All hands prepare to surface!
I've been away from LJ for so long I feel like I should have some sensationalistic drama to enthrall you all. You, the throngs of loyal readers of my LJ.
*cough cough*
Things have been rather too normal. And busy. And Boring. I guess with enough arsescratching, there might be a few noteworthy items I can dredge up.
Most noteworthy and recent. Unbeknownst to me, I've apparently been a bit down in the dumps at work lately. It started Monday with Bob (president and supreme commander) stopping by my office to give me a pep talk after our weekly project meeting*. Then yesterday morning JB did the same thing. He asked if more money would help get me back on track. Huh? Before I could answer, he was off and I concluded that was the end of that, as is usually the case with the periodic disingenuous concern for coworkers that seems to afflict this place from time to time. Later in the morning, both JB and Bob appear in my office. What the fuck is up with this? Do I look suicidal or something?
After being asked to vent about why my enthusiasm has ebbed, Bob and JB conclude that more money is the solution. All I could think of is the commercial where the bloke dumps a bag of coin on the table when asked for a solution, to which another bloke replies, "So your solution is to throw money at the problem?" As much as I've bitched about compensation falling far shy of responsibility, there were a few other things running through my mind. When Graeme bought all of the company, I told him I'd be willing to keep current rate of pay (or even stay at the then reduced rate) to help the company get back on its feet - so long as I wasn't the only one making such sacrifice. Much has happened since then, of course, and I keep telling myself I shouldn't feel duplicitous for accepting a raise now. I tried to make it clear that while more money always helps, I'd still be a cranky bastard as long as the constant interruptions and other bullshit continue. Everyone seems to have short term memory loss when they ask why last week's work isn't finished yet. Or is it they're such simpletons they can't deduce I cannot be down in the shop working on a chiller and sitting at my desk simultaneously? Though I tried every means to have them understand that money is only part of a much larger equation, I fear they concluded throwing money at the problem is the magic cure.
Ever since, I've been having mixed feelings about the prospect of a pay increase. Yes, prospect. Bob never really said what he was going to do, and nothing close to specifics was discussed. As with any discussion or meeting here, usually that means expect very little. I told Graeme that I'd stay where I was until the company can afford more. Right now, with so many projects underway, the company has to focus on floating them. After the busy season would be a better time. It bothers me that I'll appear to him to be reneging. And I suspect that if this comes to pass, they'll expect a Shiny New Mike. I'm not sure I can keep the pretense of being shiny or new in this world of bullshit. Oh yeah, then there's Cynical Mike. Given the capriciousness of this place, I keep thinking not to expect much, if anything. All this worry for Mike's welfare could fade as quickly as it appeared. And then I wonder why I always have to become mired down in all this bullshit. Why can't I just enjoy when something good (potentially) happens?
So, Bob, your solution is to throw money at the problem? How fucked up am I for thinking that? Would it help convince you if I'm now thinking it's better to be all depressed than to perform well on the job? OK, I'd better stop now.
In other news, I've installed a new furnace in my house. Well, a boiler, to be exact. I have oil fired hot water heat. The old boiler was installed in March of 1960. I know this because the former owner wrote the date on a plank used to mount a light switch on the basement wall. By my calculations, it was about 46% efficient. Oil prices drove me to do what I should have done long ago anyway. It was well overdue to give out at any moment.
