Well... here we are again. I know that I want to update my journal, but all I can think about is work.

Let's just get it out of the way. The President of the company comes into the IT department today and, since I am on the phone, goes over to Travis and says, "You guys need to be more responsive to the sales reps when they call. Could you please tell Joshua that for me since he's on the phone?" Now, obviously I'm paraphrasing because I can only relay what Travis told me. WHAT THE HELL?!?! I don't know how to be "more responsive" than: having two pagers and a cell phone strapped to my waist like I'm a Batman wannabe, having my office phone constantly ringing off the hook, and getting email requests for help. Perhaps the fact that I am the ONLY resource for an 80 person salesforce, all customers who have our software and most of the office staff should imply that we need more people in IT. But no, it only means that I need to be more responsive - since I can't answer more than one phonepageremail at a time. My favorite thing is that when someone calls my office phone and I don't answer, they call my cell phone. If I still don't answer, they say that I'm "unresponsive". I guess the fact that I just might be in the middle of helping someone or that I TAKE A FUCKING BATHROOM BREAK EVERY NOW AND THEN never crosses their minds. Of course, what doesn't cross their mind is to LEAVE ME A MESSAGE! They just start dialing numbers as if I have nothing better to do than sit around watching DVDs on my computer waiting for their phone call. Then, when the phone rings, I laugh out loud and say,"HA! I am watching a movie! Better luck next time!!" By the way and for the record, I keep track of all contact made with me via any means and I check off everyone as I go down the list. I rarely miss returning a call. You don't believe me... but it's true. I really don't like to leave the office without making sure I've checked off everyone thereby signifying that I have called them back and resolved their issue.

I made a sign. I'm thinking of making some more. My sign says, in huge letters made with marker, "I am on the phone!" That's for the idiots who come to the door of the IT dept. and knock until their knuckles bleed. I refuse to interrupt my phone call to open the door. It may sound harsh, but I have learned that if I put the phone down to get the door - whoever it is wants "just a minute" and then I end up spending lots of time with them. Nothing takes "just a minute". Especially if you're a whiny salesman. Especially when all you want is for me to interrupt my helping out a customer or colleague just because you used to have your background color set as blue and now it's red and you want me to change it. OK, so that would only take a minute. But don't dwell on that or you'll miss the point. The point is - you have no right to interrupt me or call me unresponsive because I am in the middle of helping someone else. You have no right to demand that I stop what I'm doing because your colors are different in some program, or your icons have been resized, or your fonts have changed. You don't even have the right to interrupt me when you wait until 30 minutes before the cutoff time and you have the "blue screen of death". I don't give a shit what your problem is if I am in the middle of helping someone.

In other news.... I came home, worked out, cleaned out the car and now I'm writing. If that's not a total stress-relief package, I don't know what is. I do feel better. Now if I could just go get something to eat and take a shower, life would be grand. Until tomorrow when I get to drive two hours to fix a problem that our corporate help desk couldn't figure out. So I hope my entry tomorrow doesn't start out, "I couldn't fix the problem either..." Now that I'm being all high and mighty, I'll be just as stumped as the rest of 'em. That's life.

About 50 of my closest friends have started their own journals, I think on Diaryland. I'm really not sure yet. All I know is that when I got home Amanda said that some people (OK, it's not really 50) had started their own journals. I'm sort of interested to see what comes from all of this. And a little bit not excited too. It's nice to be all anonymous - although anyone with half a brain could visit my brother's site and figure out exactly who I am. It's scary to think that people I see everyday will eventually read this and have the power to use it against me. So, from the start let me just say "Fuck you". Don't worry - everyone I know will think that's funny. Well, everyone I am aiming that at anyway. Seriously, I have great friends. I have the best set of friends now that I have ever had. Nevermind that fraternity bullshit. All that got me was poor from paying dues and a bunch of shirts with cute nicknames on them. I sleep in them. Wash the car in them. Mow the lawn, you get the picture. And along the same lines, I have a better life right now than I thought I would at this point. I have a great wife, a great house, great car, some of my friends and family are having babies - getting their own family started, I'm employed (yes, I'm thankful although I complain).

There's a lot to be happy about. Still I complain. It makes me feel selfish sometimes. Sometimes it makes me feel good. Sometimes all ya gotta do is watch about ten minutes of Jerry Springer and you know your life is better than 99% of the population. My wife has all her own teeth, doesn't sleep with my father or brother - or her father or brother for that matter, I'm not a transvestite lesbian schizophrenic obsessive-complusive manic-depressive nun who wants to run the first topless women's shelter. See? Life could be worse.

OK, OK. Enough of this for now. Next entry will at least have some structure to it....

previous - next

duh - 2008-09-15

hi mac - 2006-12-12

corporate whore - 2006-11-03

new - 2006-10-05

elvis costello sings for you - 2006-09-27

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What I Read(for fun and amusement)

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HERE