What have you done today at work?
 

So far today I've--

--electronically filed a pleading in state court
--electronically filed a pleading in fed. bankruptcy ct.
--tried to figure out how to put up a zoning reapplication sign (still working on that one)
--spilled my boss's coffee all over his computer (cough)
--apologized about 5 times
--circulated 2 different orders for signature
--tried to explain to my boss that yes, I already did what he asked me to (after explaining it to him twice previously)
--mail, phone, fax, blah blah blah

so--how's your day going?

not much today - it's been slow

certified payrolls
answer the phone
read stories online
make copies
read more stories online

that sums it up!!

Tell you when I have a minute -as a full time "involved" parent, I'm still working.... ;)

Well, I came into work late since my daughter was in a school play I wanted to see. If I had been here on time, I would have helped with the 17 contract attorneys I hired for a couple week long project that started today. We also had another 13 temps for three different groups that I had brought in. I really should have been here to make sure everything went smoothly in their arrival, but oh well.

After I did arrive, I
-tracked down the ownership of several dozen boxes of files stored in a regional office so we can get rid of them
-arranged for a handful of temps to come in for a few new projects that came up
-talked about how to deal with a personnel issue between two constantly bickering employees
-answered a bunch of various admin questions
-got one woman who wasn't busy to help out a guy who needed help printing out tons of documents
- sent a couple e-mails authorizing access to different systems for various people
-answered several calls
-passed a crappy important project off to someone who doesn't know it was crappy, or isn't burnt out yet on that type of project (more likely)
-avoided calling someone back until the problem fixed itself

This morning I got up ,
SSS ( Shit Shower Shave ) ,
Called my boss , nothing was up , he said he would call me later
Turned on the puter and got a cup of coffie ,
Watched Shawnee melt down here on the cellar ,
Porn surfed some ,
read some news and general web browseing ,
Heated up some meatballs for lunch ,
Spilled said meat balls All over the kitchen and my self ,
CUSSED ,
Threw a fork ( sticking it in the wall , FUCK !!!!! now I have to fix THAT to !!!)
Cleaned up the meat balls ( with Oliver's help ( our Boston terrier ))
Fixed the Fucking wall ,
Fixed my self some ramen noodles ( a little onion and some left over Brat) :yum:
Ran the weed eater,
messed around in the shed some ,
My boss called , I have things to do tomorow YAHHH !!!
Finished messing around in the shed ,
Fired up the puter again ,
Saw that Shawnee had Melted WAY down and been banned ( sucks to be her ) ,
Now I am comptemplateing a beer .

That has been my day so far .

I love it that you fixed the wall right away before eating lunch.

Nothing...because I didn't work today. Though, if anyone would like to know what I've done today, you can get the jist of it at The Bosque.

stories, Jester? what kind of stories?

Hmm.

First call from Palm Springs, Sales mgr can't see wifi network. Solved, ten minutes.

Call from UK sales manager. *Can* see internet, can't see email. cell phone battery dying, solved by giving backup plan for webmail. Credentials, same credentials, work fine so local outlook/profile is hosed. Arranged for followup call next week.

President comes in, we setup xfer of 30 gb files from ext hd to new laptop. moving g - l - a - c - i - a - l - y slow. May not complete in my lifetime. decided a couple of times today to press on, not interrupt and restart. installed r/c sw on it, and new camera sw on it.

cycled backup tapes. gave the logs a kiss and a promise.

checked with dbadmin why uk rep's creds no longer match what's on record. matches her record. My bad.

delivered wireless router and wireless travel router to cfo, promised to give cocktail napkin sketch of install routine at installer's convenience.

took return call from tech support on other coast for inventory software. Three days after I called. :rar: Could repeat error, sent offending script, resent offending script with extension camoflauged, later sent sshot of exact error text. resumed waiting for help.

returned attention to new computer for vp of international sales. verified application list to be installed, some now, some after next trip. carefully recorded setup steps to be developed into new laptop configuration SOP document. (this process is still underway as we speak)

The installation of the apps and the transfer of her data is ongoing.

somewhere in there I had a bowl of noodles and .... 2 - 3 pots of coffee. Also called MrsV (home sick) and woke her from her recuperation. Big points there, I can tell you. I did wait til the pm, though.

the day is young!

i'm a sucker for romance stories - there's several sites online
that you can read for free - some are short - some you can download pdf - 100 to 200 pgs.

ah. I read slash (male/male romance stories based on TV shows, etc.). Fairly lame, but addictive. So, just wondered!

