I love being a contractor

Ok, your going to love this one.
So XXXXX is coming next week to do training. I have been part of every training since I started here, but yet somehow this year I was left off the invite list. This was not an oversight as I was on the invite for meet and greet, and the “simple overview” training. I have been demoted to dweeb. No longer am I going to be a XXXXX expert. I believe I am being set up as a “short timer” and if I am going to be treated that way, then I might as well act the part!

I am somewhat insulted by the whole thing.

XXXXX was a brand new piece of software when I started. It was purchased two or three months after I started. I trained and wrote most of the training material for XXXXX . I was even talked to by XXXXX about a job selling and supporting his software.
Now we did hire a computational chemist, and XXXXX is able to run the software, but its not like there are limited number of slots for training.
Melissa is also hugely OCD and as such can’t accomplish some of the tasks within XXXXX . You have to move into a messy world of models and approximations and the like. She has been given the task of authoring an SOP for XXXXX (and any other modeling programs we might use), but she can’t. She can’t write it because she needs to scrutinize every nut and bolt of the program before she will write. As that is IMPOSSIBLE, then so is the SOP.
She frequently comes over to by cube and talks to me about how difficult this task is (assuming that everyone would have this much trouble). When people have offered her answers, she rebuffs them because “how can they know if they don’t understand [insert minutia here]…”
She is also interviewing for other positions. Stefanie and Scott don’t know this! Hence it is fair to say she is actively trying to leave. She is doing so without working with XXXXX or XXXXX .

I am also trying to leave. I have been very upfront and honest with my efforts. I am treated like a short timer (a year from my expected exit date) and Melissa is not. It is not surprising, as XXXXX was treated the same way. She interviewed for the XXXXX about 10 months before she got the position (Background checks and all) and was taken off any major project and just given basic assignments for that whole time.

XXXXX and XXXXX are protecting their interests. This is true and they should. I think it’s a little excessive. Any of us is likely to simply give two weeks notice. This is considered the correct thing to do.
AND perhaps there in lies the problem.
Too little notice has obvious problems. Additionally it is considered bad form.
On the opposite side is too much notice, where in your employer gets to treat you like smelly wet dirt.

Although perhaps unavoidable notice to my employer of my leaving in the time I did it was a mistake. And a huge problem.


So I just finished counseling XXXXX on her man troubles.

Let me recount:
She is dating this guy XXXXX for about a year. They are well into the relationship (sex, pseudo-cohabitation, long term plans, financial…), now XXXXX has been complaining to numerous individuals about some of XXXXX 's issues. This guy is a pretty big looser. He has little to no ambition and a personality to match. He has some of the worst male self-esteem on earth, and is only a half-wit. XXXXX is not much better, perhaps even worse in terms of interpersonal psychology. She has had nothing but a string of doomed relationships with men who could better server her as food (Stewie stew, or Jerry steak). So the fact that this relationship has gotten even this far is amazing (congratulations to the both of them).
Today XXXXX told me how pissed she was about events from the past morning. XXXXX runs (marathons). So he is frequently jogging in the mornings (as most crazy people do). He was returning home, when he was approached by a pan-handler. Instead of telling the guy to get a job, or call the government, or to go screw himself with a fire-extinguisher, he brought the guy back to the house. Although he made the bum wait at the curb, XXXXX did go inside and return with money for the dude.

XXXXX ’s problem was several fold. She cited danger of this unsavory individual now knows where she lives. She also complained that XXXXX did not stand up for himself. He gave the guy money.

All of these things are issues, but the truth in the mater is that she is criticizing XXXXX for his low self-esteem.

We all know the dangers of living in America. Rape, murder, theft, assault, and other violent crime are a significant part of your society. So it makes sense to take some precautions. What is reasonable and sane is of some debate, but very few people advocate not locking your doors. Short skirts are another issue all together. I understand not wanting the bum to know where she lives, but I would not be so concerned either. My argument is that if he was a criminal looking for a place to break in, he would not walk up to someone on a run in hopes of finding out where he lives. I would also not introduce myself and spend time with him, as I would likely be identified. So if he is a criminal burglar then he is a very stupid one! That being said, I don’t think a huge deal is here, but rather a small one.

