I'm having one of those days. One where doing the best I can does not seem to be enough. Someone finds an error in something that I've done, so I make a correction. I double-check the work, and to the best of my knowledge, all is correct. Repeat. For 3 days. Each cycle of "finding an error" is causing other people's work to be delayed by hours, or indefinitely until the whole thing is error free. And I'm not talking about major errors--I'm talking about missing a quotation mark. Or failing to update one file out of 20 (that reside in 20 different spots across the network..not just a cut-copy-paste kind of thing).

It's frustrating me. And it's worse when I hear someone two cubes over grumbling about how they are being slowed down. Like I can't hear that. And like I did it on purpose. Not that anyone's saying that, but still. I'm right here. And I KNOW that its a problem. And if there were a faster way to guarantee that it all works I WOULD DO IT.

Oh yeah, one of my bigger recent project-tasks is getting scrapped. Not because of anything that I did, but apparently someone else in the group had a better idea. Not that the task was my idea or even my design, just that the hours of work were mine. Something like 20-40 hours of work. Flush, down the bit drain. That's a week of my life that I won't get back. At least its not my dime paying for it.

It doesn't help that at work, we are being actively encouraged (not quite mandated, but almost) to work overtime. To the tune of 10-12 hours per week. I don't even work full time at the moment--32.5 hours/week. If I put in 4 9-hour days, I AM working overtime. And no, I don't have more evening or weekend time to give. And I could attempt to work 40 hour weeks for a while, but with our schedule of Dr visits and other assorted appointments, I'll be taking 1-2 days off in every payperiod anyway. I could get here early in the morning. How I would make it out of bed, I don't know, and on days where I take kids to daycare, my kids would be first to arrive and nearly last to leave. Lucky them, they get to "work" 10-12 hour days too. No Thanks.

When do these people sleep? Who feeds their children? Picks the kids up from school? Oh wait, there aren't any other moms of preshcool age children in the group. There are a few fathers of very young children, but for the ones I'm aware of, their wives stay home. So I'm special. Gee, that helps.

The overtime issue was nicely highlighted the other day in a meeting. The top overtime-workers were called out and given a token "thank-you" gift. Except that there was a large tie for "top", so there were like 3 of us who didn't get a free coffee mug. Not that I need another. But really, why not just call the names of those of us who didn't work enough overtime to qualify. It would have taken less time. And been just as annoying.

I try try try not to complain much about work on here. Usually it's just fine. Nothing spectacular. Just fine. Today's just one of those days, I guess.