Biting the Hand That Feeds You

We have a new salesperson. This person was hired on shaky ground due to the overpowering arrogance that emitted from his very being, but having many skills that other, older salespeople did not have allowed him to pass through the gates of employment where he now resides.

Trying to give him a fair chance, I allowed the odd comments and bizarre behavior that only one of an arrogant nature can fathom, pass as newbie jitters.

As this is his first week and this office is full of the scared, self defending types, his reception was somewhat cold and lacking in substance. He didn't seem to notice, which was good because many others would have been offended out of their minds and this would have set the tone for a very unpleasant acclamation period.

According to newbie schedule he has been in training for the past two days and this has gone, er, awkwardly. For some reason, he seems to think that he is in charge of his training and that the people who are training him are to work within his schedule and he is allowed to be demanding and pushy as he is obviously top dog and therefore does not consider the rest of us peons as people.

During a meeting, that in my mind he should not have been apart of due to the fact that this was a follow-up meeting from long before he had arrived, he decided that his voice mattered. Nothing wrong with that, right? Um, not so much.

He began to act as though he were in charge of the meeting and placing his opinion in on every comment and keeping us past the scheduled end time up to a half an hour because he was sure to let everyone know that he had vast experience within companies undergoing change and that he was to be revered as the ultimate guide to the ins and outs of company progress.

This did not go over well with those who shared his job title and they were quick to grumble loudly as his personal experience and knowledge flowed like a river from his mouth and into the ears of the unwillingly seated co-workers.

This was on his first day. In the morning. Before anyone had managed to have a real conversation with the man.

His reception became colder.

A little history: his resume was so long that I was amazed he was able to get past the initial preview and into the interview phase. This "brief" work history allowed us to see that he has not held down a job in the past decade for more than one or two years. The shortest stint being around six months.... YIKES!

We are unsure of what he believes his schedule to be at this point, but when the people training him have a small gap between sessions he seems to disappear and is up to an hour late to his next session without so much as an explanation or apology. Apparently, we aren't worth the consideration.

I would like to give him the benefit of the doubt, but this has become harder and harder over the few days that he has been here because of his lack of selflessness.

I wonder, do companies run into this a lot? Is this common? Is this acceptable?

I know being the newbie is never fun and the faster you can become acquainted with your new surroundings the easier it is for people to forget your brief time line within the office, but I fear that this is not what he feels. I believe that he is ready to plunder the inner-office competition to become the new king of the mountain.

He thinks that the intention of those who hired him was to create a new leader amongst the failures.

Oh how I fear the tension that will plague us until he has either claimed his intended place at the top or has been driven away by angry colleagues and unhappy customers.

Holy Money Bags!

Does anyone know how much the average wedding costs!?!

What am I? Made of money? Goodness gracious!

So, we aren't technically "engaged", but we have decided where we want to have the wedding and we are trying to figure out what kind of money we need to pull this bad boy off.... yikes!

Of course the parentals are helping, but I can't help but feel guilty about making them pay that much money!!

I'm starting to think that going to Vegas sounds appealing at this point!

On Thin Ice

There are no words to describe the situation I work in.

I had to write up a job description that best fits what I do as a design assistant and give it to the higher uppers.

They will never talk to me about it and I was not given a reason as to why I had to do it, but because other people in this company actually like me, I hear what's going on behind closed doors.

Apparently, this job description was to allow them to see if I was being lazy and trying to get out of doing my job. They wanted to make sure that my being stressed out with my lazy salesman wasn't because I was trying to be lazy. They wanted to see "where I was at".

This cements it. They have no idea what I have been doing for the past two years.

The "leak" from the meeting was angered that they are questioning me and they actually told him that he should have taken charge and talked to us about not working together anymore...

Last time I checked, he doesn't really have any managing power over us and therefore this isn't his job. He was so mad about it because he knows that they are afraid to deal with any of these situations whether it was my situation or any others that have arisen in the history of them working here.

