[GD Office] Where Wild Angels Roam

[Gossamer]

	Gossamer's Haven Feel free to use this thread to ask for XP, make comments, and prod for posts. I will be using this thread for GM/GD Stuff, Blogging, and Tracking. ~Angel by LordRavenos About Me: Secrets : General Information Just The Basics Name: Jen Nickname: Gossamer or Goss Age: 34 Sex: F Appearence: 6"4 dark-skinned auburn haired redneck cowgirl Nationality: Banock Shoshone Location: Washington State, USA Religion: Pagan More IRL Stuff Other Interesting Things You Might Be Curious About Education: BS of Science, Wildlife, University of Montana, Minor in Art and Anthro Current Professions: Hostler, Short-Haul Trucker, Artist, Writer, Breeder of Draft and Sport Horse Crosses Former Professions: Wildlife Biologist, Environmentalist, Photo Journalist, Student, Ceramicist, Long-Haul Trucker Hobbies: Anything Horses (trail riding, showing, pulling), Sewing, Cooking, obsessive/compulsive Gardener, Birding, Reading, Hiking, and anything Art. Addicted to tabletop RPGs, game-nights, and lots of mixed drinks. Project Work: Coho Salmon Listing on the ESA, Wolf Reintroduction into Northern Wyo and Central Idaho (was on the central Idaho hard release team), Spotted Owls (was on the team that got them de-listed in Wa due to hybridization with baird owls), Wa State Stream Classification Review Favorite Colors: Pinks and Greens Favorite Programs: Flash, Adobe Photoshop, Dreamweaver Favorite Music: Country, Celtic, Anything Deeply Synthesized or considered Mood Music. Enigma is my favorite group. Aelyrian Specific Information Totally Personal Aelyrian Information. Join Date: Nov 2006 GM History: AGM AP, GM AP, GM ZS GD History: Jan 15, 2008 Started - Present Style: Long Serious Rambling RPs, Intense Emotion, Mystic Fairytalish Qualities, Quick Intense Training Threads, Greater Picture RPs, Character Development, Lighthearted Adventures, Dark Back-Alley Dealings, Romance, Legend, and the Making of Champions. Likes: PCs that let me know what they want. PCs that think outside of the box. PCs that don't mind going with the flow. Epic RPs, Promoting PC Development, Location Development, Unusual styles, Romance, Angst, Well-Developed PCs Dislikes: Predetermined RP. Rigid inflexible RP. Hack and Slash. Arrogant Know-It Alls. ;0 Favorite Colored Text: Deep Sky Blue Posting Habits: Secrets : The Rundown! I work full time Sunday through Thurs anywhere from 4pm to 1230 am or 8pm to 430 am so never expect any posts during those hours. However, I do post weekdays, and heavy on the weekends. I'm prone to give everyone 2 posts a week. If I have one thread of yours, that might mean even more posts, if I have a whole bunch of your threads, expect less frequency. I like to hit oldest last, but sometimes I'm really excited about a particular thread and I will hit it more often than that. I do take breaks for my PCs, so I can keep up with them, and I spend at least 20 hrs a week on Directorate Stuff (tm). Thread List: Secrets : (In serious need of updating!) The Sanguine/Rhasic Stuff [The Sanguine] Whatever The Costs - Jade [Coldlight] The Zali'mau - Jade, Val, Cyrus [The Sanguine] The Subtleness of Contaminants - Jade/Val Semel in anno licet insanire - Odyleon, Robyn Wolves of Jorel To Hear a Lone Wolf Howl - Fidelis Blades of Hate - Fidelis To Dance With Drakes - Fidelis & Friends Father Walt Threads [WC] Fear and Confusion in a young man's heart - Banodin [WC] Can a giant ease his mighty heart? - Veleraen [WC] Of Saints and Sinners - Liselle Fists of Rage Scholars and Revolutions - Palacrisis The Lions Rose Bears No Thorns - Nikki Starting From The Ground Up - Duncan The Things Assistants Know - Henry Brightblade Making Room For One More - Henry Brightblade Temple of Thorns Continuing On His Own - Vincent Misc Adventure Threads There's A Little White Porch - Tarfuss, Teig, Cyrus [The Stone Garden] Seeking Darkening To Repay A Debt - Kella & Val Peer Moderator Adventure [Peer Moderator Adventure 1] The Garden of Aelyria & It's Tower of Souls - Peer Moderators Of Aelyria Prime Current Mod Related Development Project List The Godex - Mod Only Index of GM Toolbox AP Organization Threads - Mod Only Writeup Project List: Secrets : A God a Month Project - Or less (Kaimelea posted, Jorel posted by Friday) Dragons of Aelyria - 85% ready to post Aelyrian Divination - 75% ready to post Aeyrlian Illusionism - 55% ready to post Raslin - 80% ready to post Horses of Aelyria - 90% ready to post Forest Lizards - 15% ready to post Banners & Avatars: Secrets : If anyone needs a banner or avatar, just let me know. It's helpful to have an image you want your banner to be made from but not necessary. Just let me know the style, if you want bordering, and what sort of sayings you want on it. Here's some of the banner's I've done:

