The Science Project Update

I know there are people out there who have uncomplainingly worked for years on a six day/14 hours schedule.

I'm not a clock watcher anymore, but I like to be home by 6:30, 7 at the latest. And yeah, I go in most Saturdays for a couple of hours.

But it's not like I usually have to.

Yesterday was a date for a major deliverable for The Science Project. Miss this and I would be not just the goat, but the sacrifice offered up.

I went in at 8 yesterday morning. I worked through lunch. For dinner, I found a couple of year-old packets of oatmeal in a drawer.

I formatted reports. I re-ran reports. I ran missing reports. I checked off lists.

I knew at five o'clock that I would be lucky to get out of there by 11 pm.

I left at exactly 10 pm. And yes, the deliverables were delivered on time, by God.

It was so odd, coming home from work at the same time I used to get home from the helpdesk job I had at Evil Empire, where I worked second shift.

Only this time, I was so tired that I didn't notice if the night was beautiful or feel sorry for the Mexican guys on their bikes. Actually, Unnamed Co. is in a posh part of Jersey and there are no Mexican guys going home.

My eyes burned. My head throbbed. When I got home, I poured a glass of milk for myself and a saucer of milk on the counter for Butch. I changed into my favorite nightie and then sat, staring on the couch.

It was done.

Oh, I know there's more to come, but part I is done and in the customer's hands.

I slept in a couple of hours this morning, but it didn't matter. I was still fried all day. But I did it, I did it all by my little self. Those reports got where they had to be by midnight on Wednesday.

Now on to the next project...