1. Received frantic phone call from somebody saying they've hosed up a database--could I pleeeeease restore last night's backup? Why, of course I can. Just calm down. It's not a big deal. Everything's fine.

2. Go to restore the backup and discover the backups are, in fact, completely fucked up.

3. Go throw myself on my sword explaining the backup problem. Assist the other folks in discovering whether the database screwup is going to cause information in related systems to become corrupt.

4. In the course of #3 discover that the database is not, in fact, messed up--in spite of the fact that it generated a report several hundred pages long explaining how many rather important records have been purged.

5. Receive via interoffice mail (with no return address, so I don't know who's responsible) a letter from a large corporation explaining that they need us to give them some information for some tax forms relating to some equipment they donated to us. They want this by April 15. (The letter was dated April 4.)

6. Learn third-hand that an extremely big wheel tried to call the main switchboard and got a recording saying that the number did not exist. Try to contact this person directly to collect picky details such as what number was called, from inside or outside, etc. and find that he's mysteriously disappeared.

OK

Rather unusually, kids got ready for school on time, so no yelling required. took them to bus stop.

Came home, made tea, glued pictures in an alphabet book.

Showered, got all my stuff together for the rest of the day, drove to the kids' school.

Taught a Focus Study (may need to scroll down on link) called Alphabet City. Day 9/10 -a little frantic. Kids (grades 1&2) were all on planet wtf. They are making their own alphabet books (all the same ...ish), with letters found in the environment (e.g. drain cover = o, Arched window = D, half a butterfly = B.....), photographed (upper and lower case for each letter), printed and stuck in a book. Also taking pictures of collages of object beginning with each letter, and learning ASL alphabet. Each kid makes their own book to take home plus we (I) make one to present to the school library.

Waited for son to finish school (morning kindergarten). Sat in library and went through the kids' alphabet books checking which pictures they were missing, finding them, putting them in the right pages ready for them to stick in tomorrow (last day). Got halfway through.

Went to ice rink to practice the last move I need to pass Basic 6 Figure Skating. Last class is next Wednedsay. I WILL PASS!!!! :lol: Forgot to take DVD player to entertain kindergartener, but he surprised me by saying "it's OK, I'll read my books" instead of throwing a tantrum. And he did. Bless.

Home to do some fundraiser paperwork for the school, the treasury work for the swim team, deal with emails, check cellar, get shocked over Shawnee.....

Big kids home, rain eases up temporarily so do not go to meet bus.

general "how was your day"/plan for the evening chatter

take oldest to swim practice

Do accounting and billing for USA swimmers for swim club

Go to pick swimmer up, car pool another, pass on bills....

Hunt for lost goggles....
(grrrr brand new, they NEVER lose them when they are old)

Home for dinner, beer.

Check on publishing company website, it's down, deal with that

Now off to do the rest of the Alphabet City checking, sorting cutting, sticking and cussing.

then more of the school scrip fundraiser paperwork.

Then i'll probably come and post drunk on here. :D

Shit, typing all that made me realise I haven't done any laundry yet. eek!

--Worked on an ad.

--Overheard an obnoxious customer up front, demanding a discount, "because the owner always gives me one! Call the owner!" Blah blah blah.

--Called the store phone from my cell, told person at the counter to tell him "No," as he tries to pull that crap all the time.

--Replied to a couple of emails.

--Get concerned call from MB about message left by person at counter, but Mr. Obnoxious is looking at stuff near my office door, so I say I'll talk to him later. MB starts flipping out a little. (I should have just gone out to the front in the first place and took care of it, but I'm all crampy and cranky today and didn't feel like dealing with it.)

--Worked on ad some more. Ate my soup.

