Ridiculous workload that impacts me and no to a cryptocurrency seminar

It looks like someone dropped the ball at work and I will likely be working more hours to get a rather large update into our software build. Fun.

We have a freeze deadline of Friday to get all our updates in. I won't likely get this new chunk of content in by then, as I have two other documents to get through.

Our team is asking that this freeze date be changed. We'll see what happens. I'm leaving it up to our two project managers, who aren't that swift, so I'm just continuing with my work.

In other fun news, someone followed my social media account and became overly chatty with me. I figured out that she's a part of a cryptocurrency wave. It took her a few days to get to this stage. She isn't that swift, either. She asked me to join her seminar this weekend.

I told her that I wasn't interested. It sounded like this seminar was in person. She's in the States. I am not. I made it perfectly clear that I was in Canada.

No means no. She continued asking if I was coming. I unfollowed her and then blocked her. No.

Taking myself out of a group at work due to workload

Last year, my manager made me participate in a group in our organization on how to improve various processes. I did like participating, but my workload became extremely heavy in August and kept on building.

I ended up being a leader in a subgroup with three other people. All were guys. They didn't take much initiative. I set up the meeting for us to talk, I took notes and meeting minutes, and I presented our findings to our team. The next step was to present them within our organization.

I didn't have time to put a slide deck together or give a talk. I had an annoying woman who took over from someone within our group, hounding me when I could present. I felt like I was giving excuses, but I wasn't. I put in so much overtime to get my deliverables out the door that I was exhausted.

As a last resort, I asked the three guys on my team if they could help me out. Crickets.

The group leader has changed again. I have worked with this person and we get along. She asked whether some folks in the group would like to take a break from it due to deliveries. I pondered it and decided that I needed the break.

I didn't discuss it with my manager. I wanted out because I felt like I wasn't getting the support from my little team and my workload continues to be heavy.

I felt good about my decision. It's right for me.

Panic attack - take 2

I thought that my panic attack would go away after fixing various problems that diva lady had introduced at work on Tuesday. After I fixed a few of them, I still felt tense.

My panic attack has eased a bit, but it's something else that is causing it. I dislike trying to do detective work to figure it out. Sometimes, it's not all that obvious to me.

I'm thinking now that it's the uncertainty that I had volunteered to pitch in and help diva woman with her activities, because her pace is slow to complete them and my manager doesn't have complete faith in her.

Panic is setting in because I am expecting a wave of work next week. It happens to coincide with our software release work. I have let my boss know. He said that diva would roll out a plan either last Friday or this past Monday. I haven't heard a thing.

It's the silliness of uncertainty that is causing my panic attack. Considering that I have experienced worse in the past, I feel that not knowing what diva is up to is causing my anxiety. She has no plan.

So, I just need to work with what I do know. I have work to do and I'll take things a day at a time.

Just went I thought I was out, I'm back in

It's funny how my previous post described two people who have taken over a portion of my workload. We'll, I'm returning to that world to help them out for the next two weeks.

The woman, who took half my duties, cannot handle the next three software releases. When she first started out with the company, I nicknamed her the diva because she has that vibe. I see it again. So, I will be pulled in for a bit, along with the incompetent woman.

I dislike bailing people out because they are incompetent. Ugh!

Frankly, my manager is worried that these two people can't pull off our major release. I have been told that I won't be there 50% of the time. I pointed out to my manager that I have regular development work that I can't let slide. He understood.

On Friday, my manager confided during our weekly chat that he doesn't feel comfortable giving a specific task to the other person who is taking over my duties. He feels that I am the best candidate. Although it was a nice compliment, I can't handle everything. It explains why I used to always be exhausted after a major software release.

I don't want to be cloned, but it sounds like a fun idea to explore in this scenario.

My right eye is back to normal... yay!

Last Wednesday, I went to my ophthalmologist for an appointment. I used to go monthly. This appointment was the first one in two months, which is good news. It simply means that my right eye is making good progress.

To recap, I had an eye stroke back in late March. I had no idea what was going on. All I knew was that I was constantly looking through a water droplet and was getting dizzy.

I didn't think that I would make a fully recovery. Just reading up on various studies saying that it was rare wasn't the best news. My guy felt that if anyone could make a full recovery, it would be me. I didn't want to set my standards so high. He understood.

He was right. On Wednesday, I went in and did my eye test. I could read even the tiniest print during the eye test. I was shocked!

My doctor said that my right eye is 20/20, meaning that the blood splats have disappeared from my central vision. I am now seeing him every three months for my eye injections. There is still a chance that fluid will seep out.

I am thankful that my sight has been restored. It also helps that I have kept my stress and blood pressure controlled. My ophthalmologist cites bad luck as the cause. He also indicated that I am young to have this condition happen to me, so my recovery was easier. Handling a crazy workload at work back then didn't help. I am glad that things are much better these days.

