A Day In The Life
Lots of people are doing these posts lately. I imagine it's a suggested theme somewhere but I didn't see where.
So. Let's cover Thursday as my boss was in the office which makes for a much fuller day.
5:45am - the alarm goes off. I listen to 15 minutes of news and then get up to shower.
6:05 - what should I wear to work today? I ask K every morning. EVERY MORNING. He's usually checking his emails when I ask him and always has a snarky answer. If I'm standing in my underwear he'll say why don't you go like that?
6:15 - I decide on: a very long black sleeveless dress, $3.99 at the thrift shop, my new Anthro necklace and brown flat sandals. I iron the creases out of the dress (polyester!) and dry my hair and do my make-up (mineral powder, some eye pencil and blush).
6:45ish - I check my emails. I turn on my phone and check for texts. I gather the things I need to take to the office, I check in with any boys who are awake.
7:15ish - K takes me to the station. (Or, depending on the day: I ride on the back of the scooter to the station with K, OR K takes me and Middle to the station, OR Middle, K and I ride in the Jeep and all get on the train AND we might have Youngest with us too. Oldest is the only one who stays town-side.)
7:30 - On the train I: observe my fellow passengers, check my emails, listen to music (I cannot bear to hear my fellow passengers), read the paper, or do my favorite thing: play Klondike on my phone.
8:10 - Arrive in town. Walk upstairs, do the special handshake with Middle, kiss K, and walk to work (14+ blocks). I stop at Whole Foods for a jar of lemonade, a carton of fresh OJ and a tall bottle of water for a morning meeting. I grab some flowers for the table. My next stop is the French restaurant for two dozen cookies.
8:30 - grab the WSJ from the lobby, take the elevator, let myself in, arrange the mail, sign on to the network, look at the calendar.
It's not my calendar. I don't even have a calendar. It's the calendar I keep for the boss. See those white areas? Those are times he's free...sort of. I know the 10:30 meeting could run late so I let the 11:30 attendees know. I'll call them in when he's ready. Those white spaces will never exist.
9:45 - the boss (he's M, okay?) arrives. We chat for two minutes, he checks his mail and email, talks to someone who comes by and then...
10:00 - first meeting. V is excited to show me her new glasses from Warby Parker. They look great on her. I leave them to meet and go set up the flowers and cookies for the 10:30.
I take two calls from people who want to get on the calendar for the day. I offer the first person 2:30. The second gets 5:00.
Two people stop by to see if they can have time with M after lunch. I offer to call them if the 2:00 finishes early.
Middle calls. I was supposed to have taken the later train with him and I had forgotten. He wants to talk (very rare) but I cannot...too busy. He has had a personal triumph and I scurry off to a quiet area to congratulate him.
When I return, M has decided that the people attending the 10:30 should receive some swag. He has a list of things he'd like me to procure and put in company tote bags. Several people assist in finding these things (all available in the office but not in one place) and we manage to make gift bags in 15 minutes.
A Swiss gentleman calls. M has agreed to see him today and not told me. When?!
10:30: a flock of people arrive from inside the company and outside the company and enjoy the cookies and lemonade and have a productive meeting. They get tote bags of presents!
What do I do whilst others are having productive meetings? Make sure there are napkins and sugar and mugs for the coffee. Bring signed documents to contracts and say hi to my pal KT. File papers. Answer emails about the meeting in Europe in October.
11:37: Surprise! The morning meeting lets out only seven minutes late. This has given me time to shuttle the 11:30 people in and get them set. One is missing and I dash down the hall and can't find her. I come back to the meeting room and she's there, having circumnavigated the office in the opposite direction. This meeting is short and sweet and ends, each week, with a cocktail recipe, so I keep an ear open so I can get the notes. It's a Lillet cocktail and I slip in so I can write it down and G (the woman with the recipe) and M are the only ones left in the meeting and we all have a good laugh over how much orange juice and whether it really IS orange juice that is needed or just a squeeze of juice from an actual orange. Mild, very mild, hilarity ensues.
11:45: M says that he'd prefer lunch with the Swiss gentleman and we both know that the person slated to dine with him will be perfectly comfortable postponing and so I switch out the lunching partners and call the Swiss gentleman to arrange it.
Noon: materials are released for the Tuesday meeting. There are 12 things on the agenda. Each item has from four to 25 pages to copy. I print and collate and staple these forms (I can't explain why, but it must be done by hand) for two people, M and my dear friend J.
(Without realizing that there is no hurry to do this as next week M will be in on Monday and I could give him the material then. I tend to over-anticipate.)
Noonfifteen: M leaves for lunch. I go clean up the breakfast things, distribute leftover cookies, and bring the print-outs to J. I visit with her for a little bit and then go find out what's doing for lunch. Cocktail-recipe lady, L and I venture downstairs for sandwiches/salads/errands. We re-group in the conference room and have lunch. Lunch is always fun even if some of us are in a bad mood. There are between four and eight people who join on any given day and we drool over each other's choices and share treats and complain or cheer each other on. I luff it. (That's 12:45 to 1:45.)
