Years ago, long before I introduced them, KfW2 and S met at a wedding. I don't know how S knew the couple, but KfW2 worked with both of them.
By all accounts the wedding was a multi-day affair that was a complete party.
KfW2 has remained friendly with both people, though the female half of the couple has moved on, from an employment perspective.
This is all preamble to what happened today. I was collecting my niece from school today and collecting a smile from her teacher, but who was standing a few feet to my left? KfW2's (female) friend. We've only met once, and briefly (I'm more friendly with her husband), so she has no idea who I am/was. However, it appears that her son is in the same class as my niece.
Not the world's most shocking news, but an interesting coincidence nonetheless.
When KfW2 popped in earlier for tea and biscuits, I thought I'd share that story. She was nonplussed.
"I thought it'd be more interesting than that!" she explained.
"I thought it was. People usually complain when I don't share stuff like that cos I think it's unimportant."
And it was true. I often don't share small stories like that because I don't attach importance to them. Small talk is a weakness of mine. It's definitely something I need to work on.
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Monday, January 15, 2018
Daydream
If it were one of those Disney movies that starred Lindsay Lohan from around 2003-ish, you might raise an eyebrow. For reasons that I might yet get into (I haven't decided if I am going to post about other goings on this past week), I wasn't in work today. As a result, I volunteered to go with my sister to pick up my niece from school.
She was delighted to see me. While she has always enjoyed my company, I sometimes got the feeling that I was a stopgap if her mum, or either of my parents weren't available. That's changed over the past few months though and she has been more willing to engage with me.
Today, when collecting my niece, she suddenly decided that it was VERY important that I met her teacher. Off we went, prancing around the playground while her teacher spoke to another parent. Eventually her teacher became free and I was introduced. It wasn't as awkward as I'd thought and the teacher is cute (though married), but I did immediately think back to those Lindsay Lohan Disney movies where kids set up their parents on dates etc.
My niece is too young to understand the dynamic of dating etc. so it wasn't remotely likely... it was just a little daydream.
She was delighted to see me. While she has always enjoyed my company, I sometimes got the feeling that I was a stopgap if her mum, or either of my parents weren't available. That's changed over the past few months though and she has been more willing to engage with me.
Today, when collecting my niece, she suddenly decided that it was VERY important that I met her teacher. Off we went, prancing around the playground while her teacher spoke to another parent. Eventually her teacher became free and I was introduced. It wasn't as awkward as I'd thought and the teacher is cute (though married), but I did immediately think back to those Lindsay Lohan Disney movies where kids set up their parents on dates etc.
My niece is too young to understand the dynamic of dating etc. so it wasn't remotely likely... it was just a little daydream.
Sunday, January 14, 2018
Oh, hello!
I was reading through a forum of which I am a member, trying to summon the energy to tidy the house and jump in the shower, when I stumbled across a mention of Nina Nesbitt. I've never heard of her nor have I heard her songs before, but she is stunning!
And in the pictures below, rocks the wavy, short haircut I love on women.
And in the pictures below, rocks the wavy, short haircut I love on women.
Touchdown.
D was in contact on Friday morning with news.
His team and my team are due to play in the NFL in the UK later this year. My interest in the NFL has waned over the years, though I still nominally support the team from my youth. D's interest is more active.
This year, the annual Superbowl party is probably going to be cancelled for the first time in nearly 25 years because D is starting a new job and will be in the middle of training.
If we can get the tickets for the UK game, then that's something I definitely want to aim for.
His team and my team are due to play in the NFL in the UK later this year. My interest in the NFL has waned over the years, though I still nominally support the team from my youth. D's interest is more active.
This year, the annual Superbowl party is probably going to be cancelled for the first time in nearly 25 years because D is starting a new job and will be in the middle of training.
If we can get the tickets for the UK game, then that's something I definitely want to aim for.
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Oh la la!
As I sat down earlier, I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. Someone new was going to sit near me.
It's a girl. A brunette. Slim... Oh! Nice bum!
Hang on, I recognise that haircut.
Quiet Girl!
She spent the past few hours presumably packing up her old desk and moving to her new desk which is about 3 metres away from me.
In a team meeting, we were told that she'd kinda be joining our team, but we never found out if I'd have direct interaction with her.
Regardless, she sits three metres away. I daresay that I can strike up a conversation with her. She's married, I think, but why not get to know her?
It's a girl. A brunette. Slim... Oh! Nice bum!
Hang on, I recognise that haircut.
Quiet Girl!
She spent the past few hours presumably packing up her old desk and moving to her new desk which is about 3 metres away from me.
In a team meeting, we were told that she'd kinda be joining our team, but we never found out if I'd have direct interaction with her.
Regardless, she sits three metres away. I daresay that I can strike up a conversation with her. She's married, I think, but why not get to know her?
Monday, January 08, 2018
Sigh (part 3).
