I Love My Job

"I love my job, I love my job"

"What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to convince myself to get out of bed."

There are days when I have to use an excessive amount of will power to get out of bed. Actually what really happens in my brain turns on a mind movie. I'm lying in bed dreaming about the shark documentary my wife made we watch before turning in last night. I'm wearing a giant seal costume and find that I'm an excellent swimmer, but a lousy shaver. I seem to have nicked myself and I'm bleeding into the cool blue Pacific. It's at that point when my mortgage and electric bill dressed as a great white shark come zooming towards me. Why is it that everything always seems to make sense in a dream?

Anyway I wake up and realize that if I don't get up and get to work, my wife and two daughters will not have anything to eat, any place to live, or any clothes to wear. I'm still in bed. I also realize that we would have to sell the computers. So I soon find myself getting ready for work.

My drive to work everyday takes me past a poultry processing plant. It's hard to not appreciate what I've got as I chug by it. The smell of the place is quite distinct and while I imagine I could get used to it, I doubt I could get used to the enormous vat of leftover chicken parts. Sometimes I see them forklifting it to the dumpster during my few second glimpse into plant operations. The forklift has a makeshift cellophane canopy stretched over the top of it. Something I didn't understand until I saw a loose chicken head fall out of the vat and get deflected from the driver. Talk about unusual work hazards!

I really do like my job. I have a lot or responsibility and flexibility to do my job the way I see fit. Additionally, while my boss knows the end result he wants, he couldn't do my job.

"Whats wrong with the network?"

"A loose gandor bar slipped a notch during that last upload and I have to realign the phase matrix..."

"oh..."

Do I do this often? Well...more often than I should. I always fix the problem, but its fun to think that somewhere in the building a division manager is relaying this information to a director and they're both nodding and feeling good that the problem turn out to be something as simple as a gandor bar. Why didn't they think of that?

It's a good job and I'm lucky to have it, but there are still days I would rather be anywhere but at the office. Lately three big projects all came to a head, which will require me working over the upcoming holiday weekend. So this morning was a little harder to struggle out of bed then the last few mornings. I believe this is mostly owing the the fact that I knew I would have to do it again tomorrow morning and possibly Sunday and Monday as well.

As Longfellow once said so aptly, “Into each life some rain must fall” and in the end I must admit that I have it pretty good, and that I really do love my job.

12 comments:

Stephanie said...

I know those feelings too well - not wanting to get up and needing to - - but also loving my job! Hope you don't have to work too much over the holiday weekend and are able to relax some with your family.

Jason Michael Shuttlesworth said...

What is a Gandor Bar? We have lots of ganders and gooses here flying around Chesapeake bay, but no Gandor bars.

I picture of bunch of rough looking birds with headbands and leather hanging out on the river drinking and scaring seagulls

Ando said...

That's the thing about work. No matter how much you love your job, its still a job.

Bummer about the weekend.

J Crew said...

I can actually say that I am totally stoked about my new job.

Becca Sports said...

Working...ugh, I hated it. Although I still "work" all the time, there was nothing like having to get dressed up every day and head for the office. I'll still never forget my countdown caldendar to when I was to have Abigail and never come back!! :) That was a beautiful thing to see the days tick off.

jenylu said...

I'm glad the sober realization you'd have to sell the computers was able to move you into action! :)

Peter Brown said...

SJ-

It was a rough weekend, 17 hours of OT, but at least it's over! ;)

Peter Brown said...

Jason-

That sounds as good any explanation I could think of...

...I wonder what you have to wear at the gandor bar?

Peter Brown said...

Ando-

Agreed!

Now if I could just get a job playing video games and blogging...

Peter Brown said...

WCS-

Patricia was just talking about her last days of work with a similar attitude...

...I don't know though, her job makes mine look like a cake walk. I would die if I had to change diapers, and deal with crying people all day!

Peter Brown said...

Jenylu-

When it comes down to it, we all have to have our priorities! :)

Peter Brown said...

J Crew-

Stoked? Really? You don't say! :)