It's not often that I see something that leaves me speechless, so take note.
Boob Squirrel
Thursday, July 2, 2009
BUSINESS
I really hope this turns out to be a hoax:
$25 Each to Attend Michael Jackson's Memorial Service
and it gets better:
________________________________________
Update: 7/3/09 - Announced that Michael Jackson's Memorial Service will be free... no word on T-shirt sales though.
$25 Each to Attend Michael Jackson's Memorial Service
and it gets better:
T-shirts that were going to be sold on Michael's upcoming "This Is It" tour will not go to waste. They will be sold outside Staples to people entering the service.His life was a circus, I guess his death will be too.
________________________________________
Update: 7/3/09 - Announced that Michael Jackson's Memorial Service will be free... no word on T-shirt sales though.
THE FREEDOM TO STAY HOME
We are finally staying put this weekend and I couldn't be happier.
Ever since our trip to Rome is seems everything has been a blur. Our summers are always like that and I am not complaining.
This weekend, however, we are staying home. We will be hosting a 4th of July Pool Party and rolling out a festival low country boil. We have a stocked beer fridge and after a trip to the farmer's market and grocery store tomorrow we should be good to go.
Here's to our Independence!
Ever since our trip to Rome is seems everything has been a blur. Our summers are always like that and I am not complaining.
This weekend, however, we are staying home. We will be hosting a 4th of July Pool Party and rolling out a festival low country boil. We have a stocked beer fridge and after a trip to the farmer's market and grocery store tomorrow we should be good to go.
Here's to our Independence!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
CHEAPER HOOTCH!
With the economy downturn we've seen a lot more negatives than positives.. but as the pendulum swing the other direction a bit things are starting to get cheaper (still waiting on shoes and clothes! hello?!).
But here's one worth mentioning (we'll take the good news where ever we can get it), according to this article in the Raleigh News & Observer, high end liquor is getting cheaper.. YAY!
Starting Aug. 1, the cost of a half gallon of Grey Goose vodka will drop from $71.95 to $59.95. The cost of a fifth of Absolut vodka will drop from $21.95 to $19.95. And, for those who can afford it, a half gallon of Glenmorangie scotch is slated to sell for $89.95 instead of $99.95.Why the price break?Because the high-end booze has been taking a sales hit as consumers have increasingly turned
to bargain-priced liquor. Distillers of the good stuff are chopping their prices to hang on to recession-weary customers.
Good news for NC!
I gotta say.. I think it's hilarious that they refer to it as "Hootch" on the front page of the news paper.. when I first saw the headline I thought "Hootch" was referring to something like home stilled bathtub liquors..
I love it. I gotta start using that term more.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Father's Day
Happy Father's Day to all the dads and dad's to be out there.
This is a holiday I have ignored for years. Ahh.. Until this year!
When Rob & I first got married I took all holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries related to his family and put them into my address book- I happily added the remembrance of these days and the related activities to my to do list. Except, Father's Day. I told Rob that this would remain his holiday to deal with.
It was pretty nice to have a bye-holiday, you know? One that I didn't even have to think about.
When I was young my father was basically absent from my life (save 10 min phone calls on my birthday and Christmas and the three times I saw him in person from the time I was say 2 or 3 until age 15). My uncles and grandfather happily picked up the slack so I don't think I ever really thought much about it.
My dad remarried immediately after the divorce with my mom was final, which I believe was initiated right about my birth. He lived in another part of the country with his own family. I he wasn't around, but it never seemed like he was "missing."
I generally spent the summers with my grandparents and they like my mom were not my fathers biggest fans so no one ever felt the need to give him a call so I could talk to him or send a card. I remember everyone calling my grandfather for fathers day, but I don't think I ever really associated my own father with this holiday.
When I was 15 my mom decided it was payback time for Dad and she decided to pull me out of everything I had ever known in St. Louis and ship my ass to Galion, Ohio to live with my father, step-mother, half-brother & half-sister.
Long story short, it went pretty much like you'd expect and I was out the door right after graduation.
In retrospect, I learned a lot that I wouldn't have before from living with my father for that period of time. One, I was better off away from my mother. Two, my step-mother is a saint, I don't know how she put up with father. And three, I got to know my dad for the first time in my life.