In a meeting about Friday's issue, someone piped up to say that the issue found was "untestable". That alone should be enough to get my manager off my back... if he's even going to get on my back. After all, if it can't be tested, it must be awkward to program, right?
Well, wrong. Kinda. The error is still mine, but it should have been caught by the testing department. Their assertion that the issue was untestable is nonsense. Had they done their job properly, then my mistake would (probably) have been found and everyone would be much happier.
My manager, while well aware of what's going on, has yet to say anything. I expect some kind of chat to happen sooner rather than later, and for the Finger of Blame to be pointed firmly at me before I need to put him in his place. Again.
I shouldn't have to. Nor do I want to. I work better with a manager who has my back, with whom I have a good relationship, who I feel listens to me and empathises with me. This is not the case currently.
Well, wrong. Kinda. The error is still mine, but it should have been caught by the testing department. Their assertion that the issue was untestable is nonsense. Had they done their job properly, then my mistake would (probably) have been found and everyone would be much happier.
My manager, while well aware of what's going on, has yet to say anything. I expect some kind of chat to happen sooner rather than later, and for the Finger of Blame to be pointed firmly at me before I need to put him in his place. Again.
I shouldn't have to. Nor do I want to. I work better with a manager who has my back, with whom I have a good relationship, who I feel listens to me and empathises with me. This is not the case currently.
Sunday, January 07, 2018
Sigh (cont'd)
While the associated insomnia from the events detailed in Friday's post hasn't kicked in yet, they've been on my mind pretty much all weekend.
I was able to put them aside briefly on Friday night because I did decide to meet GM, S etc. And a couple of hours yesterday as I concentrated on a video game, but other than that, I've been thinking about how to fix the problem and my bosses' reaction almost constantly.
I went to bed at 1 AM last night and awoke at 6 AM this morning. This was after a heavy night of booze on Friday, which always leaves me tired the next day. I'm expecting a serious night of insomnia despite being already sleep deprived.
That's a problem I've always had. I can't turn it off if it bothers* me. I'm bothered that this error was made and not found during the testing. I'm bothered that my manager is a very blame-y type of guy (and I have the impression that, despite having never met me, he doesn't like me).
As I said in the other post, there were a few errors that he tried to pin on me last year that had no right being attributed to me. But he did try. And when I refuted his claims with facts, he went silent. Does he still think they're my fault? I don't know. We're meant to have a monthly feedback session where he's meant to keep me appraised of my performance, but he's not done that at all this year, even when I've given him status updates.
I need a change of scenery. Whether that's time to move into a new role or take up something different, I've yet to figure out. Either way is not going to be a quick solution and will be hard work for several months. This current thought is purely down to my manager - the rest of my working life is mostly great.
*I say "bothers" because it does. I take pride in my work and I want to avoid as many mistakes as I possibly can, but any reasonable manager will know you can't expect perfection all of the time, especially with humans being involved. I am concerned about my manager's reaction given his tendency to over-react, but it's hardly job threatening.
I was able to put them aside briefly on Friday night because I did decide to meet GM, S etc. And a couple of hours yesterday as I concentrated on a video game, but other than that, I've been thinking about how to fix the problem and my bosses' reaction almost constantly.
I went to bed at 1 AM last night and awoke at 6 AM this morning. This was after a heavy night of booze on Friday, which always leaves me tired the next day. I'm expecting a serious night of insomnia despite being already sleep deprived.
That's a problem I've always had. I can't turn it off if it bothers* me. I'm bothered that this error was made and not found during the testing. I'm bothered that my manager is a very blame-y type of guy (and I have the impression that, despite having never met me, he doesn't like me).
As I said in the other post, there were a few errors that he tried to pin on me last year that had no right being attributed to me. But he did try. And when I refuted his claims with facts, he went silent. Does he still think they're my fault? I don't know. We're meant to have a monthly feedback session where he's meant to keep me appraised of my performance, but he's not done that at all this year, even when I've given him status updates.
I need a change of scenery. Whether that's time to move into a new role or take up something different, I've yet to figure out. Either way is not going to be a quick solution and will be hard work for several months. This current thought is purely down to my manager - the rest of my working life is mostly great.
*I say "bothers" because it does. I take pride in my work and I want to avoid as many mistakes as I possibly can, but any reasonable manager will know you can't expect perfection all of the time, especially with humans being involved. I am concerned about my manager's reaction given his tendency to over-react, but it's hardly job threatening.
Friday, January 05, 2018
Sigh.
While the timing of these things is never great, over the past twelve months, the amount of work "mistakes" that are reported to me as I'm leaving the office for the weekend or a few days' holiday is annoying.
It's not like I have lot of work mistakes - five over the past year, of which none are attributable solely to me - but my manager always makes a big deal of these, and his manager does likewise. This is the first, not just of 2017, but probably in the past five years, that can be reasonably attributed to me.
They're not a big deal - the nature of being a software developer these days means that you're likely to break something, but if you fix it quickly, then great. It's low impact (doesn't stop anything from working fully), can be worked around and doesn't happen often.
