Two more years wiser.

Two more years wiser.

Current mood:refreshed

(Originally posted on MySpace on 8/30/2007 - I'm pulling up some old blogs as I'm looking for some perspective)

So in case you're wondering why I haven't been stalking blogs this week. In addition to covering for a fellow planner who's launching the biggest product for our company this year, I'm finally moving offices to my new job. Moving day was Wednesday.  

I spent all Tuesday packing my office. I was pretty lucky to get that since I was replacing a more senior person and I was coming from a cube with no view on the fifth floor.  The office has a pretty decent view overlooking the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge.  Squint hard enough and you can see Sausalito past the right of the Federal Building.



Here's a view if you lean out over the desk.  Down below is City Center Plaza where I spent many a lunch scarfing down Mexican food wishing I didn't have to go back into the building.  I didn't look out this window much, oddly enough.  I had the drapes drawn most of the time because I got really bad headaches because of the bright light. I even needed to take out two of the six fluorescent bulbs in the ceiling.



Two years of accumulated desk clutter.  In addition to the standard phone and personal printer (brought from home), I had the illegal coffee pot, the paper clip holder and three-hole punch with my name on it (5S requirements), a penny sculpture that was never finished and the last in a series of bottles of Tums.  Yeah, that kind of job.



Oddly enough, out of the 7 boxes I had to move, only 1/2 of one was files I needed and 1 more box was files for my replacement.  I'd gotten so good at putting things in electronic form that I moved everything to a shared network drive and a single email archive file. If my laptop dies before I get her those files, she's doomed.



This is my new home.  Yes, it's smaller, has no privacy, no climate control, no security for personal items, but at least it's brightly lit.  Note the cool rolling suitcase?  That's my 10 Year service anniversary gift.  I've never been ANYWHERE that long in my life!



This is the new view from the desk.  I still need to decorate it.  Any suggestions?



The old floor is going to be completely scrambled to align with the new reorganization, so no one will be sitting in the same place in a month or so.  My old office will be vacant, so I'll probably go back up there to hide if I need to get work done.  In the meantime, I put the posters that I usually have hidden behind the door on the cork board over the desk.:MISTAKES: It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others.
(I think I totally lived that for the last two years).

AMBITION: The journey of a thousand miles sometimes ends very, very badly.
(Posted after we had a rush shipment from Argentina hit the US Port only to be held up in Customs for two weeks).

ACHIEVEMENT:  You can do anything you set your mind to when you have vision, determination, and an endless supply of expendable labor.
(Uh... no comment)

DESPAIR: It's always darkest just before it goes pitch black. 
(I thought my last job was crazy.  I'm still deciding on my new one).


My old position manages about 10% of our company's annual sales - over $400 million dollars a year - to four of the company's seven strategic customers. Over that time, I did about 150 new product launches and transitions. Only one was a disaster (less than 95% fulfillment upon launch). The job is designed to pile things on you and make you learn at light speed and, in theory, serve as a springboard to 'wherever you want.'

As bad as it got at times, I think I can say is that I did everything that was asked of me  I didn't do it very cheerfully most of the time but the thing I learned is that saying "Yes" to everything doesn't make you a good worker, it makes you crazy.  Work life balance and all.

And finally, what kind of person would I be without leaving people a way to find me?  Yeah, it may come across as a little morbid, but people in my department get it.



I'm not the kind of person who can let go of something easily, even if it's something that made my life miserable.  In this case, I'm looking back and hoping that my replacement can pick up where I left off.

Of course, since I'm still in the building, I'm sure it'll be like I never left.

*sigh*

I haven't collected a single link for Blogwatch this week, but I read a lot of stuff I know I would have saved - Katrina photoblogs, Myspace's Got Talent award winners, The Magical's contest and I see Assilem and Anthrogeek's partner avatars up.

Anyone want to help?  I'm not only looking for links, but I'd also like to see if someone else would be willing to post it.  I stumbled onto something that might even make it easier.  I have one person already interested, but I'm willing to look for future hosts.