What I learned is that while he has done some asshole things, he isn't intentionally an asshole. He just doesn't really give a shit about anyone other than himself. It's not malicious, it's the way he's wired. He sees the world differently than I (and a lot of other people) thought he should.
I am here because my mother wanted me. My (.5)brother & sister are here because their mother wanted them. End of story. He was involved when he had to be but there was no wanting to, I don't think those sub-routines were ever in his programming. Possibly a bit with my brother, but otherwise never the case. He saw us as our mothers responsibility end of story.
Technically, he was a father because he donated genetic material. He supported his other kids financially because they lived with him. He supported me financially because my mom went after his navy pensions and forced him to.
I think this is why I never associated him with Father's Day. It never felt fitting or applicable.
I have joked over the years about how I wish they made "Happy Baby's Daddy Day" cards or "Happy Sperm Donor's Day!" cards. I am sure I am not the only one who would have appreciated the additional greeting card options.
So it must have been the year after I graduated college that I realized that my dad wasn't just a heartless asshole, he just didn't see things the same way I did. He is just wired the way he is. Eventually this clicked. This is a hardwired thing, I am sure he was always this way. I can't help but wonder if my mother & step-mom realized it before they had kids or thought that "he'd come around." Knowingly having kids with someone who is just not wired to be a father, sees just irresponsible to me-poor planning at the very least. I know my step-mother knows what he is now, and I am sure it took her a lot of years too to figure it out.
I spent a good portion of my life not wanting kids as a direct result of my experiences with my own parents. I struggled (and still do when thinking about my son) with the idea of putting a child through that. It wasn't until after I had met Rob when it dawned on me I wanted to have children with him and I couldn't even imagine not having children with him.
It took me a long time too to figure out something incredibly important. If nothing else, my whole life with my father has taught me one of the most important lessons ever to be learned. Something I wish all women consciously knew and really thought about.
You don't get to pick your father, but you do get to pick the father of your children.
Choose wisely.
This is a holiday I have ignored for years. Ahh.. Until this year!
When Rob & I first got married I took all holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries related to his family and put them into my address book- I happily added the remembrance of these days and the related activities to my to do list. Except, Father's Day. I told Rob that this would remain his holiday to deal with.
It was pretty nice to have a bye-holiday, you know? One that I didn't even have to think about.
When I was young my father was basically absent from my life (save 10 min phone calls on my birthday and Christmas and the three times I saw him in person from the time I was say 2 or 3 until age 15). My uncles and grandfather happily picked up the slack so I don't think I ever really thought much about it.
My dad remarried immediately after the divorce with my mom was final, which I believe was initiated right about my birth. He lived in another part of the country with his own family. I he wasn't around, but it never seemed like he was "missing."
I generally spent the summers with my grandparents and they like my mom were not my fathers biggest fans so no one ever felt the need to give him a call so I could talk to him or send a card. I remember everyone calling my grandfather for fathers day, but I don't think I ever really associated my own father with this holiday.
When I was 15 my mom decided it was payback time for Dad and she decided to pull me out of everything I had ever known in St. Louis and ship my ass to Galion, Ohio to live with my father, step-mother, half-brother & half-sister.
Long story short, it went pretty much like you'd expect and I was out the door right after graduation.
In retrospect, I learned a lot that I wouldn't have before from living with my father for that period of time. One, I was better off away from my mother. Two, my step-mother is a saint, I don't know how she put up with father. And three, I got to know my dad for the first time in my life.
What I learned is that while he has done some asshole things, he isn't intentionally an asshole. He just doesn't really give a shit about anyone other than himself. It's not malicious, it's the way he's wired. He sees the world differently than I (and a lot of other people) thought he should.
I am here because my mother wanted me. My (.5)brother & sister are here because their mother wanted them. End of story. He was involved when he had to be but there was no wanting to, I don't think those sub-routines were ever in his programming. Possibly a bit with my brother, but otherwise never the case. He saw us as our mothers responsibility end of story.
Technically, he was a father because he donated genetic material. He supported his other kids financially because they lived with him. He supported me financially because my mom went after his navy pensions and forced him to.
I think this is why I never associated him with Father's Day. It never felt fitting or applicable.
I have joked over the years about how I wish they made "Happy Baby's Daddy Day" cards or "Happy Sperm Donor's Day!" cards. I am sure I am not the only one who would have appreciated the additional greeting card options.