--Mr. Obnoxious makes his purchase (sans discount) and leaves. I hear the store phone ring, and person at counter giving MB the scoop. Then I call MB and apologize for freaking him out.

--MB brings me a grilled cheese. I eat it while continuing work on the friggin ad.

I had a crap day today. I'll tell you about it tomorrow...hmmm..working again tomorrow. I'll tell you about it Sunday.

eh gads - monster - how do you do it

cloud - you could still "google" free reads and maybe find
something you like

consistently on these couple of threads I've posted, the hardest workers--are the moms.

Work from yesterday since I do most of my work late at night:

The educational software company I do contract audio for picked up a new corporate client (major snack food supplier, needs safety/training courses for their warehouse distribution centers.) The client did not select me for the voice, which would usually mean I'm out of the loop entirely, but then I was informed that the random programmer who has been running the daytime sessions of non-me voiceactors since I had the baby has been laid off. They had cobbled together enough knowledge to get the recordings done without help, mostly thanks to the voiceactress being sorta familiar with the system they have, and now just needed me to edit the files. Okay, no problem.

Of course the files were all screwed up from an organization standpoint--in the wrong folders, useless default names like "Audio 1_01," out of order from the script they were supposed to be following--but eventually I got everything sorted out, and then wrote up a manifesto about naming conventions and how they need to be setting things up in the future. Finished everything up just after 11:00 PM.

The project manager thanked me and said ominously, "We're going to be needing you a whole lot now that Joe's gone, more than you're doing right now." I casually didn't respond to this, because what I was thinking was, "That's nice beyotch, but I'm not putting my kid in daycare and you can't make me so your 'need' better just scale itself back to whatever I'm willing to provide." As long as it doesn't require me to go into the office though, the extra hours are nice.

Got a commercial or something you can post on CMEP? I'm curious to hear your voice work. Do you have a distinctive voice, like those raspy movie coming attraction voice overs? Or are you "everywoman?"

I have an... interesting voice. I don't really know how to describe it, although it's definitely distinctive. It's lower-pitched, which is generally good for recording purposes. There's a sample posted on CMEP now. I feel strangely embarrassed about it, which is unusual.

Ahem.

Are you implying that the dads are the hardest slackers? Or that the moms win by a nose at the "hard work" race? Maybe they're just more prolific documenters. Or, like me, a dad, that the interaction outside of the paying gig doesn't seem like work, only like life and not worthy of inclusion in a thread titled, what have you done at work today?

And quit poking me with that stick.

Sort of a Kathleen Turner meets Angie Harmon.

I remember reading somewhere that tests showed that most people learn more from a female voice vs. a male voice.

Yep. Nope. Aw, hell, I dunno.

(hides stick behind ample self)

:p

And another thing...

that "ample self" remark... why, really? first off, we're on the stinkin internet, everyone's the same size. I get a really strong whiff of self-deprecation there. No, it's stronger. Self-debasement. Why? I didn't call you fat. I've never seen you. Granted, we did have a little.. difference about the mom/dad thing. Hardly rises the the level of conflict, nevermind an argument. But I wasn't insulting. When I say you look nice today, don't reply "I look fat!" Ok?

Whether I think so or not is really my business, and if I'm having such a bad day that I need to insult your appearance, you'll know it. There'll be no need to put words in my mouth. But in the meantime, can we leave the insults out? The whole starting a fight by hitting yourself, I hate that. [/rant]

Of course it's not about you, Cloud. I guess it's just time to switch to decaf. Maybe get that particular button disconnected. Sorry, didn't mean to hassle you.

I think I overdid it. :(

I remember being nearly done with the Alphabet books at 2:30 am, I vaguely remember "just lying down for a minute" while something was printing, then I remember my husband yelling at me to wake up and come to bed at 4am. I was asleep on the floor in the family room surrounded by my pictures and paper trimmings. So I did. I managed to brush my teeth, but I forgot to take my lenses out. So now they've been in my eyes for 31 hours, but if I take them out i'm afraid my eyes won't let me put any back in and I hate wearing glasses -especially when I'm tired. and boy am I tired.