Last time I checked, if you are the general manager, this is your job. It is not the job of the IT guy to take care of disputes unless it is between you and your technology.

Last time I checked, the sales guy I worked with was not technology.

Oh, My Aluma Matre

As a graduate of the School of Environmental Studies, I feel very proud as I pass by and look at their newest investment; a wind turbine that is placed just off of their front parking lot.

Although the power it can create isn't as much as I had hoped it to be (just enough power for two homes), the idea that another generation of environmentally educated people will understand all that renewable energy has to offer makes me proud to say that I graduated from such a forward thinking school.

I noticed it's construction a few weeks back on my way to work and it almost brought a tear to my eye (yeah, I'm a sucker for that sort of thing).

I like to think that a lot of who I am was shaped from the knowledge I gained while at the "Zoo School".

I wish I could be at the ribbon cutting, but alas, I am stuck at my unfortunate place of employment.

Without further ado, I bring you more information...

http://www.district196.org/ses/turbine/index.html

V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N-!

Well, the wedding I was in this weekend is done and it was BEAUTIFUL.

I am on vacation! I don't have a darn thing to do until seven days from now and I'm so happy! Well, besides hanging out with friends and the big turkey day I guess!

This whole wedding thing has brought my lovely boyfriend into a family situation that I have dealt with previously...

"So, you're next, huh?"... "So, when is your big day?", "So, you two planning anything like this soon?"

We have obviously talked about getting married, A LOT!, but we are not engaged yet. We hope to be soon and I know that it makes him feel a little stressed out, especially after this wedding because we heard a lot about the costs. Especially with the size of both of our families... HUGE!

We haven't heard the final numbers, but it makes him nervous because we have a house and car payments along with the rest of the bills that we are slowly paying down.

I promised him that you can have a wedding that looks nice for not that much money, but it seems as though he is concerned about what "not that much money" actually means.

I have been saving. I have enough to cover booking places, the dress, hair, makeup, and a few other things.

We have talked about a budget, but he seems reluctant to allow my parents to pay for parts of it.

I have no idea why.

Oh well. I guess we'll get there when we get there.

I am fortunate to have a boyfriend who wants to be as involved as he is planning on being.

A Sphincter Says What?

Yesterday was the dreaded meeting and although the topics of conversation were not what I had expected, the message I had expected was loud and clear.

The message is as follows:

'We are whores for money. We will do anything to place large stacks of green paper in our pockets. If a salesman is dropping the ball it is okay because that person is the one who brings in the money. We will blame you for their problems. If you have problems working with said salesman, you will be terminated because you are inhibiting the flow of money into our over sized pockets. We are unwilling to think of any other way to resolve problems if it doesn't involve us receiving more money. Money. Money. Money. Money. Money. Money. Money.

Thank you for taking the time to meet with us. We hope that you are here for the long haul. If we could, we would lower the amount of money you make every time you over achieve because we need more money. To conclude, more money please.'

And that was my meeting.

It was made clear that a salesman can do whatever he wants as long as the money is coming in. Even though I had done my best to help the problem of inefficiency, deception, and overall laziness to become resolved (as I was asked to by both the higher uppers and the salesman) and after all of the pain and struggling the salesperson decided it wasn't worth his time, I would be fired. Anything that I had done above and beyond my job without so much as a thank you, would be ignored and only my faults will be dwelled upon.

Now lets take a trip through the rest of my day.

This meeting motivated me to "go run errands" which included parking my car in a giant parking lot to make phone calls to each and every firm that I had sent my portfolio to.

I still haven't been able to get a hold of the top dogs to give them my spiel as to why they should hire me, but I did talk to a lot of other people within the firms that seemed very excited. I figure that if you can talk anyone into believing in you, then they will surely help sway the vote of the top dog.

I received a phone call last night from one place that had a very small department for my area of interest and because of this they didn't tend to hire often.

The woman who called me announced that she was sad about the lack of open positions because she was in love with my portfolio and resume and thought that they were extremely professional. She said that she planned to hand deliver it to her top dog with a brief overview of our phone conversation and that she would be sure to keep it at the top of the stack when a position became available.