So it must have been the year after I graduated college that I realized that my dad wasn't just a heartless asshole, he just didn't see things the same way I did. He is just wired the way he is. Eventually this clicked. This is a hardwired thing, I am sure he was always this way. I can't help but wonder if my mother & step-mom realized it before they had kids or thought that "he'd come around." Knowingly having kids with someone who is just not wired to be a father, sees just irresponsible to me-poor planning at the very least. I know my step-mother knows what he is now, and I am sure it took her a lot of years too to figure it out.
I spent a good portion of my life not wanting kids as a direct result of my experiences with my own parents. I struggled (and still do when thinking about my son) with the idea of putting a child through that. It wasn't until after I had met Rob when it dawned on me I wanted to have children with him and I couldn't even imagine not having children with him.
It took me a long time too to figure out something incredibly important. If nothing else, my whole life with my father has taught me one of the most important lessons ever to be learned. Something I wish all women consciously knew and really thought about.
You don't get to pick your father, but you do get to pick the father of your children.
Choose wisely.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Birthing for Engineers
I recently changed baby doctors and the new practice was really hell bent on me taking a tour of the birthing center at the hospital I am scheduled to give birth in.
This does not sound like a good time to me. This sounds like more worthless baby-nazi driven bullshit. I mean it's not like you go take a tour of the surgical suites at a hospital you are scheduled for a bypass or colonoscopy in. So WTF?
Fine, fine, fine. I relented. So the husband and I got signed up for this past Monday.
We there and get told we have to watch a 30 min video on childbirth. I ask if it's mandatory and I can opt out. This was for a couple of reasons.
First of all, I have read and studied up on childbirth. I know what is supposed to happen, why, and a good deal about common things that go wrong. I do not need to see it in up close an personal, why? Cause it doesn't really matter, I'm signed up- I can't really back out now. So why expose myself to the visual trauma.
Second, this is a general population class. Which means it is going to be geared towards the dumbest person in the room and while I may not be a doctor, I find shit like that insulting and a waste of my time.
Both of these are the reasons I am not taking "birthing classes." (Tangent: women have been giving birth of thousands or millions of years depending on your school of thought. We know more than we ever have about it. What can I really get out of a birthing class that I can't learn through research on my own? I mean shit, this is basic biology not rocket science or mysticism).
The old battle-ax of a nurse was pushy about it and I was tired of arguing with her so we just went in.
The first 15 minutes of the video explained what the uterus, cervix, pelvis, placenta, etc. was and what they did.
Seriously. I am in the least pregnant chick in the room. Are you telling me that you people have gotten this far and don't know what a uterus is? Apparently so.
The second 15 minutes went through the stages of labor and your possible emotional state. Also fucking useless. Please, tell me people don't get to 7-8 months pregnant (most people in the class were) and haven't read a book about basic childbirth and the stages of labor.
As far as the emotional state? It's going to suck. I get that. It's going to be painful. I'm going to be pissed off and misrable like never before. Check. Then there's this concerned women's voice saying, "at this stage you may feel like you want to give up.." give up? What a fucking stupid thing to say. It's not like you are 15 hours into labor and you get to opt out pack up your shit and leave.
The whole fucking this was ridiculous and stupid. I probably didn't need the visual reminder to stick in my head either.
Husband had a great comment: "I wonder how much that had to pay that lady to film her completely naked as she gave birth.. she didn't even have like a shirt on or anything over her breasts."
This was amusing as hell to me! Seriously, I imagine after 15 hours of labor you are going to have to not have your pants on anyway and if there's already a camera pointed at your vag you aren't going to give have a shit if your tits are out and flopping.
The actual tour of the hospital (with the exception of getting to see a couple of brand new babies in the nursery) was also stupid. I can follow signs. It's not like I care what the room looks like when I am in labor.
I found out you can only have 3 people in the birthing room other than your support person. Only? Good God, what are you going to invite your book club?
There is Internet access in both the birthing room and post-pardom room. I guess that is useful knowledge.
We were broken down into small groups of 6 couples for the tours. I looked around the rest of my tour and realized we were the weird ones. All the rest of them (most were my age or older, and one chick was maybe 25ish) looked wide eyed and emotional.. clinging to their husbands and obviously exicted. I got the impression they were all looking at this as an emotional or spiritual thing. Rob & I are coming at this like biology. I was completely out of my element.
