October 4, 2008 | Filed under: Because They Pay Me, Good Things Come to Those Who Are Impatient Whiners

You know that $700 billion financial bailout package the House failed to pass last Monday?  That the Senate voted out on Wednesday?  That the House DID pass on Friday and the President nearly immediately signed into law?  Well, somewhere in those 400-and-some-odd pages are about five pages dedicated to my organization’s top priority.  A policy we’ve been working on getting enacted for nearly two years.  (To be fair, that’s pretty decent turnaround time.  Some groups have fought for policy changes for better than a decade, without success.)  A policy which commands the attention of much of the staff and sucks all the air out of the room whenever we consider tackling other projects.

One 15-minute vote, and just like that, the whole world changed. 

We high-fived and hugged and drank champagne and went to the roof deck to smoke cigars.  Somebody thought to order pizza.  When we ran out of booze, we went to the bar downstairs.

My role isn’t to be the office cynic — someone else has that title wrapped up — but I am, at best, “cautiously optimistic” when it comes to this sort of stuff.  I know the many, many, many ways in which things can go wrong, so I take a firm stance of not counting one’s chickens before they’re hatched.  Thus, even yesterday morning I was unconvinced this bill would actually pass with our policy intact.  Blame it on my conservative Midwestern upbringing, where even deserved celebrating is frowned upon, let alone premature celebration. 

It’s slowly sinking in, but I don’t think it will be real for a week or two or maybe not for another couple of months, when our Board sits down to identify next year’s priorities and we have to find something new to put in that #1 slot.  It’s somewhat frightening to realize that the issues I work on are leading contenders, but that’s a good problem to have.

June 30, 2008 | Filed under: Because They Pay Me, Thinky

I started my first job in DC six years ago, on the tenth of June. (I meant to write this to commemorate the actual anniversary, but like so many brilliant blog ideas I’ve had this year, time got away from me.) I had a good job, it was in the field I wanted, there was a lot to learn and my colleagues were willing to teach me. Work also provided a hefty part of my social life, for which I am still grateful. It was exactly what I wanted.

* * * * *

I’d had visions of my big city life since I was a kid. My job, oh, that was usually the focus of these daydreams. The frantic pace, the expense account lunches, the schmoozing at cocktail parties, the conversations about how we’d be a hell of a lot more successful if certain people were capable of removing their heads from their asses for just five minutes. (Yes, even my daydreams contain foul language.)

My last place of employment had none of that, which is probably a good thing.

* * * * *

I wear a suit every day, except for the days on which I don’t anticipate any outside meetings and then I wear an outfit over which I can toss the jacket that lives at the office specifically for that purpose. You know you’re dedicated to your job when you work six days in a row, one of which is a Sunday and another of which is a federal holiday, all of those days decked out in a suit and heels. It was three months before I wore jeans to work on a Friday, and only then could I get away with it because it was Good Friday and half the city wasn’t at work anyway. I blow dry my hair and do full makeup almost every day, again only slacking on the days I’m not in a suit. I shave far more than once a fortnight now, to accommodate all the pantyhose-wearing. The personal upkeep alone is a part-time job.

* * * * *

“How’s the job going?” a friend inquired.

“Have you ever been thrown into a murky pool filled with piranhas that immediately get to work eating you alive?” I replied. “It’s kind of like that.”

I had a rough couple of weeks there, time that conveniently coincided with my parents’ visit, which I’m sure just made me a barrel of monkeys to be around. I don’t know – maybe they liked being snapped at and told I don’t have time for things and work sucked, could we please not talk about it, what did you do today? Probably the icing on the cake was when I left them at the table to order my dinner for me while I went to the restroom and sobbed. If they noticed that I came back to the table without any mascara on, they didn’t mention it.

* * * * *

I knew this job would be a challenge. I picked it because there were new things to learn and good opportunities to develop skills in areas in which I know I’m weak.

I grossly under-estimated the extent of the challenge. Every day is a busy day. Few days go as planned, even when I don’t make a plan until 10 AM. I try in vain to enforce my rule of going home on time two nights a week. Officially we end at 5:30 but anything before 6:30 counts as “on time” in my book; 8:30 is not unheard of. And those weaknesses? Boy do they come to the fore in some pretty ugly ways. Well, awareness is the first step, right?

* * * * *

“Who are the piranhas?” my friend asked, “And why aren’t you biting back?”

I didn’t bite back, but I did manage to pull myself out of the water last week and score a couple of wins. That’s enough to keep me afloat for a while.

April 8, 2008 | Filed under: Because They Pay Me, Is She Still Talking?

I’ve had several inquiries recently from people wondering if I’ve given up blogging.  The short answer is: No. 

The long answer is: I’m eating a piece of cherry pie (free in the break room from the DC Convention & Visitors’ Bureau) and drinking a Diet Dr Pepper (also free in the usually well-stocked fridge in the break room).  For lunch.  Yes, lunch, at 5 pm.  This is what my life has come to.

March 4, 2008 | Filed under: Because They Pay Me

Ugh.

It’s 9 AM and I am having my breakfast of pure, unadulterated sugar, straight from the soda fountain Coke and Advil.

I felt fine this morning.  Really!  Sure, I woke up at 3 AM when my body finished processing the six glasses of wine I’d consumed a few hours prior, but other than that, life seemed normal.  But the Metro ride in left me a little woozy, and my head is not appreciating the fact that I was reading work materials for my entire commute.

Good thing I don’t have anything to do tonight but go to another reception.

February 4, 2008 | Filed under: Because They Pay Me, Good Things Come to Those Who Are Impatient Whiners, The Fam

Flower update — Saturday: nada.

Today:

From one of my new co-workers.

And from my family.

(Clickety click to enjoy the cameraphone technology in a larger format.)

Not only am I running out of desk space here, I’m worried that I may have used up my entire Flower Receiving Quota for 2008, all in one day. That would not be good.