So today:

Kids to the bus, shower, gather up all the stuff and everything for this morning, off to school. Almost finished the Alphabet books in the class (4 pics left to do), stayed behind a couple of hours and got it done. Checked in this weeks delivery for the fundraiser, sorted out the orders and left those ready at school, went ice skating for half an hour, came home. Now I'm here. I'm going to have a cup of tea, then i need to get my daughter's soccer and ice skating stuff together, my fundraiser stuff as I run a "store" at the school on a Friday afternoon, a few other bits and pieces for Science olympiad, then it's off back to school (which is a 20 minute drive as it's on the other side of town).

school finishes at 2:54 (yes I really neeed to get a move on, but I want my tea), the oldest two go to Science olympiad, the little one reads or plays on the computers. They finish at 5, hubby will stop by on his way home from work to grab the boys, daughter and I will stray for soccer at 6 then go to her ice class at 6:55. Then we will come home, eat (lovely hubs will have cooked) and I'm going to collapse on the sofa and beg for a massage. :D

urp?

I think we need MORE caffeine. MORE caffeine for BigV and Cloud, and definately for Monster.

Slurp. Slurrrrrrrrp.

--ziiiing--whizzzzzz--bang----

:)

Well, today I haven't been there yet, since it's only mid afternoon.

Last night, though ...

Saw four nuts, three families with roaming nuts, and took a couple dozen phone calls. Argued with one insurance company over why we should get paid for keeping a nut, searched through some seriously nasty homeless crack whore's property, had a mother scream at me for about 15 minutes as she refused to come inside and talk to me like a civilized person, drank 24 oz coffee, ate one oriental chicken salad in a wonderful crispy bowl and smoked about half a pack of cigarettes. Made one joke that made coworkers uncomortable (about people making me do things that they will regret) and used several puns that I am too embarassed to mention regarding a crazy woman who happened to be wearing a wig, so you can figure those out on your own, recognized that the African tribeswoman with AK and ipod IOTD would likely be misinterpreted by black female American doctor (the black male African doctor would probably be amused, since he's from a more cosmopolitan part of the continent) chose not to make it the wallpaper on boss' computer, found out that the taste of Welch's Grape Soda has not changed, had a minor freakout regarding no staples in the stapler on top of the copier, and no box of staples nearby where and when I needed them, admitted that I have to keep focus on the small and stupid crap over which I have some measure of control because if I focus on the big stuff, I'll probably totally lose it, drove home in a massive rainstorm but got to see lots of lightning, which makes things okay. I like lightning.

mom or dad - doesn't matter - it can be a struggle to get everything done that needs to be done. deciding what's most important and then everything hopefully falls into place. of course, that doesn't happen often. i guess for the most part my boys are close to being self-sufficient 21 & 16 so it's not like it use to be. i still have a few football practices, games, meetings & things like that, it's just a little slower than before. As Robin Williams said in "Hook", "To live is the greatest Adventure" (sort of):)

:zzz: :zzz: :coffee: :coffee: :coffee:

Did an hour's work in 15 minutes, then talked to a pretty girl for a long time. If I can avoid the talk I might have this 35.5 hour contract finished by the time it's due on Thursday...

I shouldn't be surprised, but you sound really professional. Do you have to practice a text before reading it, or can you read with that perfect enunciation and pace naturally? When I'm reading books to my kids, I always yawn. Must be breathing wrong.

!!!

omg.

I thought I was the only person with that experience. Wild. I didn't associate it with breathing differently, though. I made the connection with reading plus bedtime stories plus cuddled up on the couch plus etc etc. That's verrrry weird.

Then, sometimes when I see they're actually asleep, I quit reading aloud, and continue reading to myself, and the yawning stops. And not tired. Bizarre.

So far ... (6.5 hrs to go) ...