So here's what I have come up with. They need to have separate birthing classing and birthing tours for professionals. At least make them useful by filtering our the ridiculous bullshit.
Let's just assume everyone in the class has a basic knowledge of anatomy and biology. Don't waste my time with projected emotional response.
Or just hand me a hospital floor layout drawing and a process flow diagram of childbirth and we are good to go.
This does not sound like a good time to me. This sounds like more worthless baby-nazi driven bullshit. I mean it's not like you go take a tour of the surgical suites at a hospital you are scheduled for a bypass or colonoscopy in. So WTF?
Fine, fine, fine. I relented. So the husband and I got signed up for this past Monday.
We there and get told we have to watch a 30 min video on childbirth. I ask if it's mandatory and I can opt out. This was for a couple of reasons.
First of all, I have read and studied up on childbirth. I know what is supposed to happen, why, and a good deal about common things that go wrong. I do not need to see it in up close an personal, why? Cause it doesn't really matter, I'm signed up- I can't really back out now. So why expose myself to the visual trauma.
Second, this is a general population class. Which means it is going to be geared towards the dumbest person in the room and while I may not be a doctor, I find shit like that insulting and a waste of my time.
Both of these are the reasons I am not taking "birthing classes." (Tangent: women have been giving birth of thousands or millions of years depending on your school of thought. We know more than we ever have about it. What can I really get out of a birthing class that I can't learn through research on my own? I mean shit, this is basic biology not rocket science or mysticism).
The old battle-ax of a nurse was pushy about it and I was tired of arguing with her so we just went in.
The first 15 minutes of the video explained what the uterus, cervix, pelvis, placenta, etc. was and what they did.
Seriously. I am in the least pregnant chick in the room. Are you telling me that you people have gotten this far and don't know what a uterus is? Apparently so.
The second 15 minutes went through the stages of labor and your possible emotional state. Also fucking useless. Please, tell me people don't get to 7-8 months pregnant (most people in the class were) and haven't read a book about basic childbirth and the stages of labor.
As far as the emotional state? It's going to suck. I get that. It's going to be painful. I'm going to be pissed off and misrable like never before. Check. Then there's this concerned women's voice saying, "at this stage you may feel like you want to give up.." give up? What a fucking stupid thing to say. It's not like you are 15 hours into labor and you get to opt out pack up your shit and leave.
The whole fucking this was ridiculous and stupid. I probably didn't need the visual reminder to stick in my head either.
Husband had a great comment: "I wonder how much that had to pay that lady to film her completely naked as she gave birth.. she didn't even have like a shirt on or anything over her breasts."
This was amusing as hell to me! Seriously, I imagine after 15 hours of labor you are going to have to not have your pants on anyway and if there's already a camera pointed at your vag you aren't going to give have a shit if your tits are out and flopping.
The actual tour of the hospital (with the exception of getting to see a couple of brand new babies in the nursery) was also stupid. I can follow signs. It's not like I care what the room looks like when I am in labor.
I found out you can only have 3 people in the birthing room other than your support person. Only? Good God, what are you going to invite your book club?
There is Internet access in both the birthing room and post-pardom room. I guess that is useful knowledge.
We were broken down into small groups of 6 couples for the tours. I looked around the rest of my tour and realized we were the weird ones. All the rest of them (most were my age or older, and one chick was maybe 25ish) looked wide eyed and emotional.. clinging to their husbands and obviously exicted. I got the impression they were all looking at this as an emotional or spiritual thing. Rob & I are coming at this like biology. I was completely out of my element.
So here's what I have come up with. They need to have separate birthing classing and birthing tours for professionals. At least make them useful by filtering our the ridiculous bullshit.
Let's just assume everyone in the class has a basic knowledge of anatomy and biology. Don't waste my time with projected emotional response.
Or just hand me a hospital floor layout drawing and a process flow diagram of childbirth and we are good to go.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
DELAYED DEPARTURE
I am livid.
No. That's not true.
I am pissed and disappointed... and a little bit kicking myself for being so surprised.
This afternoon, about 10 min before I left for the day, I found out that my new job transfer date just got pushed back another 2 weeks. Instead of starting July 1, it's going to be July 20.
Another fucking month of this shit...
