I have not damaged my back but I certainly think I've worn it out in the last couple of weeks and yes, maybe I should have eased off of hauling things around but if I didn't set up the copier/fax machine and then fish out the printer and put it on the table where the network is supposedly going to be installed, then no one else would have done it and we'd never be able to print.

Hello. Boulder again.

Today, in theory, the internet and fax connections will be set up. I'm taking it on faith (a dangerous precedent) that the company Bernie arranged with to come and do whatever magic needed to be done to the phone lines in the building actually showed up and did it this morning. They assured me they didn't need access to the suite until 1:00, so I didn't try to get here at 7 a.m. for the set-up portion of the process.

Brooding.

Scooby the Database Boy is mad at me because of the huffy email I sent him on Friday. And also, one assumes, because of the huffy email Bernie sent him on Saturday. I wish, I honestly do wish I could figure out which one of them is crazier in this set-up, but I can't. I believe that Bernie believes in the numbers he has in his head and that he believes he's laid out his requirements clearly, in spite of the fact that I know that sometimes he believes imaginary things and only thinks he's saying what he means to say. I believe that Scooby believes he's worked hard, done a good job, and provided what we asked for, in spite of the fact that I've been told, more than once, that he was previously let go for incompetence.

The only thing I know is that what we need and what we got ain't the same thing.

No, I know one more thing. For some reason Scooby spent the weekend sending back to us the files we sent to him to create the Cago database. One presumes that Bernie told him to and I have a ghastly feeling that Bernie is going to want me to fill this week's slack time by going back and retracing our steps for the last four months to figure out whether or not the database we have is the database we should have. And I know that if he asks me to do that, I'll tell him that's my last day of employment.

When someone is paying you, they have a right to decide how you spend your time. However, when they want you to spend your time in ways you find ridiculous and/or menial, or cleaning up yet another of their messes, or doing things you're entirely unqualified to do, or some combination of those, you always have the option to pick up your hat and leave. The stuff I spend 70% of my time doing around matches neither my original job description nor my skill set.

Also, I realized on the drive up here today that having to drive to Boulder for a day of work is only 10% as stressful when I know that Bernie won't be in the office at this end. So, you know, it wasn't the commute that did me in. It was the crazy-factor.

Also, I had to top up my gas tank this morning. Hmph.

Sometimes I find myself wondering. Will you be glad when I'm working for a sane person, or will you find the blog boring?