Maple syrup or nutella in your coffee sounds like it might be worth trying, meara. Hooray, Mexico!

I just did something that was very painful. I went through all my shoes and threw away a few, make a huge pile to take to a couple of consignment places, and packed the few remaining comfortable shoes. All my beautiful high, high heels that are cute, but walking is to be kept to a minimum are in the to-go pile. Sigh.

Good job, Suzi! I know that's hard.

Survived final day of program mgmt class. Again, not bad. Did get a couple hints as to why I might be chafing: 1. At lunch, the trainer basically told me that I didn't probably didn't need the class, though the formalization of some step probably would help a bit. She asked if I ever got frustrated as a member of a team, and why. Thinking of some recent projects, I gave a few examples and she pointed out that the points of friction were places where the team leads were deviating/failing to follow standard practices in PM=what I though should be the next step/info.

So basically, I'm a good problem solver and when I see bad problem solving that I can't change...yeah.

Not that I'm a super-special genius or anything. I've had very good modeling over the years from our dev/test/ops team, and my years on the helpdesk probably help me have a good nose for sussing out personality and politic issues.

2. I wasn't really being challenged. Makes me bored.

Got an unsolicited compliment on my hair. That was nice.

AND AND AND! I got paired up with one of my favorite snarky scientists from an old project. We're to follow up with each other on our new projects. I picked an onerous task I've been avoiding for a couple years that will make my life easier, but every one else is content with the status qu. Bor-rrring. But his? His is planning a wedding party/reception/throwdown for him and his husband. Who is an archeologist who will be off working in Iraq in a couple months so they have to do all the planning now for this fall. I told him he got a shitty deal from me, but I want to hear ALL ABOUT THIS OMG SO FUN!

I think I win.

His is planning a wedding party/reception/throwdown for him and his husband. Who is an archeologist who will be off working in Iraq in a couple months so they have to do all the planning now for this fall. I told him he got a shitty deal from me, but I want to hear ALL ABOUT THIS OMG SO FUN!

He's planning his wedding as part of a project management class? Love it.

So, I don't think I like PV as much as the little town Brenda and I stayed in last year (too big, too ridiculously touristy) but I do love that there's a ton of gay men here wandering around (there's a gay beach and some clubs, so it's become a thing).

I love that his new project is a personal project. NEAT.

Thanks all.

I will note that in DC, strip clubs were known for having awesome food, super cheap.

Which felt like one more advantage that already privileged guys could take advantage of.

We were encouraged to come with one personal, one work and we could chose, with guidance to pick the one that would use the full beginning-to-end approach and was one we might not attempt without prodding/ absofuckinglutely had to happen in the next year. My personal was the banister, but I figured it is far enough along and subject to my weekend plans and no real deadline... I needed the prod for the onerous.

The project of one of the deputy JWST instrument head's for this? Clear out and organize their floor-to-ceiling-stuffed garage (which included stuff left behind by previous owner) so she doesn't murder her ADD-prone husband over it. Or die when a stack of boxes collapsed.

It was a good class in that she had us engaged with each other as well as the content.

And I networked the fuck out of it, putting bugs into people's ears for the archive (INCLUDE US ON YOUR PROJECT PLANNING PSST PSST WE ARE ONE OF THOSE STAKEHOLDERS REALLY. They ALWAYS forget about us and we always have to deal with the fallout.)

sara, part of the reason, I think, classes are so hard as adults, is that we are usually so self-determined in what we pursue, that to sit in a class and follow someone else's plan/agenda it's tiring and painful.

I am still doing injections and I have bruises all over now. I hate my body. I really feel like my body is a shitty lemon car that I drive my brain around in.

I think that's definitely a part of it, Kat. I'm even worse than I used to be about being independently DIY, whatever the It.

And this class, I really can't criticize it at all. She was very good (it was FranklinCovey,) it just... I *knew* that, next? Do I have to wait for everyone else to catch up?

I also now know why certain people are such a PITA on certain projects. They really get lost in the details and derail. I mean, the one who I always was ready to kill (to the point that I avoided her socially, even though we have the same friends)? She really had a hard time understanding the concept of a status-only/accountability mtg that could be short. She was aghast I run one 2x a week that runs under 10 minutes, at most 30 if a smaller group breaks out to triage an emergency issue.

Which explains why I wanted to kill her when I worked one project with her.

I'm glad you're not dying from a rogue clot, but I'm sorry you're a bruise magnet. It just seems so ridiculously unfair. Has K forgiven me for the rat poison comment yet?