I kind of expected it, but since it has been over a week now since everything was locked down I was finally starting to be a little relieved in thinking that I was good to go. I expected the date to be delayed or there to be at least some kind of pissing contest about it right off the bat. I didn't expect it to take so long.
Apparently, it all went down yesterday and I am just now finding out.
Perfect. I know I am still going, but god damn I am sick of this shit and I was counting the hours til my exist.
It got delayed at a very high level apparently, someone realized how much shit I have going on and panicked that it was all going to fall to no one. So the scrambling has begun.
Come on, this was not a surprised to anyone but my boss (and I know it wasn't him who did this- this came from higher up and he wouldn't risk losing face anyway)... and now?
Damn it.
No. That's not true.
I am pissed and disappointed... and a little bit kicking myself for being so surprised.
This afternoon, about 10 min before I left for the day, I found out that my new job transfer date just got pushed back another 2 weeks. Instead of starting July 1, it's going to be July 20.
Another fucking month of this shit...
I kind of expected it, but since it has been over a week now since everything was locked down I was finally starting to be a little relieved in thinking that I was good to go. I expected the date to be delayed or there to be at least some kind of pissing contest about it right off the bat. I didn't expect it to take so long.
Apparently, it all went down yesterday and I am just now finding out.
Perfect. I know I am still going, but god damn I am sick of this shit and I was counting the hours til my exist.
It got delayed at a very high level apparently, someone realized how much shit I have going on and panicked that it was all going to fall to no one. So the scrambling has begun.
Come on, this was not a surprised to anyone but my boss (and I know it wasn't him who did this- this came from higher up and he wouldn't risk losing face anyway)... and now?
Damn it.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
QUALITY OF LIFE
There are big changes afoot in the Fairy household- aside from the pending baby even.
On July 1, the husband and I are both starting new jobs and both of us are starting jobs outside of the respective personal professions we have both been in since college.
We are both staying within our current companies. The husband took a fantastic opportunity in global sourcing. He's working in a newly created small group with a ton of work that reaches all aspects of the business and each and every site world-wide. For someone who likes to learn/do something new and needs a challenge this is going to be perfect for him. Also, he's moving in the direction of managing people and this is going to give him an opportunity to do that.
I am moving from QA Validation to Process Engineering. I couldn't be happier. I will be involved in current manufacturing operations and in the technology transfer to new products from R&D to commercial manufacturing. This is the stuff that I just love. I have been involved in it through my current role over the years a little bit, but now I am going to the other side to drive it.
In the last few years, I realized my current capacity was starting to slowly rot my soul. It's a really tough and thankless job, you have no option other than being the asshole and it sucks. The longer you do it, the better you are, but it never ever gets easier. It's always a battle.
Being in quality means your are target and you are going to have to fight for every little thing. Some people think you are pushing for something because you are an asshole and you just want it that way. Some people recognize that what you are doing it something that is driven by quality. And to most people, it doesn't matter they will do anything and everything to make it difficult for you. People love to try to bully people in my position... this shit doesn't work with me, but what it does do is piss me off and make me more jaded. There's nothing left for me to learn and hasn't been for years.. and at this particular facility there are no opportunities for me other than to keep shoveling the shit I have been shoveling (even my director recognizes that).
For years now I have been explaining basic concepts to people too stupid to grasp them. Everything I do is to 1) make the product safe/safer, and 2) try to prevent the company from ended up in a nasty position with the FDA.
My signature has always carried the weight of quality. I can't sign bullshit, I can't sign omissions or truth spinning, I can't sign incomplete or half assed work. Because if I do, it's me who has to explain it to the FDA, not the other people who signed it and not the person to did/wrote the shit.
I have been continuously surprised by the lack of personal professionalism over the years. That whole throw shit to the wall and see what sticks and the put your name on it thing absolutely mystifies me. As does the generation of documents that make no sense and look like they were formatted by a drunk monkey.. I mean come on.
So since my first day on the job out of school, I have done this work, and my signature has carried the burden of quality. As of July 1, for the first time in my professional life, it will no longer.
I am so freaking happy, I can barely explain it. Let someone else take the burden. I am going to have the opportunity to develop more in the technological/engineering and problem solving direction without it!
It's going to be a different way of thinking, a different end goal, and I am going to have a lot to learn.. I cannot wait. I don't want to manage people, I want to solve tech problems, make things work, and make big projects happen. This is perfect for me.