Her real problem is with XXXXX and his low self-esteem. Of course someone as messed up as XXXXX should be so luck to find a guy with low self-esteem. He will never leave her, because he doesn’t respect himself enough to want better. This may be a relationship that will last, albeit unhealthy and twisted.

For my self – I tried to help Miss XXXXX and her F’ed up relationship. I pointed out several times that what she was looking at was self-esteem issues. I also gave her good advice on how to minimize damage to self-esteem AND how to take steps to create an environment to grow healthy self (for both her and XXXXX ).
I sent most of last night outside. It was great. Let me say that again IT WAS GREAT!

I came home and changed, grabbed a cigar and a soda and off I went to the deck. I sat in the gazebo and smoked for a long time. XXXXX came out and talked to me as did XXXXX . It was very easy to relax. I generally have trouble with that – especially on a Tuesday night. I get to thinking about all the time I have to spend at work yet and all the B*S* that I have to endure. It was nice just to talk. Now don’t get me wrong, I LOVE movies and video games and reading, but that was so cool. After XXXXX left to run the kids (XXXXX and XXXXX coming home from work), I lit the fire pit. I grabbed another cigar and soda and sat in the garden. XXXXX hung out with me for a while and then XXXXX did.
Now XXXXX did have a meltdown when XXXXX ignored the dog and he peed in the house. Then he was told to clean it up and keep the dogs in the house, but he put the dogs out and left the pee. XXXXX was found laying on XXXXX bed playing video games. XXXXX was so pissed that she slammed one glass hard enough to shatter it. XXXXX could have cared less. He has yet to grasp the problem with living the way he does (if you can call it living). Why should he clean up the dog urine – its not his dog…
After the melt down, XXXXX ran off to his friends (walked to the gas station) and XXXXX returned to the fire. We talked about money and troubles.
All in all it was a nice evening. I still smell like smoke, but don’t think there is much I can do about that.

Stupid work issue number two million three hundred thousand and sixty nine – Some of our computers do not work and play well with the programs we use. XXXXX and Adobe are two that hate one another.

At one time we could print from XXXXX to Adobe (PDF), but as time has progressed, the two programs are less and less compatible. Now we can’t print at all.

So I now use the Microsoft writer (MDI) to copy from XXXXX , but if you don’t have Office 2003 or higher you can’t open MDI files. One would think that a company who uses Office so heavily would have rolled out 2003 to all of its employees (considering its 2nd quarter 2007 and a newer version was released this year!!!!!), but they haven’t. SO I am getting guff for my MDI files in the database. FU@K YOU!
I was told to request a PDF from another person who can (still) PDF from XXXXX . OR to take a screen shot and use that, hence type in all the information again!
I think they need to pay me by the hour if that the case.

Scream at length about productivity as you dump on random new requirements for our assessments. Does anyone else see a problem here? If I was a line worker putting caps on bottles, I would be asked to put three additional caps on each bottle, polish all the caps, and be asked to put out more bottles than before I was given the extra work. If this make sense to anybody (other than XXXXX ), I need to hear about it.

So, I got a request from someone who moved from the deleted XXXXX to Automotive XXXXX . This is not such a big deal, but the person did not receive descent training on how the systems work, so I am getting these screwed up can’t complete requests. The data is corrupt – it is in the system, but makes no sense. The documents are in forms that I don’t have access to. The documents are not released to staff groups or I am being given product numbers that are not even in the system.
This is 100% a training issue and costs me time. These [should be simple] requests fall out and take days. In an environment where we are measured on how many requests we complete within 48 hours … blah, blah, blah… I am going to held accountable for someone else’s bad training.

I love being a contractor.