I really enjoy these little home projects I create for myself. I do. Honestly. But this one turned out to be much bigger than I'd expected. I'm sure it was comical to watch Mike's skinny ass roll the new 542 pound boiler down the driveway at 11:00pm one Friday night. Or to see him wrestle the old - and much heavier one - out of its 45 year home. And then the water line I cut with a Sawzall after insisting it couldn’t have water in it, only to have a geyser shoot across the basement! Eventually my soldering skills came back to me, but not after creating some cute little dingleberries on a couple 1-1/2" pipe joints. I left them for posterity to gaze upon in awe or to perhaps one day become objects of worship. The project expanded to include a new oil line, because, after all, why not replace it while we're at it? In the same while we're at it vein, we now have a shiny new white GFCI outlet in the kitchen. I even flaunted my masonry skills by slopping in the new flue pipe. I added a run of baseboard heat to the basement, completely rewired the furnace circuit, and just about electrocuted myself in the panel while making the final connections. Now I've had my hands in many a hot breakerbox before. This one has a hidden skinned wire, which found me momentarily, only to return quickly to its former obscurity. "Did you get shocked?" my wife inquired after I jumped. This, only moments after I sternly warned her about poking her finger around inside an electrical cabinet.
"Did it look like I got shocked?" I tested.
"Well, you sure seemed startled, if you hadn't been," she responded, knowing the answer now even without my confirmation.
"I guess it's time to stop ignoring that old knob and tube wiring from 1935."
She never took advantage of the situation by turning my warning back upon me. Funny thing is, I never even lost rhythm turning the screwdriver.
It didn't help that the little time I had nights and weekends seemed to be sucked up by some emergency or unrealistic deadline at the office. Hence my crabbiness. Fortunately for me, the weather held out beautifully until I was finally able to fire the new boiler up Saturday night. Alright, so it was 2am Sunday morning. Just before I went to the office to check on the chiller I'd been enlisted to work on. Before I go there again, I'll divert my attention by saying the new boiler works awesomely. Whether it saves fuel remains to be seen. We awoke Monday morning to about six inches of snow. My timing is incredible.
I've just thought of a couple other things I could mention here but I think I'll save them for another post. Perhaps then it won't be another two months before you see my periscope here again. Perhaps.
* Weekly Project Meeting = Mercilessly Bash Mike For Not Getting His Work Done While Not Acknowledging We Asked Him To Do A Million Other Things That Are Not Even Remotely Related To His Job Because We're Too Lazy To Do Them Ourselves, Nor Acknowledging That We Interrupt Him Several Thousand Times Each Day.
Of course that is far too long a meeting title, so they just shortened it to Weekly Project Meeting.
*cough cough*
Things have been rather too normal. And busy. And Boring. I guess with enough arsescratching, there might be a few noteworthy items I can dredge up.
Most noteworthy and recent. Unbeknownst to me, I've apparently been a bit down in the dumps at work lately. It started Monday with Bob (president and supreme commander) stopping by my office to give me a pep talk after our weekly project meeting*. Then yesterday morning JB did the same thing. He asked if more money would help get me back on track. Huh? Before I could answer, he was off and I concluded that was the end of that, as is usually the case with the periodic disingenuous concern for coworkers that seems to afflict this place from time to time. Later in the morning, both JB and Bob appear in my office. What the fuck is up with this? Do I look suicidal or something?
After being asked to vent about why my enthusiasm has ebbed, Bob and JB conclude that more money is the solution. All I could think of is the commercial where the bloke dumps a bag of coin on the table when asked for a solution, to which another bloke replies, "So your solution is to throw money at the problem?" As much as I've bitched about compensation falling far shy of responsibility, there were a few other things running through my mind. When Graeme bought all of the company, I told him I'd be willing to keep current rate of pay (or even stay at the then reduced rate) to help the company get back on its feet - so long as I wasn't the only one making such sacrifice. Much has happened since then, of course, and I keep telling myself I shouldn't feel duplicitous for accepting a raise now. I tried to make it clear that while more money always helps, I'd still be a cranky bastard as long as the constant interruptions and other bullshit continue. Everyone seems to have short term memory loss when they ask why last week's work isn't finished yet. Or is it they're such simpletons they can't deduce I cannot be down in the shop working on a chiller and sitting at my desk simultaneously? Though I tried every means to have them understand that money is only part of a much larger equation, I fear they concluded throwing money at the problem is the magic cure.