My manager will still act like I've burned down his house and I'll have to deal with this on Monday.
This week wasn't great, work-wise, but this is a terrible end to it.
It's not like I have lot of work mistakes - five over the past year, of which none are attributable solely to me - but my manager always makes a big deal of these, and his manager does likewise. This is the first, not just of 2017, but probably in the past five years, that can be reasonably attributed to me.
They're not a big deal - the nature of being a software developer these days means that you're likely to break something, but if you fix it quickly, then great. It's low impact (doesn't stop anything from working fully), can be worked around and doesn't happen often.
My manager will still act like I've burned down his house and I'll have to deal with this on Monday.
This week wasn't great, work-wise, but this is a terrible end to it.
Building momentum
It's been a slow week back at work and starting the year.
I've been busy in work without being productive due to fire-fighting a lot of ad-hoc issues. I'm still very sluggish at trying to shift this cold, and the cupboards are still full of Christmas treats that need to be eaten errr... disposed of before I can look into a more healthy eating plan. I'll have eaten, errr... disposed of the last of them by the weekend though.
So. Deep breath. Next week I'm hoping to at least take the first steps in losing weight and eating slightly better.
Socially, I was out for dinner last night with CC who's convinced that the soup, dumplings and sushi we had is "healthy". I mean, it's certainly probably better for you than my suggestion which was a chicken wing restaurant, but healthy per se? Plus chicken wings are great comfort food.
There was chat about heading out tonight for pints with GM, SG, FC and S. I don't know if I can be bothered - there's some sport on the telly I want to watch and I'm trying to shift this cold as well - but at the same time, I'd like to catch up with the guys. I'll undoubtedly feel better after I get home and have a shower. I'll decide then.
KfW2 is still ill. I've not seen her in over three weeks which, pregnancy aside, is probably the longest we've gone since we became friends. We've spoken on the phone and swapped text messages, but it's not the same and I kinda miss her a little.
I've been busy in work without being productive due to fire-fighting a lot of ad-hoc issues. I'm still very sluggish at trying to shift this cold, and the cupboards are still full of Christmas treats that need to be eaten errr... disposed of before I can look into a more healthy eating plan. I'll have eaten, errr... disposed of the last of them by the weekend though.
So. Deep breath. Next week I'm hoping to at least take the first steps in losing weight and eating slightly better.
Socially, I was out for dinner last night with CC who's convinced that the soup, dumplings and sushi we had is "healthy". I mean, it's certainly probably better for you than my suggestion which was a chicken wing restaurant, but healthy per se? Plus chicken wings are great comfort food.
There was chat about heading out tonight for pints with GM, SG, FC and S. I don't know if I can be bothered - there's some sport on the telly I want to watch and I'm trying to shift this cold as well - but at the same time, I'd like to catch up with the guys. I'll undoubtedly feel better after I get home and have a shower. I'll decide then.
KfW2 is still ill. I've not seen her in over three weeks which, pregnancy aside, is probably the longest we've gone since we became friends. We've spoken on the phone and swapped text messages, but it's not the same and I kinda miss her a little.
Monday, January 01, 2018
Last night.
OK, so by the time midnight rolled round, I was kinda regretting turning down SG and GM. Not hugely so, mind you, far less than I was expecting.
But I guess it would have been nice to have been more social over the Christmas period, but my own illness, as well as KfW2's meant that we didn't get to see each other. There was only one night out with FP.
In Whatsapp messages earlier, either GM or SG admitted that they were tucked up in bed at 10 PM. So I wonder if I dodged a SG flaky bullet there?
Still New Year and all that, time to make new plans. I'm meeting CC later this week for dinner. She offered last week, but I was still feeling sorry for myself with the cold and was hibernating to try and get rid of it ASAP.
I'm overdue a night out with KfW2. We've not had one in nearly nine months though she's managed to find time to be out with CC, amongst others, for dinner, spa days etc. Sometimes I feel that because her kids love me and we get along, she keeps me aside for kiddy play dates. CC, for example, "does not do kids".
That's something to arrange, starting within the next few days.
But I guess it would have been nice to have been more social over the Christmas period, but my own illness, as well as KfW2's meant that we didn't get to see each other. There was only one night out with FP.
In Whatsapp messages earlier, either GM or SG admitted that they were tucked up in bed at 10 PM. So I wonder if I dodged a SG flaky bullet there?
Still New Year and all that, time to make new plans. I'm meeting CC later this week for dinner. She offered last week, but I was still feeling sorry for myself with the cold and was hibernating to try and get rid of it ASAP.
I'm overdue a night out with KfW2. We've not had one in nearly nine months though she's managed to find time to be out with CC, amongst others, for dinner, spa days etc. Sometimes I feel that because her kids love me and we get along, she keeps me aside for kiddy play dates. CC, for example, "does not do kids".
That's something to arrange, starting within the next few days.
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