Not only that, the person I will report to in this position is someone I have worked with for consistently for a couple years now who is seriously in my top three favorite people in the facility. It's been a while since I got to work for someone I actually like. Bonus, the director of the new department I am also a big fan of- take care of his people, brilliant, and makes decisions/makes things happen (you would think this was baseline, but trust me there it is not).
I have also talked a little about in the past how odd the politics are at this facility. At lot of discussions that should be low level are generally high level. It's usually pretty ridiculous and can be absolutely maddening until you have your numbing. Once you figure out the ins and outs it can be very useful or depending on the director, constantly frustrating.
When I put in for this job, I told my boss and my director. I told my boss because he's going to find out and anything I can do to make him be less of an asshole is worth it to me in the long run. I told my director because I genuinely like her as a person and I didn't want to catch her off guard or put her in a position where she felt betrayed.
It sounds like when things started happening with this job it all happened between the directors (even I was in the dark about most of it) and this has been going on since like early April when it opened. When it all settled out and the offer was about to be given that all that went through the directors too. I didn't know the position was mine until my director pulled me in last week to tell me and ask me if there was anything she could do to convince me to stay (very nice gesture, but even she admits the department has nothing to offer me).
Even the start date had been negotiated between the directors. Honestly, I was floored- it was about 3 weeks. I absolutely thought I would need to stay around and finish up some of the really big projects I am working on- within my department, I have no backup.
It took me a minute when all this was going on to realize that my boss had no idea. It was all happening over his head! There are reasons for this I am sure, but from my point of view it was hilarious.. and it put me in a really sweet position.
It just so happened he decided to be an asshole to me again on Wednesday afternoon.. just for kicks I am sure and treat me like his fucking monkey again (he does this to everyone who works for him- he's a new manager, moved up to manager about 3 months before I was hired to work for him and a horrible manager. The company recognizes it but does nothing. He has very seasoned people working for him which is the only reason I think no one has taken a swing at him yet).
Wednesday was just it for me. I already knew I was going to sign the offer, I'd already seen it. I knew he didn't know about it. That was just the final push I needed to drop the bomb on him. So 5 min later, I sighed the offer and dropped the: "I thought you would like to know I accepted that process engineer position. (Then because I absolutely knew what his response would be, I added:) My start date is July 1."
Blink. Blink. Once he pulled his shit together, he said: "Well. Typically, the hiring manager and the current manager will get together and decide on a start date, so that may not be the case."
To which I responded, "I am pretty sure all that was worked out previously between the directors, that is where the July 1 date came from. But if that doesn't work for you, I am sure you can feed back with them and maybe they can work something out."
And left. It was as beautiful.
I couldn't have asked for a better exit. The director had her reasons I am sure, but the end result was a parting gift to me.
In the meantime, he's got a shit ton of my work he just inherited (I doubt they will be able to back fill me anytime soon just based on current company policies). Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
It's nice when your hard work finally comes back around to you.
The new chapter begins July 1.
On July 1, the husband and I are both starting new jobs and both of us are starting jobs outside of the respective personal professions we have both been in since college.
We are both staying within our current companies. The husband took a fantastic opportunity in global sourcing. He's working in a newly created small group with a ton of work that reaches all aspects of the business and each and every site world-wide. For someone who likes to learn/do something new and needs a challenge this is going to be perfect for him. Also, he's moving in the direction of managing people and this is going to give him an opportunity to do that.
I am moving from QA Validation to Process Engineering. I couldn't be happier. I will be involved in current manufacturing operations and in the technology transfer to new products from R&D to commercial manufacturing. This is the stuff that I just love. I have been involved in it through my current role over the years a little bit, but now I am going to the other side to drive it.
In the last few years, I realized my current capacity was starting to slowly rot my soul. It's a really tough and thankless job, you have no option other than being the asshole and it sucks. The longer you do it, the better you are, but it never ever gets easier. It's always a battle.
Being in quality means your are target and you are going to have to fight for every little thing. Some people think you are pushing for something because you are an asshole and you just want it that way. Some people recognize that what you are doing it something that is driven by quality. And to most people, it doesn't matter they will do anything and everything to make it difficult for you. People love to try to bully people in my position... this shit doesn't work with me, but what it does do is piss me off and make me more jaded. There's nothing left for me to learn and hasn't been for years.. and at this particular facility there are no opportunities for me other than to keep shoveling the shit I have been shoveling (even my director recognizes that).
