threadwalker

Last week was wretched. I'm so happy to back in my normal chaos zone. I'm still not making "plans", but at least I don't have to hate being at work, too.

The last week's top "bad"

1. 10-12 hr days; 9 hrs on my feet doing manual tasks in a clean room environment followed by desk time to stay caught up with desk work. Wherein I got yelled at, I snapped at others, I herded cats and I watched a co-workers team go down in flames on Monday and Tuesday. Most night I went home, ate if I had the energy (or binged on cookies and Roman Cokes), took advil (for the shooting pain in my back and joints) and went to bed.

2. A "near miss" involving falling equipment that severed a "live" power cord. Yikes! Everyone quickly stepped away from the stainless steel (highly conductive) equipment. No one got hurt, but the equipment and the floor were scored.

3. Cluster fucks of blown circuit breakers and engineers who failed to perform their key part in time. All of which inspired anger, frustration and swearing because we were on a tight schedule. I liked the one where the ONLY engineer who could help us on Friday was sent off site to run an errand that took 3 hrs while we stood around kicking our heals. Was he really the ONLY one that could pick up electropolished parts? C'mon!

4. Being told late Tuesday that we'd have to start all over on Thursday and then cram 6 days of work in before Sunday morning. (I think I had a stress attack or a rage attack - not sure, but my chest got tight, my vision blurred and I had the almost overwhleming urge to throttle the engineer responsible. Self control won... barely. Which inspired me to eat an entire package of Oreo's with Roman Cokes that night).

5. I had to apologize for offending someone. My main nemesis engineer (the one from Item 4) asked me why he had to do some measurements. The measurements were to prove we didn't have to restart on Thursday and while the engineers told me "it should be all right", I needed numbers to prove those statements. So I snapped and said, "Because I'm QA and I said." Technically, I was correct. However, you're never supposed to say it outloud. He later came to me to express himself, so in the interest of NOT getting HR or my boss involved, I apologized for my "off the cuff remark while under extreme stess". Even if it was the truth.

6. I worked out 2 times last week: I fell asleep on the stationary bike late (late) Wednesday night. I'm pretty sure I didn't keep my heart rate up, though. I tried to run on the treadmill Friday night, but my chest was tight, my joints were in pain, and I couldn't breath right. I gave up after 30 minutes. But I was in despair because all I could think is that my tri is in 2 weeks and I won't be able to do it.

I am so glad last week is over and that I only have to go through it 2 times a year.

My happy:

1. Last week is over. RELIEF!

2. At lunch on Friday, my (awesome) team had a potluck. Everyone worked their butts off all week, so the food was all "bought" because no one had time/energy to make a dish, but it was spiritually renewing to sit and eat as a group and to "meet" with each other outside the clean rooms.

3. Dinner at a friends on Friday. It was a social "engagement" that more or less happened as planned. (Hubby ended up cancelling: he had to work late, so I missed him being there. So that part of the plan didn't happen).

4. My mom did not come over this weekend. I'm pretty sure her enthusiasm for "helping" me and adding to my "to do" list would have driven me off the edge. We had a wonderful hour-long chat on Saturday instead. I'm up to date on her senior center classes, her latest Goodwill treasure hunting successes, what all her friends and their kids are doing, that my sister's overseas jaunt will be extended (boo!) and the doings of her evil sister-in-law.

5. I ran on Sunday and pushed my pace. It was good.

6. I swam laps Monday morning. It was good. I felt comfortable in the water even if I'm not fast.

7. I got a random call on my cell from a sister and we chatted for an hour last night as we commuted home. It was good.

8. We had to repeat some airflow work yesterday. Apparently the camera operator (me) managed to hit the buttons at the wrong time on Tuesday. The validation guys and my office neighbor just had to subject me to the video I did take: me setting up the camera while singing Van Halen songs to myself. There was extreme laughter as the camera bumps along and you can hear me singing. No, I'm not good. AND, even best of all, it's officially part of our raw documenation, so it will be preserved forevah and evah!

9. I made mint chocolate ice cream last night. It will get frozen tonight. But I "finger licked" the pot after I put the mix in the fridge to cool over night. YUMMM! OMG! And it's my own recipe! I love making treats.

10. I got on the scale this morning. I know I made bad choices last week, I didn't work out, I binged on cookies and rum one night, and probably had too much wine with dinner Friday night. I didn't weigh in last week, but I've been here before and I could tell I was 5-6 lbs above my range by Saturday. Today I'm just 1/2 lb above my "normal" range. Weird, but 'yay'.

11. I have my own wet suit.

12. I have a one way ticket to Paris. (and a one way ticket from Milan to SFO). But I got devilish delight in telling the bosses last week that I had a one-way ticket to Paris.

drum rollAnd last night's Awesomeness:

N, with glee, "Wow! Mommy, I'm reading and I don't have to read and I don't want to read."

Me, "If you don't want to read, then why are you reading?"

N, "Well, I didn't want to read, but then I started reading and now I want to read. But I didn't have to and now I want to because I want to finish the story."

Me: pride, relief, joy, pride...