. But that’s nothing. Because ‘Big Dick’ does this walk-thru thing thru my office. Another example: we have two doors in to my ‘cave’, (1) from the parking lot, (1) from the warehouse. And what ‘Big Dick’ does is come in from one entrance, and just walks thru the office and out the other door. No stopping to fax, copy, or talk to anyone such as my boss (the nice boss.) ‘Big Dick’ just does this to see what we were doing, if we were socializing or goofing off. One day he did this 3 times within a ten-minute span and even my boss was like ‘what the hell is that?’


3. When I had started working here, I would make cakes for peoples birthdays, and we would have small get-togethers but then some freaks on the second floor (who must have been deprived of birthday parties growing up) made it such an ordeal that for the past year Claire and I have tried to STOP the cake festivities. So what happened now? Well ‘Big Dick’ decided that we should have a bagel party for a PART-TIME employee who used to be ½ of ‘bane to my existence’. She still does nothing. I mean she SO DOES NOTHING, that she has people walk down her paperwork for her, from her office to mine or vice versa. So you can understand my griping that she should NOT have a bagel party to ‘celebrate her five years of hard work.’ Well Orelinde made a boo-boo, a BIG one. I had e-mailed a co-worker of mine a comment, and she had replied, but somehow it had gotten back to me and ‘Big Dick’. So now ‘Big Dick’ is actually shunning me, for the past two days because I was the one who passed a comment. He will not talk to me or look at me. If he does his walk thru, he actually makes a point to talk to everyone other than me. Like this hurts me. What am I five? Am I supposed to cry over this? I don’t think so….but this just proves that ‘Big Bad’ has turned in to ‘BIG DICK’.

4. I have a crush on someone in my company. And I don’t know why. I also know that once a certain someone reads this blog she is going to flip-her-lid. There’s a man who works for my company in a management position. He is not sociable, and does not even has people skills for the most part. Many people outright dislike him, and say he has NO sense of humor. In fact when I had started working here, ‘Big Dick’ tried to convince me that this guy was trying to cause problems for me. And perhaps this guy who I’m crushing on was. But this man has been in my building on special projects for about 8 months, (not on a daily basis) and we have a nice relationship when he is here. I even get him to laugh (which as rumor has it, he NEVER does), and he has even joked with me and my sidekicks. Has he changed completely? Absolutely not. And I’m not dumb enough to think that he is all sunshine and flowers, because he is very quiet, and ‘all businesses for most of the time he’s here. He’s older than me, as in old enough to be my father probably…and also is married. SO THERE’S NO WAY I WOULD EVEN ACT ON ANYTHING. If there was even anything to act on. Because there’s not. But I still have a work crush on him.

5. Claire is no longer in my department. She has moved on, in the company to a different department, and even floor. And I’m happy for her. But I still miss her.

6. I still have the other half of ‘bane to my existence’ sitting in the cube next to me. He’s as loud as ever and just as annoying, if not more so. I have found that I can tune him out from time to time which may or may not be good. He sings, whistles, drums, and makes siren noises. He sings and whistles so loud, that if he leaves the office, we can hear him for some time. ‘Bane to my existence’ thinks he is the shiznit but really he’s just a peon. All he does is complain, complain, and complain about all the work he does…yet he was the one who begged for it. Now he wants to hand payroll back over to me to handle. And if that’s the case fine. But I’m not volunteering to take it off his hands. In fact I believe he will now be referred to as ‘Bane to my existence’. I think he’s earned that full title.

And that pretty much sums it up I’m sure there will be more crap to talk about in the future about the crazies I work with. But I think you guys have enough to digest, and maybe even pity me.