[Gossamer]

Today I gave my office a small face lift. Haywire was complaining that it was outdated and sad. I agreed. Besides, there's a lot going on with me right now, and I figured what better place than an office to ramble on about them. I'm not done however, I seriously need to update my thread list and start doing some public plotting for Zinn'Sunn. In the next few days and weeks, I'll be posting some of the things I've had cooking for a while. That includes kicking out some writeups that I've been sitting on. I fell into that age old trap of having too many going at once and not being able to focus on a single one to get it done.

Besides, I need to throw myself into some productive work of some sort to get my mind off things. I've been out of it for a couple of months, exclusively focusing on some GD stuff and being off and on sick in real life for that entire time. You know, for someone like me thats absolutely never sick, I think I got a whole new perspective. My idea of being down and out is usually limited to breaking something doing something stupid, like having one of my draft horses dance on a foot or picking up a really big hammer and saying "Yea! I can fix that!" which results in stitches (I prefer super glue to visiting the doctor) and a lot of laughter. I can't remember the last time I had a cold, the flu, a simple headache, or felt depressed. I'm the one that goes and takes care of the sick folk and cheers my friends who are down. But this last two months were crazy, sickening, depressing etc... I was tired ALL time. Not just tired, but bone weary.

Then I was ecstatic, thrilled, crowing each and every day. Yea, folks can glow. It's possible. Then I was in the hospital and feeling like my life was destroyed. I'm better now... a lot better. It was just a bump in the road right? I'm surprised though, about this horrible sickening club I'm sort of a member of now. I just today opened a card sent from across the mountains. I put in a call to the HQ there for work, because I needed some stuff for security clearances with this Highway Watch program I'm helping my company promote for both WSP and WSDOT in conjunction with Homeland Security. And in about two minutes of conversation... it went sorta like 'We heard! Grats!' in which I had to explain the whole horrible thing... and broke down in tears. Anyhow, the girls in the office sent me a beautiful hand-made card filled with love... All of them had these 'we know what your going thorough' type messages. I can tell. They'd been there, done that... walked away with the pain too. Sucks sometimes. I kept trying to get them off the topic and back on the topic of getting me my munitions certifications & clearances to back up my application for a senior trainer for the program. Its a good one. I love anything that allows me to help protect the nation and tone down terrorism. I have lots of time for that now I'm hossling. Eventually I want to get away from the trucking all together and move into the safety and regs departments for my work. I think if I'd relocate to HQ (which I have no desire too atm) I'd be able to make that leap now. Being involved in the Driver's Council and Safety committee has been great for me the last two years. I've really enjoyed things that happened there, and helping to keep the company absolutely current. But I digress...