Ever since, I've been having mixed feelings about the prospect of a pay increase. Yes, prospect. Bob never really said what he was going to do, and nothing close to specifics was discussed. As with any discussion or meeting here, usually that means expect very little. I told Graeme that I'd stay where I was until the company can afford more. Right now, with so many projects underway, the company has to focus on floating them. After the busy season would be a better time. It bothers me that I'll appear to him to be reneging. And I suspect that if this comes to pass, they'll expect a Shiny New Mike. I'm not sure I can keep the pretense of being shiny or new in this world of bullshit. Oh yeah, then there's Cynical Mike. Given the capriciousness of this place, I keep thinking not to expect much, if anything. All this worry for Mike's welfare could fade as quickly as it appeared. And then I wonder why I always have to become mired down in all this bullshit. Why can't I just enjoy when something good (potentially) happens?
So, Bob, your solution is to throw money at the problem? How fucked up am I for thinking that? Would it help convince you if I'm now thinking it's better to be all depressed than to perform well on the job? OK, I'd better stop now.
In other news, I've installed a new furnace in my house. Well, a boiler, to be exact. I have oil fired hot water heat. The old boiler was installed in March of 1960. I know this because the former owner wrote the date on a plank used to mount a light switch on the basement wall. By my calculations, it was about 46% efficient. Oil prices drove me to do what I should have done long ago anyway. It was well overdue to give out at any moment.
I really enjoy these little home projects I create for myself. I do. Honestly. But this one turned out to be much bigger than I'd expected. I'm sure it was comical to watch Mike's skinny ass roll the new 542 pound boiler down the driveway at 11:00pm one Friday night. Or to see him wrestle the old - and much heavier one - out of its 45 year home. And then the water line I cut with a Sawzall after insisting it couldn’t have water in it, only to have a geyser shoot across the basement! Eventually my soldering skills came back to me, but not after creating some cute little dingleberries on a couple 1-1/2" pipe joints. I left them for posterity to gaze upon in awe or to perhaps one day become objects of worship. The project expanded to include a new oil line, because, after all, why not replace it while we're at it? In the same while we're at it vein, we now have a shiny new white GFCI outlet in the kitchen. I even flaunted my masonry skills by slopping in the new flue pipe. I added a run of baseboard heat to the basement, completely rewired the furnace circuit, and just about electrocuted myself in the panel while making the final connections. Now I've had my hands in many a hot breakerbox before. This one has a hidden skinned wire, which found me momentarily, only to return quickly to its former obscurity. "Did you get shocked?" my wife inquired after I jumped. This, only moments after I sternly warned her about poking her finger around inside an electrical cabinet.
"Did it look like I got shocked?" I tested.
"Well, you sure seemed startled, if you hadn't been," she responded, knowing the answer now even without my confirmation.
"I guess it's time to stop ignoring that old knob and tube wiring from 1935."
She never took advantage of the situation by turning my warning back upon me. Funny thing is, I never even lost rhythm turning the screwdriver.
It didn't help that the little time I had nights and weekends seemed to be sucked up by some emergency or unrealistic deadline at the office. Hence my crabbiness. Fortunately for me, the weather held out beautifully until I was finally able to fire the new boiler up Saturday night. Alright, so it was 2am Sunday morning. Just before I went to the office to check on the chiller I'd been enlisted to work on. Before I go there again, I'll divert my attention by saying the new boiler works awesomely. Whether it saves fuel remains to be seen. We awoke Monday morning to about six inches of snow. My timing is incredible.
I've just thought of a couple other things I could mention here but I think I'll save them for another post. Perhaps then it won't be another two months before you see my periscope here again. Perhaps.
* Weekly Project Meeting = Mercilessly Bash Mike For Not Getting His Work Done While Not Acknowledging We Asked Him To Do A Million Other Things That Are Not Even Remotely Related To His Job Because We're Too Lazy To Do Them Ourselves, Nor Acknowledging That We Interrupt Him Several Thousand Times Each Day.
Of course that is far too long a meeting title, so they just shortened it to Weekly Project Meeting.