There is still a possibility that they would want me to come in for a chat so I won't count them as lost just yet!

So, although a door has not become ajar for me to step through, I believe that this was a positive in my negative day. If my persuasion packet was able to turn her head, there is a good chance that others will be inclined to follow...

Keep your fingers crossed. I know I am.

Double Whammy

Okay, so I did it. My heart is pounding. My forehead could use a dab or two. I think I need to change my pants.

I called them all. I know it's a little late in the day and I figured no one would be around to answer the phone, but because I had to work a little later and couldn't call during normal business hours, a voicemail will have to constitute as a heads up that I will be calling again tomorrow. They can use that warning to prepare for my call.

AND, my lunch meeting was moved up by a day and turned into a breakfast meeting so I figured in the off chance that I am to become unemployed tomorrow, calling the potential work places would be a step in the right direction.

Now I have to untwist the knots in my stomach and force a little food down my throat.

I really hope that they call me this week because I have all of next week off (I am a major PTO hoarder and now I have more time than I know what to do with and almost no time to actually use it!).

Wouldn't it be great to know my fate so I can sit back and enjoy my turkey day?

Now I have to find funding to put together a decent professional wardrobe seeing as my current job probably wouldn't care if I showed up in my pajamas! Well, maybe not that bad, but my appearance on a day to day basis has been pretty similar to my weekend attire... jeans and a t-shirt.

Someday I'll miss that.

Headaches From Every Direction

Someday I want to trade places with the president of the company and then I will give the salesmen one day to clean up their change orders without telling the design assistants so that the president knows how it feels to have 50 people breathing down your neck to get their work done.

Oh man. What a mess!

A Case of the Sundays

I don't know if this holds true for anyone else, but Sunday is my day.

Saturday is great, but I seem to have a hard time getting anything done. I don't know if I am still recovering from a stressful week or if I just need a day to veg completely.

Saturday usually consists of me in my pajamas from the time I get up until the time I go to bed (if we don't have anything planned for the evening. Then I am forced to take a shower and look presentable!) You can find me in my standard spot on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, TV on to whatever channel strikes my fancy for the moment, with my laptop placed exactly where it's name implies it to be, on my lap.

I will not move for pretty much anything. Well, maybe to use the facilities and to nourish myself, but that's it!

Now Sunday is a different story.

I wake up. The boyfriend does the standard pot-o-coffee. I grab the morning paper and read a few headlines and the comics and then dive into the adds. By the time I am done paging through my favorites and setting aside the grocery coupons, the boyfriend has made some breakfast so we can eat and watch the news or something on the History Channel, Discovery, etc.

I am then ready to conquer the house. I clean and organize and tackle the pile of laundry that usually towers over my head by the end of the week.

Sunday is my reset day.

The house is cleaned, errands are run, laundry is completed, I feel refreshed and energized. Ready to plunge into another work week.

Of course, I still suffer from the standard Sunday night depression. I would venture to say that Sundays are my bipolar day. Highs in the morning, lows at night.

That said, Sunday is probably my favorite day of the week. It's the one day I feel truly productive.

And Now Comes the Hair Pulling

I know I'm an impatient cow (moo), but I want someone to call me to set up an interview... NOW!

It's only been four days since everyone would have received my hiring persuasion packet and I know that it can take FOREVER for them to either get back to me or have a position open, but I'm at my wits end.

I received a meeting request from one of the higher uppers in my company and he would like to have lunch with the office manager and me to discuss my "future with the company". At first I thought for sure they had found out that I was looking for a new job, but then I read it again and in light of many of the changes that they would like to make for next year, I think they want to either give me a new job title and responsibilities or they are looking give me a promotion.

Seeing as they try not to pay anyone any more money than what they started out making, I doubt it will be a "promotion".

At the end of the little note attached to my luncheon request there was a post script telling me to please feel free to come down and ask any questions if I needed clarification.

