Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Office move

Meleah, who was recently sick, got back to work yesterday, only to find herself drowning in a sea of paper and e-mails. She says "... I am *waving* and sending ‘kisses’ to all my people that are hanging out here (having fun in bloggville) while I am suffocated, inundated, and struggling to accept way too much change in my life at once."

Many, many hugs to Meleah. She is dealing with a lot of stuff right now. She's a strong cookie, so I have confidence that she'll be alright, but it still sucks. Even the strongest need some love.

Oh, how I wish I could say I was having fun, however. I was in one of my moods yesterday, fighting back tears on my way home. Our team moved buildings last Friday, part of a workplace transformation effort to cut down costs. I worked from home Friday, so yesterday I was unpacking and getting settled. I went from having an office to a cubicle smaller than any I had ever been in. I have spent most of my 10-year career at Big Computer inside a cubicle, but it was still hard to go from windowless, decent-size office to tiniest workspace ever. I had trouble getting all my stuff to fit in the cramped space. I got lost finding the new parking garage. I am all alone because my boss is traveling, my coworker is out due to surgery and the rest of the bigger group is sitting in another section.

I am now adrift in a sea of hundreds of cubicles, with people I do not know, or know barely, who have been there before me. I did find someone I knew from before, someone I had worked with on a project, and she looked at me and asked me if I was pregnant. She is very sweet and I know she meant well, but gee, no, I guess I am still fat from my last pregnancy. I am never wearing that outfit again.

In short, I was feeling quite like the drone yesterday, and I did not like it. I guess I do not handle change that well. The reaction took me by surprise, as I have worked most of my time here in cubicles, but when I was in the Latin America group it felt quite different. Perhaps with time I will feel at home here, but right now I feel like a misfit, cramped in my little box.

6 comments:

  1. Oh! That was soo sweet of you and just what I need today. THANK YOU!!
    A million thank you's!! xxoo


    Im sorry YOU had a bad day too. bad days SUCK.

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  2. I really HATE office changes too.. why? do these companies make such wild and crazy decisions that upset the employees soo much?

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  3. Oh INgrid...I an so very sorry for this change. I hope that soon things will seem familiar and you will be happy again.

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  4. Thanks for the good wishes. It will be OK. I understand why the company is doing what it's doing, but it still takes some getting used to. On a personal level it sucks.

    Meleah, they are making so many changes and adjustments. The company is cutting everywhere, and all the reductions and changes pile up and make people very upset. And what sucks is we are doing so great right now businesswise that it's hard to accept some of the changes they are making. But I guess they are looking long term.

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  5. Oh man that sucks...Cubicles should be banned...the person who invented them should spend the rest of their life in solitary cubicle confinement.

    And asking someone if they are pregnant should also be banned...WTF!! Didn't she know that you never-N.E.V.E.R. ask that question? It's smart to always wait for someone to offer you the information, less something like THAT happens....geez!

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  6. I am sorry for the changes you have gone through lately. I think sometimes a big company doesn't stop to think of its workers and comfort. I hope things look up soon.

    Michelle

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