These last few months have been really odd ones. It started in December where my horse farm on a hill flooded out with a Japanese Typhon that came screaming down the pineapple express. Very sad. The community is just now recovering. Then this happened. If I have one more friend call me and say 'It's meant to be... its for the best' I might strangle them. I feel like I could possibly get out of jail time for it too. One of my buddies wives called to tell me that because I have cats, that was the reason for the whole thing. Sure, I'd been aware of Toxoplasmosus and knew its risks... but she really screwed with my head. I mean... I don't just have two.. I have well over ten. I got off the phone with her, then turned around and called my provider and talked to her for a long long time. Turns out, if you've had them for years, odds are you are immune. 15% of women in the US are immune to the disease or carry antibodies. Thats 15% of the total women in the states. Thats about exactly how many of these gals that own cats. When I told my provider I had well over ten, they were indoors, and their outdoors were supervised... and that I was yes indeed a huge gardener... she laughed and told me I was being silly. That there was probably 0 chance I'd never been exposed and developed the antibodies. She'd bet her right ... well anyhow she said she'd very surprised if I wasn't immune but she'd give me a blood test anyhow to clear my mind. That friend (well actually it was her mom whom I've looked to like a second mom) is still on my list though, and I'm gonna have it out with her next time I see her face to face.

Life... is such a pain sometimes. I mean, I love mine. I'm in a good job, have a great marriage, adore my family (both the human and furry ones), and just get such a kick out of it most of the time... I guess I have to go through these sorts of things to keep it real though. Not that I wouldn't change it if I could. I definitely would. I'm not good at heartbreak. I'm good at 'buck up' and 'put up or shut up' and even better at 'we done whining yet?' I always claim nothing ever goes wrong in my life because I don't allow it too. I always thought somehow when you hit your thirties, life was sorta on the decline and that attitude wouldn't wash well. I was wrong. No one could pay me enough money to go back to my twenties... I love being where I am now, how I am, and though I'm trying to make improvements (exercise more, take martial arts, get my butt in the saddle now that its stopped raining and I've stopped feeling run over by a car, get out and paint now that the garden is planted.. .whoot!) .... its still great even if it never changes from just now. I think it was that attitude that finally got it progressing. They say when you finally find contentment thats when life throws you a loop and all that you'd given up hoping for starts happening.

I think its true. I really do. All this hasn't changed that feeling in me. Live the dream and be happy with what you have. Not just 'its okay'... but really enjoy it. I think thats what real life is about... not all the sorrow, the pain, the omg poor me folks out there. And even though we had a loss... a big one for us. We planted my dahlias, and all the rest of the bulbs... and wow... I mean really wow... I already have six inch sprouts. Life is coming early to the Northwest now that our last snow has finally departed. They skies are blue. The grass is the most brilliant color of green I've seen in ages. Even my horses are out on pastures that are knee high and the most gorgous color of velvet emerald.

Thats worth something to me. A whole lot in fact. And even though I might cry once in a while, the vast majority of the time I'm smiling.

[Gossamer]

I'm really good at being motivated if I see checklists. I need one to get these things done. I just have to buckle down and polish these off... anything thats over about 60% done just needs window dressing or one or two more skills added to the skill set. I need to get quite a few of these done because if I get them out of my hair then I'm sorta freeing up brain time to follow through on a few other things that need doing.

Writeups

• Horses of Aelyria (75% done)
• Dragons of Aelyria (66% done)
• Palmistry (85% done)
• Feral Shamanism (99% done - posting tomorrow)
• Divination (50% done)
• Darui'Torek (35% done)
• Illusionism (25% done)

BTW I'm sitting at work feeling really bored and tired. I'd do more work on writeups or posts for PCs, but I'm feeling rather rummy. Rummy... akin to have drank too much rum... meaning I'm yawning every five seconds. Its 1:32 am... yea for 7am being ... less than 5.5 hrs away. The irony is, I wouldn't be tired if I had something to do. But since I have nothing to do, I'm just sitting here in my chair falling asleep. Earlier today we played tag in the parking lot on the forklifts, then our boss ordered everyone pizzas and we raided the pop machines. Its friday... thankfully. The whole plant feels it, so we are all kicking back a little and relaxing.