1:45: back at my desk, M has not returned from lunch, the woman "holding" for the 2pm slot comes by to see if I think he'll make it. She's involved in a project she originated and is nervous about talking to him about it. I speculate that he'll be in and she asks if I'll call her boss in too.
2:00: M makes it, I call both parties, this meeting finishes early and I am able to get the 2:30 person in and am able to put a call through to M. M forwards me an attachment that is too low res to read - can we get it bigger? (Yes, it turns out. They send it back so large we cannot email it.)
3:00: For Art Meetings I call each attendee by phone when they are needed. It's a good time to look at the internet as the Art Director likes to pop her head into my office and ask for each of twelve people, one at a time and there isn't anything constructive I can do. Surprisingly, this meeting ends a few minutes early and, for one of the only times ever, I am able to get the 4:00 meeting attendees in on time!
4:00: This meeting can often run well over its allotted time - but it doesn't! (I don't attend any of these meetings, btw.) I give M some phone messages, go down the hall to tease CB and go to congratulate CK on her newest debut. Her dad is having surgery and she'll be out tomorrow to help her mom.
4:30: C arrives to speak with M. I print out the calendar for the next day M will be in the office and bring it to him when he's done with the 5:00 person. We meet at 5 each day to discuss the next day but today I feel like it's too overwhelming and we agree to send me home and let him focus on some of the work on his desk.
I chat for a bit with the lady who sits next-door to me, she's still finding her footing at the office and needs cheering. I text K that I'm leaving, cue up the iTunes and start walking.
The heat hits me like a furnace but with good music I can swiftly make my train. You know plenty about my commute so I won't bore you with my complaints. I like to think if I win at Klondike it signifies a nice evening.
K meets me at the station, our friend W is at the house, the wine is flowing and people are playing ukeleles. Dinner (if K is home first) is always outstanding and the only meal where I really EAT.
I've got five guys at the table (though people often drop out) and I luff it. We laugh and tell stories and it's everything family dinner should be.
I clean up (but often don't scrub pots) and we sit for a bit in the living room before I head up first, usually complaining that I have to take off my shoes or pants.
We watch House Hunters International.
I take my medicine (doing well, thank you, medicine to continue until at least December) and go to sleep at about 11:00.
Did I miss anything?
So. Let's cover Thursday as my boss was in the office which makes for a much fuller day.
5:45am - the alarm goes off. I listen to 15 minutes of news and then get up to shower.
6:05 - what should I wear to work today? I ask K every morning. EVERY MORNING. He's usually checking his emails when I ask him and always has a snarky answer. If I'm standing in my underwear he'll say why don't you go like that?
6:15 - I decide on: a very long black sleeveless dress, $3.99 at the thrift shop, my new Anthro necklace and brown flat sandals. I iron the creases out of the dress (polyester!) and dry my hair and do my make-up (mineral powder, some eye pencil and blush).
6:45ish - I check my emails. I turn on my phone and check for texts. I gather the things I need to take to the office, I check in with any boys who are awake.
7:15ish - K takes me to the station. (Or, depending on the day: I ride on the back of the scooter to the station with K, OR K takes me and Middle to the station, OR Middle, K and I ride in the Jeep and all get on the train AND we might have Youngest with us too. Oldest is the only one who stays town-side.)
7:30 - On the train I: observe my fellow passengers, check my emails, listen to music (I cannot bear to hear my fellow passengers), read the paper, or do my favorite thing: play Klondike on my phone.
8:10 - Arrive in town. Walk upstairs, do the special handshake with Middle, kiss K, and walk to work (14+ blocks). I stop at Whole Foods for a jar of lemonade, a carton of fresh OJ and a tall bottle of water for a morning meeting. I grab some flowers for the table. My next stop is the French restaurant for two dozen cookies.
8:30 - grab the WSJ from the lobby, take the elevator, let myself in, arrange the mail, sign on to the network, look at the calendar.
It's not my calendar. I don't even have a calendar. It's the calendar I keep for the boss. See those white areas? Those are times he's free...sort of. I know the 10:30 meeting could run late so I let the 11:30 attendees know. I'll call them in when he's ready. Those white spaces will never exist.
9:45 - the boss (he's M, okay?) arrives. We chat for two minutes, he checks his mail and email, talks to someone who comes by and then...
10:00 - first meeting. V is excited to show me her new glasses from Warby Parker. They look great on her. I leave them to meet and go set up the flowers and cookies for the 10:30.
I take two calls from people who want to get on the calendar for the day. I offer the first person 2:30. The second gets 5:00.
Two people stop by to see if they can have time with M after lunch. I offer to call them if the 2:00 finishes early.
Middle calls. I was supposed to have taken the later train with him and I had forgotten. He wants to talk (very rare) but I cannot...too busy. He has had a personal triumph and I scurry off to a quiet area to congratulate him.
When I return, M has decided that the people attending the 10:30 should receive some swag. He has a list of things he'd like me to procure and put in company tote bags. Several people assist in finding these things (all available in the office but not in one place) and we manage to make gift bags in 15 minutes.
A Swiss gentleman calls. M has agreed to see him today and not told me. When?!
10:30: a flock of people arrive from inside the company and outside the company and enjoy the cookies and lemonade and have a productive meeting. They get tote bags of presents!