Explained commitment process to mother of adult son who is just plain bad, but avoided telling her outright that spending all of your money on "beer and strip bars" is not a dangerous behavior.
Read email while on phone with frequent caller who tends to ramble and not have any real content.
Got about a third of the shift report, will have to deal with anything pending on the fly.
Wised off to ambulance personnel who asked what is pending ... "All of the County."
Drank 24 oz cold coffee. Iced coffee is a wonderful experience. Cold coffee is not.
Realized I forgot my cell phone for pretty much the first time since I started carrying one. Had to go to cell provider's website to get instructions on how to pick up voicemail remotely, and changed message so that anyone who really needs to get me will call me at work where I won't have time to talk to them anyway.

Thanks. :blush: No practicing; my one uber-skill is cold reading. I very rarely flub a line. But on the other hand, I speak too quickly, my voice tone can vary pretty dramatically from day to day (not good if you're supposed to match previous recordings,) and I run out of steam a little sooner than I should--an hour and a half is about the most I can do at a time unless I go slowly and take frequent sips of water in between lines. I've seen some of the really top professionals go for 8 hours straight, three days in a row.

I had been doing the voicework for that client for about six months when one of them happened to come into my employer's offices and we were introduced. The guy was shocked; they'd all pegged my age at around 40. :neutral:

Let's see....what'd I do today?

Got up at 8.30 with the mother of all hangovers from Alan's wake last night. I'd left the wake for a couple of hours to attend a meeting and watch the postal votes being opened then when I phoned my friend it transpired they were all still in The Woolmerchants, drinking steadily and eating pasta. I joined them and we moved the wake up to Alice's house where it continued to about midnight (it had started at 12.00 straight after the funeral).

I spent 9-10.30 making phone calls to constituents. The main issue at the moment is fly-tipping. I then went to the doctors for the dressing on my hand to be changed .(...explanatory note: two days ago during a six hour leafleting stint I got a little blase having done about 100 hundred houses in a row with no sign of dogs.....my fingers went a little further into a letter box than was entirely wise and a staffordshire bull's jaws closed around them with hideous force. The dog's owner, who was if anything more upset about than i was, let me in the house to clean up and gave me some kitchen roll to wrap around it.....I and my friends continued leafletting for another couple of hours after that and then I went to a council meeting, with hand still wrapped in kitchen towel. I was finally persuaded to go to casualty when it began to throb mightily...I was there for approx. 4 hours and rather embarrassingly I fainted when they tried to strighten the fingers for x-ray))

After the surgery I walked back into town (about a mile and a half) and met one of the candidates from a neighbouring ward and another local activist and we went off to Sowerby Bridge armed with bags of leaflets. We delivered approx. 700 leaflets in a very hilly area, this time nobody got bitten :P ....though Dave did get chased by a rottweiler.

We finished around 4.30 and went for a (2) quick pint (s), then i hightailed it to my own ward and delivered leaflets for my ward colleague/candidate for about another 2 hour after that.

I got home around 8 o'clock and checked my emails, responded to a few and left the rest for tomorrow. Made a couple of phone calls to arrange tomorrow's leafleting. Settled down to tv around 9 pm.

Only two hours on Friday, today turned into 2hr45m; got distracted/personally invested in making some threads fit. The shop bought a threadmill holder & a few sets of carbide inserts earlier this week. Thus far we can cut beautiful threads, but haven't yet found how much clearance to leave between internal and external. Had a nice moment of moving lots of metal fast; hogged out about a 1.75 x 1.125 cylinder of aluminum in a minute or so.

Pretty good day so far.

All I can say is that I put in 105 hours this week ( in 6 days) and I am looking forward to doing nothing for the next two days...

Someone get me a cold one. :D

When you are reading, do you just read the words off the page like a machine, or do you mentally follow the topic as you are reading? Again, the only thing I do that can compare is reading to my kids, and half the time I read to them, I'm just reading the words off the page and not really paying attention to the same old stories I've read a hundred times before.

Depends on how inane the topic is. :) A lot of the sales courses use endless bullshit jargon (the sample I gave had a little of that, but wasn't the worst by far) but some of the others, like some I did for a new home builder, are imparting actual information so they're more interesting. Usually it's a short-term memory thing--I'll follow while I read, but after I leave it all gets completely purged, and I won't even recognize the lines as I'm editing them just a couple hours later.