2002-08-29 - 1:16 p.m.

And So Quickly Things Can Change �

This morning was full of surprises. First I got bad news from my kid brother. He is a trader (market guy), and apparently his group messed up and is being fined. He is now going to be out $500 or so. That really sucks.

Shortly after that I reluctantly attended an �All Staff Meeting�. Usually we have two of these a year. They are boring. No, they are extremely boring. Even the dead buried under this massive government building crawl up from the floor and walk out when one of these meetings starts. Strangely we had our last meeting less than 5 weeks ago (and at the time I made my DVD wish list), so most of us didn�t think we should bother to attend.

Furthermore, I was convinced they would be talking about future layoffs. Statewide, all government departments are going to have to reduce their budgets by 20%. That means my position is in slight danger and I actually love my job. Naturally I don�t want to get a pink slip in front of an audience. I so did not want to go to today�s meeting.

Good Things

But much to my surprise, they were handing out awards: I got two! They are unit citations for team projects I�ve been on since I first started working for the state. I was floored. I didn�t think I would get the awards, but now that I have them I like them. The look nice too, so naturally I put them up on my office wall. (I�ll update my resume tonight � about that, my resume is looking nicer and nicer: I�m getting more publications, writing samples, awards, computer skills, and my volunteer work with the county is showing more years of service.)

Though that is not the best part. Shortround, an engineer whom I think is the laziest sack ever to walk the face of the Earth, got promoted to what we call an �Operations Research Specialist�, despite the fact that he is a moron (I�ve seen his real work and review his papers � they are not impressive at all). Anyway when the time came to list off who the new promotions were, his name was forgotten. Bronco got the same promotion (and she deserves it). They forgot her, but somebody else said, "Don�t forget [Bronco]!" Why? Because everybody here likes her!

The beauty is that nobody then said, "Oh, and Shortround too!" A few people think his work is good, but that is only because he kisses ass. Everybody under him thinks he is a slug. I now this sounds snotty of me, but if you are a dick to people, they aren�t going to start your fan club.

LISTENING TO: X Marks the Pedwalk Abattoir

-=-

<< previous - next >>