So, I did.

Skeptical was I.

What did this mean? Was there something I needed to be prepared for?

As the questions raced through my brain, I went to the higher upper's office and asked just what to expect from this random meeting.

"Well, we are trying to find out how your year went and we wanted to validate some of the things we heard around the office. See, I always hear things second hand and I was hoping to get your validation on what has been going on. I know that you have worked with (a bumbling idiot) earlier in the year and I now know that you have started working with (Thing One) and (Thing Two). We just wanted to have your input before we make some changes".

Now I'm afraid they are making a hire/fire decision about the bumbling idiot and that what I say may be an influencing factor.

If this is true, I do not want to be responsible for the idiot's career demise.

Damn, I'm between a rock and a hard place.

So, this brings me to my earlier whining. Why hasn't anyone called me to get me out of here!?

Packin on the Pounds

Well, I have been in search of a dress for my friend's upcoming wedding which I am to partake in (in a very small role yet still need to match for the sake of the day).

On Sunday, my dear, sweet boyfriend decided to go with me to the mall to find a dress. I hate dress shopping because of a few reasons:

A) It always seems as though the dress I picture in my mind is PERFECT! and when I get to the stores, no one has this imaginary dress and I end up spending hours of a perfectly good day amongst screaming children and loud teenagers.
B) If I find this magical dress, I always feel fat.
C) This is a weird one, but the lighting in the mall always makes me feel tired and irritable.

Well, needless to say I went home feeling defeated by the dress selection and have decided to resume my shopping tonight, this time with a good friend for moral support.

I can't tell if my expectations are too high and my budget is too low or if I truly just do not want to buy this dress and therefore have placed a mental wall between me and shopping!

Damn the Time Change

Well, I woke up bright and early this morning at 5:30. I have a lot of time on my hands at this point and it is only 7:30 AM.

SO, I started my day off right by watching Home Alone II while my loving boyfriend made a pot of coffee. This has now sparked my need to watch sappy Christmas movies from now until Christmas. P.S. I LOVE CHRISTMAS. It literally is the most wonderful time of the year, at least for me!

On a side note, I sent out my portfolio, etc. on Friday and now I have super nerves. Even writing it doesn't help my stomach at all! I'm terrified!!

Yesterday, as I talked about my life over lunch with a wonderful friend, I felt my stomach tying into knots. Yikes!

Well, let the interviews begin! If anyone wants me! And let the Christmas infatuation begin! Yay!!

Crazy Can Be My Middle Name Sometimes

Have you ever worked somewhere and had one of those days where everyone just seems to know how to push your buttons?

Today should be great because it's Friday and tomorrow I'm going on a shopping spree with a good friend and I don't have to come back to this wretched place for two whole days. Not to mention, I'm taking my lunch break to send my résumés in the mail and nothing could be sweeter than that!

Somehow I feel as though the world is against me and I'm incredibly irritable about it.

Maybe it's the tension of knowing that someone will be reading through my résumé and leafing through my portfolio and deciding whether I am worthy of leaving this dump to join the normal professional field where people don't jump in other people's offices to let out a giant, flatulent fart and run away giggling. And where people actually have some idea of what they are doing and don't have to be taught the basics at least once a week. And where one man's idea of funny isn't to walk from office to office yelling at the top of his lungs for each person to stop looking at porn and if they need spankings they should come to him.

This is not a sane office. Most offices would not allow such vulgar, unprofessional, borderline (if not actually) sexually harassing behavior.

Each day, I die a little inside. There have been times that I have cried in my office because I hate this place so much. And yet, I'm terrified that no one will want to hire me or I'll think I have found the job of my dreams and then it ends up being the same atmosphere as here.

Don't get me wrong, there are a handful of normals that I love dearly and I will be sad to leave behind, but sometimes I wish the earth would open up and swallow the rest of them.

Am I crazy? Or, is this the office from hell?

It Starts

In light of a possible change in my work situation, I have decided that making a blog with general life stories would be more suitable.

Here goes...