If you're angry in a tomb, does it raise the dead?
Well, it's Friday in here in the good part of the world. We have a long weekend here in Godzone, it's our national equivalent to a founders day, Waitangi Day. No one actually celebrates it. Most of us are just happy for the excuse for an extra day off work.
Speaking of work, I'd get angry about my job if it weren't so goddamned boring. It's hard to work up an anger when you work in a tomb. It's not actually a tomb, but it might as well be. I signed on for a six month contract working in documentation. Now, I can take anything, even water dripping on my head for six months, but this has been a real test of of my patience. I knew when I signed on that I was way overqualified for the job, but I assumed, that like every other job I've had in the past, that I'd be there a few months, and people would realise that I was capable of much more than entry level work. Honestly, I don't think I've ever been in a job for more than six months without being promoted.
This job started out with me being trained, if you will, for two days before the person I was supposed to replace for a month left for her holiday (Hi, D!). Here's how my boss trained me: He showed me a series of different computer programs that I was supposed to enter data in, then when I would bring him the stuff that I entered, he'd show me my mistakes, and then tell me something absolutely unintelligible about the error. Honestly, it took me the whole fucking month to figure out what the big picture was, so that by the time D returned, I had just gotten the idea of what I was doing. But then I was on to another person and her cast-off job.
And so on and so on. Every little task I do is actually someone else's crap job that they've passed on to me because the more interesting job isn't my responsibility. In fact, the only job in the whole department that I actually understand from beginning to end, the big picture, WHY I do what I do...is the one that wasn't originally part of this department; the sales entry role. In fact, I understand that one well enough that I wrote a little procedure for it. When I leave in a month, it will be the one clear piece of evidence that I existed in that place, and it will actually be useful, because it gives a big picture before getting to the specifics.
But back to the tomb...it's dead quiet in my office 90% of the time. People from other departments remark on it. I blame the oppressive quiet on the boss. I don't think I've ever worked with someone who evinces less personality. The guy is a blank, a Magritte painting. In a world of ones and zeros, he's a zero. In the last two weeks, the guy hasn't said more than two words a day to me, those being: "Good Morning" which he can't avoid since I'm the first person in to work each day.
For the three weeks that he was on holiday, the department was fun. I actually didn't mind the tedious work because we'd break it up with an occasional joke, or we'd listen to music while we worked. People from other departments just dropped in to say hi, and have a laugh. I think we got a reputation for being fun during the boss' hiatus. We still got all the work done, we just did it in a more convivial atmosphere. But now he's back and it's back to being dead quiet and slightly oppressive.
So, yesterday, I went to the personnel manager, and pointed out that my contract would be complete in a month, and asked if I was supposed to give them notice, or was it assumed that the contract date would be my last day. She said, "I think they want to keep you on." I said, "I wouldn't mind staying here, but not in that role. I'm just bored stupid." She said she understood and that she would speak to my boss' boss and that I should leave it with her. Today, she asked me if I'd be interested in another intro level role. I told her that I wasn't interested in working in that capacity. I said, "I'm actually accustomed to being responsible for other people." In other words: I'VE BEEN A MANAGER FOR THE LAST TWENTY YEARS, LADY, HOW LONG DO YOU THINK I CAN TAKE BEING A CLERK? Honest to fuck, you gotta wonder. So, there it sits. Unless they offer me something with a bit of responsibility, and a hefty chunk of change to go with it, I'm a free woman in four short weeks. I just hope I'm not mummified by then.
Speaking of work, I'd get angry about my job if it weren't so goddamned boring. It's hard to work up an anger when you work in a tomb. It's not actually a tomb, but it might as well be. I signed on for a six month contract working in documentation. Now, I can take anything, even water dripping on my head for six months, but this has been a real test of of my patience. I knew when I signed on that I was way overqualified for the job, but I assumed, that like every other job I've had in the past, that I'd be there a few months, and people would realise that I was capable of much more than entry level work. Honestly, I don't think I've ever been in a job for more than six months without being promoted.
This job started out with me being trained, if you will, for two days before the person I was supposed to replace for a month left for her holiday (Hi, D!). Here's how my boss trained me: He showed me a series of different computer programs that I was supposed to enter data in, then when I would bring him the stuff that I entered, he'd show me my mistakes, and then tell me something absolutely unintelligible about the error. Honestly, it took me the whole fucking month to figure out what the big picture was, so that by the time D returned, I had just gotten the idea of what I was doing. But then I was on to another person and her cast-off job.
And so on and so on. Every little task I do is actually someone else's crap job that they've passed on to me because the more interesting job isn't my responsibility. In fact, the only job in the whole department that I actually understand from beginning to end, the big picture, WHY I do what I do...is the one that wasn't originally part of this department; the sales entry role. In fact, I understand that one well enough that I wrote a little procedure for it. When I leave in a month, it will be the one clear piece of evidence that I existed in that place, and it will actually be useful, because it gives a big picture before getting to the specifics.
But back to the tomb...it's dead quiet in my office 90% of the time. People from other departments remark on it. I blame the oppressive quiet on the boss. I don't think I've ever worked with someone who evinces less personality. The guy is a blank, a Magritte painting. In a world of ones and zeros, he's a zero. In the last two weeks, the guy hasn't said more than two words a day to me, those being: "Good Morning" which he can't avoid since I'm the first person in to work each day.
For the three weeks that he was on holiday, the department was fun. I actually didn't mind the tedious work because we'd break it up with an occasional joke, or we'd listen to music while we worked. People from other departments just dropped in to say hi, and have a laugh. I think we got a reputation for being fun during the boss' hiatus. We still got all the work done, we just did it in a more convivial atmosphere. But now he's back and it's back to being dead quiet and slightly oppressive.
So, yesterday, I went to the personnel manager, and pointed out that my contract would be complete in a month, and asked if I was supposed to give them notice, or was it assumed that the contract date would be my last day. She said, "I think they want to keep you on." I said, "I wouldn't mind staying here, but not in that role. I'm just bored stupid." She said she understood and that she would speak to my boss' boss and that I should leave it with her. Today, she asked me if I'd be interested in another intro level role. I told her that I wasn't interested in working in that capacity. I said, "I'm actually accustomed to being responsible for other people." In other words: I'VE BEEN A MANAGER FOR THE LAST TWENTY YEARS, LADY, HOW LONG DO YOU THINK I CAN TAKE BEING A CLERK? Honest to fuck, you gotta wonder. So, there it sits. Unless they offer me something with a bit of responsibility, and a hefty chunk of change to go with it, I'm a free woman in four short weeks. I just hope I'm not mummified by then.
posted by Tarla @ 4:51 pm
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