playing Ceiling Cat this morning.

Are you watching someone masturbate?

So, I'm back in freakout mode. The developers are being evasive and passive aggressive, and we're coming down to the wire. It's *stunning* examples of adult behaviour. Of "well, I didn't know, then maybe I shouldn't have worked on my stuff, then..." and "I'm sure she did it before she left..." "I never touched it...why should I have....he volunteered to do it..." "it's all wrong and I'm being yelled at..."

It's three developers whining, with three different levels of justification, and I'm having to play den mother, and it's really not cute. I wish I had any idea how anyone else would handle this. I cannot imagine my peers in this situation. I'm sure they'd have done something different way back when and not ended up here, where people are not doing their tasks and trying to run off home without meeting your eyes, like the same clock isn't ticking down to the same deadline for all of us.

I may have to ask the other business analyst. I'm senior to him, but he's been at the company longer, so maybe there's specific here culture that I'm missing that I can apply.

Can you get them all in the same room, ita, and ask everybody to go over the deliverables and the timeline?

Nope, Hec. Two are at the office, I'm at home, and one is in Minnesota. I've got the two on my team on the phone now (I've been on the phone on and off with the one not on my team since 7, calming him down), and am trying to get them back on track, but motherfuckers--have some shame. I hope they're having work-induced insomnia from this shit, because I sure am.

I may have to ask the other business analyst. I'm senior to him, but he's been at the company longer, so maybe there's specific here culture that I'm missing that I can apply.

I would try that, ita !. There's probably no way to make that group comply, but there has to be some way to CYA.

ita !, I don't suppose you have any ability to get the developers' supervisors to threaten to discipline them somehow? (Bad mark on their permanent records?) Or maybe it's too late for that?

I have little management experience myself--wish I could help more...

CYA as much as you can.

Kat, I do. Insent.

What a mess, ita.

Are you watching someone masturbate?

I see what you did there.

Interestingly enough, the "incompetent" developer caught a number of errors that the evasive fuckup made yesterday, documented them, and walked him through them this morning. I was all tingly inside, let me tell you. I'm afraid, though, that if I compliment her to her higher ups, they'll not realise how low a bar was set, and think I mean she's great, as opposed to surprising me with a flash of competence (they are errors I should have been able to spot, had I had the files). But her taking the lead in getting the other guy up to speed on correcting them is definitely admirable and back-pat-worthy.

This short-term this-weekend stress is the patch and small enhancement release for the primary systems I work on, as opposed to a project for a specific new feature or integration. These happen anywhere from monthly to quarterly, depending on what we can get away with (it used to feel like weekly, but that's one of the reasons I don't have the same boss I used to). This is the first I've PMed--normally I just manage the corner of it that is the system for which I bear direct responsibility, not the whole platform that my co-workers support too.

Ack! Overwhelm! Overwhelm! But the BA who normally does this assures me it always runs close to the wire, so I don't feel exceptionally useless. But he's normally so calm and collected when he does this--and he does this every other time. Fuck, man. How does he handle this insanity? And these developers?

Interestingly enough, my manager wants to talk to me next week about the developer who was driving me particularly batshit this week. I did kinda let slip (you know how emails can get the better of you...) that he was the reason we were sliding this late.

Thai food for lunhch was delicious, but my stomach is still a wee to stressed out. Any time at all in the heat (and it is hot outside) and I feel nauseted. anything too sweet and I feel nauseated. I want nothing right now but really cold water, and I still think I might be sick.

At least big boss is gone for the day.