For years now I have been explaining basic concepts to people too stupid to grasp them. Everything I do is to 1) make the product safe/safer, and 2) try to prevent the company from ended up in a nasty position with the FDA.
My signature has always carried the weight of quality. I can't sign bullshit, I can't sign omissions or truth spinning, I can't sign incomplete or half assed work. Because if I do, it's me who has to explain it to the FDA, not the other people who signed it and not the person to did/wrote the shit.
I have been continuously surprised by the lack of personal professionalism over the years. That whole throw shit to the wall and see what sticks and the put your name on it thing absolutely mystifies me. As does the generation of documents that make no sense and look like they were formatted by a drunk monkey.. I mean come on.
So since my first day on the job out of school, I have done this work, and my signature has carried the burden of quality. As of July 1, for the first time in my professional life, it will no longer.
I am so freaking happy, I can barely explain it. Let someone else take the burden. I am going to have the opportunity to develop more in the technological/engineering and problem solving direction without it!
It's going to be a different way of thinking, a different end goal, and I am going to have a lot to learn.. I cannot wait. I don't want to manage people, I want to solve tech problems, make things work, and make big projects happen. This is perfect for me.
Not only that, the person I will report to in this position is someone I have worked with for consistently for a couple years now who is seriously in my top three favorite people in the facility. It's been a while since I got to work for someone I actually like. Bonus, the director of the new department I am also a big fan of- take care of his people, brilliant, and makes decisions/makes things happen (you would think this was baseline, but trust me there it is not).
I have also talked a little about in the past how odd the politics are at this facility. At lot of discussions that should be low level are generally high level. It's usually pretty ridiculous and can be absolutely maddening until you have your numbing. Once you figure out the ins and outs it can be very useful or depending on the director, constantly frustrating.
When I put in for this job, I told my boss and my director. I told my boss because he's going to find out and anything I can do to make him be less of an asshole is worth it to me in the long run. I told my director because I genuinely like her as a person and I didn't want to catch her off guard or put her in a position where she felt betrayed.
It sounds like when things started happening with this job it all happened between the directors (even I was in the dark about most of it) and this has been going on since like early April when it opened. When it all settled out and the offer was about to be given that all that went through the directors too. I didn't know the position was mine until my director pulled me in last week to tell me and ask me if there was anything she could do to convince me to stay (very nice gesture, but even she admits the department has nothing to offer me).
Even the start date had been negotiated between the directors. Honestly, I was floored- it was about 3 weeks. I absolutely thought I would need to stay around and finish up some of the really big projects I am working on- within my department, I have no backup.
It took me a minute when all this was going on to realize that my boss had no idea. It was all happening over his head! There are reasons for this I am sure, but from my point of view it was hilarious.. and it put me in a really sweet position.
It just so happened he decided to be an asshole to me again on Wednesday afternoon.. just for kicks I am sure and treat me like his fucking monkey again (he does this to everyone who works for him- he's a new manager, moved up to manager about 3 months before I was hired to work for him and a horrible manager. The company recognizes it but does nothing. He has very seasoned people working for him which is the only reason I think no one has taken a swing at him yet).
Wednesday was just it for me. I already knew I was going to sign the offer, I'd already seen it. I knew he didn't know about it. That was just the final push I needed to drop the bomb on him. So 5 min later, I sighed the offer and dropped the: "I thought you would like to know I accepted that process engineer position. (Then because I absolutely knew what his response would be, I added:) My start date is July 1."
Blink. Blink. Once he pulled his shit together, he said: "Well. Typically, the hiring manager and the current manager will get together and decide on a start date, so that may not be the case."
To which I responded, "I am pretty sure all that was worked out previously between the directors, that is where the July 1 date came from. But if that doesn't work for you, I am sure you can feed back with them and maybe they can work something out."
And left. It was as beautiful.
I couldn't have asked for a better exit. The director had her reasons I am sure, but the end result was a parting gift to me.
In the meantime, he's got a shit ton of my work he just inherited (I doubt they will be able to back fill me anytime soon just based on current company policies). Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
It's nice when your hard work finally comes back around to you.
The new chapter begins July 1.
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