You all? Sorry about not posting yesterday, but y’know work? Was busy. Going all Big Brother-ish on my staff. (Kidding! I’ve never even seen Big Brother. So I can only guess that it was something like what I was doing. Y’know, checking up on them and shit.)

Seriously - they asked me to put together their vacation days taken vs. left…since the group is smaller now, a lot of the priority days - like Christmas and the day after Thanksgiving have opened up. Ha! They think they’re getting those days off? Power, thy name is Hotfessional. Snort.

When I ran my department like the dictator than I am managed 40 employees, I had to determine what the vacation policy was going to be. There’s one in the employee handbook, but the key line there is “Or at Manager’s discretion.” Discretion? Me? Huh?

Here’s my policy. For the first month of the year, we follow seniority. If you get 4 weeks of vacation, and you can plan out your vacation for the year, and you have the most seniority? GOLDEN. You get what you want. But (there’s always one, right?), if you don’t submit your vacation by January 31…..it’s first come, first served.

(Hey, I was low man on the totem pole for a lonnnng time. I always thought it unfair that I couldn’t get Thanksgiving Friday, even if no one else asked for it until October. So, y’know. January 31st guys. Or you’re s.o.l. and your s.o. is pissed because s/he made plans to go to their mother’s for dinner and it’s in Timbuktu, and how are you going to get back for work on Friday????)

Annnnyway. I do so get off track. Oops.

Seniority rules for January. Then, 1st come, 1st served. But, what happens when half of those people who were here when the calendar got created are gone? Things get fucked up. And have to be recalibrated. But hey - I moved UP two spots. Snort.

So, anyway, I spent part of the day doing that - which was not easy considered we have 3 or 4 different tracking mechanisms, and we’ve all changed cost centers three times this year, and the most reliable system only reports in Sunday to Saturday weeks, not individual days.

And the other parts of the day? Conference calls and requirements meetings. But these guys came to visit:

Ever wonder what the underside of a grasshopper looked like?
Sorry about the quality (or lack thereof…camera phone y’know.)

The goose, I’m sure, is thinking, “Dinner!” Yum, now, come follow me my little six-footed friend….”

And already this morning some sort of buzzard flew overhead. (No, it was not anyone I knew).

I do love being in the office early though. And before everyone else is here. I get to sip my coffee, watch the wildlife wake up, and plan my strategy for the day.

—- And no, said strategy generally doesn’t involve torturing employees. Actually, they rather like me. I’m a softie when it comes to those of us who are left here. We’ve survived some tough times together. And y’know? I cook Thanksgiving dinner. I don’t need Friday off. —-

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