What do I do whilst others are having productive meetings? Make sure there are napkins and sugar and mugs for the coffee. Bring signed documents to contracts and say hi to my pal KT. File papers. Answer emails about the meeting in Europe in October.
11:37: Surprise! The morning meeting lets out only seven minutes late. This has given me time to shuttle the 11:30 people in and get them set. One is missing and I dash down the hall and can't find her. I come back to the meeting room and she's there, having circumnavigated the office in the opposite direction. This meeting is short and sweet and ends, each week, with a cocktail recipe, so I keep an ear open so I can get the notes. It's a Lillet cocktail and I slip in so I can write it down and G (the woman with the recipe) and M are the only ones left in the meeting and we all have a good laugh over how much orange juice and whether it really IS orange juice that is needed or just a squeeze of juice from an actual orange. Mild, very mild, hilarity ensues.
11:45: M says that he'd prefer lunch with the Swiss gentleman and we both know that the person slated to dine with him will be perfectly comfortable postponing and so I switch out the lunching partners and call the Swiss gentleman to arrange it.
Noon: materials are released for the Tuesday meeting. There are 12 things on the agenda. Each item has from four to 25 pages to copy. I print and collate and staple these forms (I can't explain why, but it must be done by hand) for two people, M and my dear friend J.
(Without realizing that there is no hurry to do this as next week M will be in on Monday and I could give him the material then. I tend to over-anticipate.)
Noonfifteen: M leaves for lunch. I go clean up the breakfast things, distribute leftover cookies, and bring the print-outs to J. I visit with her for a little bit and then go find out what's doing for lunch. Cocktail-recipe lady, L and I venture downstairs for sandwiches/salads/errands. We re-group in the conference room and have lunch. Lunch is always fun even if some of us are in a bad mood. There are between four and eight people who join on any given day and we drool over each other's choices and share treats and complain or cheer each other on. I luff it. (That's 12:45 to 1:45.)
1:45: back at my desk, M has not returned from lunch, the woman "holding" for the 2pm slot comes by to see if I think he'll make it. She's involved in a project she originated and is nervous about talking to him about it. I speculate that he'll be in and she asks if I'll call her boss in too.
2:00: M makes it, I call both parties, this meeting finishes early and I am able to get the 2:30 person in and am able to put a call through to M. M forwards me an attachment that is too low res to read - can we get it bigger? (Yes, it turns out. They send it back so large we cannot email it.)
3:00: For Art Meetings I call each attendee by phone when they are needed. It's a good time to look at the internet as the Art Director likes to pop her head into my office and ask for each of twelve people, one at a time and there isn't anything constructive I can do. Surprisingly, this meeting ends a few minutes early and, for one of the only times ever, I am able to get the 4:00 meeting attendees in on time!
4:00: This meeting can often run well over its allotted time - but it doesn't! (I don't attend any of these meetings, btw.) I give M some phone messages, go down the hall to tease CB and go to congratulate CK on her newest debut. Her dad is having surgery and she'll be out tomorrow to help her mom.
4:30: C arrives to speak with M. I print out the calendar for the next day M will be in the office and bring it to him when he's done with the 5:00 person. We meet at 5 each day to discuss the next day but today I feel like it's too overwhelming and we agree to send me home and let him focus on some of the work on his desk.
I chat for a bit with the lady who sits next-door to me, she's still finding her footing at the office and needs cheering. I text K that I'm leaving, cue up the iTunes and start walking.
The heat hits me like a furnace but with good music I can swiftly make my train. You know plenty about my commute so I won't bore you with my complaints. I like to think if I win at Klondike it signifies a nice evening.
K meets me at the station, our friend W is at the house, the wine is flowing and people are playing ukeleles. Dinner (if K is home first) is always outstanding and the only meal where I really EAT.
I've got five guys at the table (though people often drop out) and I luff it. We laugh and tell stories and it's everything family dinner should be.
I clean up (but often don't scrub pots) and we sit for a bit in the living room before I head up first, usually complaining that I have to take off my shoes or pants.
We watch House Hunters International.
I take my medicine (doing well, thank you, medicine to continue until at least December) and go to sleep at about 11:00.
Did I miss anything?
Comments
Getting up at 5:45am would not be a pleasant thing for me. My friends and I joke that we got into show business so we can sleep late. 5:45am is ungodly early to me.
I will probably have to start getting up at ~7:30am if I get an offer from any of the three (!!) places I'm currently interviewing with. I'm trying to prepare myself.
Hopefully, I'll have some good news to report in the next two weeks. Here's hoping!
When in hells bells do you get the chance to blog!!?
Score!
I specially loved the part where you go back home, "wine is flowing, guys are playing ukuleles and you are happy amidst 5 boys".
Where you find the time for yourself, family, chores and blog needs another post, I believe.
jbhat
And it does sound like you have a great workplace.
i can barely run my life, though I am good at running other people's blogwise. I cannot imagine having to be responsible for another adult. I would be fired in seconds.
No one stuck their tongue out at you at work, or wiped boogers on the carpet? Oh yeah, that's MY work day.
I love the coming-home part of your day.