Stress - need a mental health day

I feel achy. Physically, I feel a dull ache all over my body towards the end of the day. It's such an odd feeling. It has persisted for a couple of days now.

I have a feeling that it is stress-related. One of my students is wrapping up her workterm on Friday. My other two students end their term the following week. I go back to handling everything until folks come and relieve me.

Next workterm, I only have one student. I also have one full-time person taking over most of my duties, but she needs to clear a background check. This check can take weeks.

I am supposedly moving on to do process work. However, my manager continues to dump ridiculous tasks on me. I truly don't have time to do work that he can easily do.

Tomorrow, which is really today, I am taking a sick day. I need a mental health break. I also need a physical one.

It is important to listen to what your body is saying. Mine is screaming for some rest. I can also tell that it is stress-related when the left side of my neck gets tight.

Friday craziness and my appreciation that the weekend is here

Friday was quite the day. I am glad that it's the weekend.

Friday was the contractor's last day. She left because she cannot stand our manager. Specifically, she does not like his way of managing the team and felt that it was time to leave the company.

It is a shame because we got along nicely. She stayed longer because she wanted to finish her tasks and not burden me with them, which was thoughtful and considerate. Yes, I am going back to doing the writing tasks that I did four months ago on top of my other responsibilities.

My manager asked me whether I was okay with taking on her tasks. I didn't like the way that various phrases came through on Friday from him, either through instant messages or e-mail. I told him that I wasn't thrilled with being thrown back into filling other people's shoes. I said that I would do it for now, but I need relief.

I am simply tired of being taken for granted and being afforded more work because my manager cannot spread the wealth.

We had a pizza lunch that was paid for by the company. My team consists of two students and the departed contractor. The pizza lunch was to recognize our contributions to the food bank. All four of us felt odd about participating in a free pizza lunch when we all did not contribute to the food bank. The students went out for lunch at Subway. For the contractor's last day with the company, we had lunch at a European place close by and had a wonderful chat over great food. She did not want a farewell lunch, so we made it a casual, extra long one!

The students and I also had a software release to get out the door. We got that done thanks to proper planning.

I also seem to be a surrogate team lead for a couple of folks in Brazil. Their team lead seems absent and is often unresponsive. They had a fairly simple update to make, but they spent over an hour. Luckily, I was away for most of it. I cringe working with them.

Back to my manager... he stopped me in the afternoon in a corridor about whether I knew that the contractor was handing her laptop to me. I had no idea and his line of questioning was odd. Why not talk to her instead of me?

I then got a fury of e-mails from him. I deliberately didn't respond to an e-mail that he had sent on Wednesday because I was logging off for the day. I have been busy this week, which included making sure that the contractor's unfinished tasks were passed over to me. His concern isn't mine. He resent the same e-mail twice. Excessive? Yes, under the circumstances.

Off to bed. I love weekends. I can sleep in and call it a week.

A disturbance in the workforce where change is constant

I do not know why important meetings tend to be held on Friday afternoons. Most of my team had to attend a three-hour meeting last Friday.

The way that we are working is changing. For a while, I have been doing the workload of roughly two people. My contractor tells me that I should be cloned. I am not sure how most would feel about that option. Perhaps my guy would like to be pleasured often and vice-versa!

I'd say about two years ago, I was reviewing the work of other writers on the team to improve the quality of our team's deliverables. It helped and made our documentation more consistent. However, when a defensive writer decided to resign, I not only handled her workload, but continued mine until I had to drop reviewing everyone's work.

My manager hinted last month that he wants to have me give review work another go, among other tasks. I told him that I need my workload reduced. He agreed. So, writing about new software features on two different teams is off my plate. These tasks go to the contractor that I have been working with for two months. Some of my other tasks will go to the co-op students.

Although I shouldn't have been working on Sunday, I did for an hour. I am training a new co-op student tomorrow. Another one is supposed to also start at the same time, but there is some uncertainty as to whether I'll see her tomorrow.

Anyway, I don't have time to spend reviewing the contractor's work on Monday. So, I decided to review her work on Sunday. She had two tasks to do. Both require rework.

The problem with her is that she is quiet and I have to ask her how she is doing. She doesn't share what she is doing unless she is prompted. It will be interesting to see how she does with the two teams that she has now inherited. I get to break the news to her tomorrow.

So, I will continue to ease her the work on her two teams, as there is a transition period that needs to take place. I am still going to be her team lead, but for one of her teams.

There is a winter storm that starts dumping snow in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. I had contemplated getting a hotel room close to work for a night. I then thought that using my hard-earned points should not be devoted towards a work-related goal. Sure, I'd like to be at work to continue training at least one co-op. If the commute is bad, I will simply do what I would normally do -- work from home.

The difference is that I will hold my training session online. It may be a challenge, but it would be better than conducting no training at all.

Change is always present. I am actually looking forward to not directly documenting new software features. I will still be writing, but I like the change. It is much needed. I don't know whether my workload will truly be reduced, as it takes time to train folks to have them become independent and confident.