Anatomy of Month End

This is how it goes...you work work work to get month end done with, but it is like waiting for water to boil. You go and go and it never seems to end, but then all of the sudden you are reading the news and you realize that it is over. If you think about it, there is really no clear event demarcating the end...it is just done. Peace.

What this means is the month end rush could be driven by something other than finite events. The second I lose the idea of things being out of control, late and publicized in front of my boss, his boss and all their colleagues, it's over. I'm left wondering what happened.

Group Think - In the fray, everybody is stressed. There is this tense air in the office; a tension as tight as a suspension wire on a bridge. Everybody feels it as they scramble about, asking favors and solving problems. This fades as the month progresses, mainly due to the busy times of each team ends on different days, thus creating a progression. In one respect you are calming down, and in another the tension is sustained; you are re-introduced to familiar routine but the urgency is still there. It is when you realize that the urgency is unnecessary that you realize that the month end is over. The line between month end and mid month is blurred by task and urgency.

The fact that I am able to write this is a definite clue that the urgency is waning, and I will again return to routine...for a little while at least.

Long days revealed

It has been a long day, primarily because it has been a long week. The fatigue from each day lingers on into the next making the day seem worse than the last, culminating into a loooong week. It's sad that I feel this way on Thursday...apathy. Apathy on Thursday quickly turns to lethargy on Friday, but ultimatly sets you up for a fairly relaxing weekend...given you aren't so lethargic that you have to work on Saturday to catch up.

It's month end...the time when my computer desktop fills with files, and my physical desktop fills with print offs of the same files. Luckily (sarcasm) every person in the office finishes their month end before me. Not because they are faster, I just carry the torch after they are done. Other people carry the torch as well, I'm just the only one here with torch duty and I'll tell ya, it sucks. Happy hour tonight...can't.