[Gossamer]

I have about a half a dozen threads started for mod posting and they are sitting in their tabs happily, including my two veil adventures. They'll get posted to later tonight, after my head clears a bit. I've been celebrating. Yea, there's a lot to celebrate, it seems. Two days ago things were same-oh same-oh and chugging along the calm after the storm so to speak. Last week was so horrible. I hate hospitals. I hate being down. I hate crying. I never cry. This week there's absolutely nothing to cry about. I want to sing. Its calm and peace was welcome.

I'm starting to appreciate those calm days. But anyhow a friend called me... a rare opening was happening suddenly in a facility about five miles from where I work... thats five minutes from my home. To someone who commutes 45 miles one way to work, thats like Mecca. Anyhow, I gave them a call curious. They in turn asked me a couple of questions. It wasn't even advertised yet. They liked what they heard, and told me to fill out an application online. Five minutes after I hit submit, I got a call. Five minutes. That day I was in for an interview. They don't want a drug test. They don't want a drive test. They asked me about my current job. I told them I loved the guys I worked with. I told them I loved it.. but it was so far to drive, and with the milage on my car, the gas prices, it was... not fun. They asked me how my work would percieve me... I told them the truth. "I've been at my same company 10 years. You'd be hard pressed (and they have a lot of employees) to find someone who doesn't think I'm great." It's true. I've been there so long and had my hands in so many pieces of pie, I know everyone from the safety department to personnel. In fact, when I ended up in the hospital, I got a hand-made beautiful card from the five brothers that own the company with personal notes, and from all the girls in the office over the mountain.

How can I leave these people? I love working for them. It's a great company. In fact, it just made the 26th best company to work for in ALL the companies in Wa State. 26th. Thats phenomenal. I even got featured in the news letter this month with a big interview on 'meet the staff'. I've gotten silly calls from everyone about that stupid picture hanging in the office... me racing an airplane. Yea... so we like to park at an airport in Willows sometimes, and the pilots are great sports. I still miss that overnight spot from the LA to Seattle run... great times thoughs. I have one called 'new school vs old school' too... a company truck sitting side by side with a harnessed up draft horse... its fun. I love silly pictures. But anyhow... these people have been my family for ever and ever.

Its... hard in a way.

But things come together for a reason. This is going to bump me up several tax brackets in pay. This is going to save me sooo much money this summer if gas hits $5 a gallon.. it's already $4 here. The hours are amazing. Its more days a week, but I won't be spending half my time sleeping recovering from 14 hr days and worrying about the help quitting because the job is too intense and having to do it on my own.

That's going to be nice. It's also going to be nice to not be in charge. I don't mind being in charge, but when things go wrong, the heat comes down. Last week I was at an outside warehouse and a loader let a trailer loaded for Seattle start out for Port Angeles. It was a fiasco. I knew it was a wrong trailer hook when I got back and saw that the 4am driver was here, but his trailer wasn't.. and the 3am driver's trailer was there... the heat came down on me even though I didn't actually release them. That's the only thing that saved my tush. That and the fact I had both drivers on speed dial and got the first one turned around headed back and the second headed towards him with the correct trailer.

Hassles are hassles, and one gal can't be everywhere at once.

This will be easier. Its a large facility ... so close... so much more money... and the guys who interviewed me called their HQ in portland Or and told them to hire me on the spot while I was still in the office talking to them. Then they asked me to go hop in a goat, hook, plant, and drop. I did it, straight shotted, and they were grinning ear to ear.

I take it good helps been hard to find.

Its such a pitty too. So many drivers need to get off the road. So many of us are going broke fueling our rigs. Last year to fuel a semi in both tanks was around 300 bucks. This year its about 900. They think before summer is over it will be 1200. Thats why groceries are going up in stores. Thats why bread won't ever be 50 cents a loaf anymore. It's crazy... absolutely crazy... When will it stop? Hopefully soon... maybe never. But regardless, we need to be proactive in life. Life changes fast. Life whirls by, screamingly fast sometimes. A few days ago I had no idea that I'd be changing jobs so suddenly. No idea! It's crazy.

Life is so horrible and fun all in one mix. Absolutely black horror, and absolute brilliantly happy fun. I have no idea if i'll love this new job as much as i love the old one. Time will tell. But I already know there's things I love about it now. Crazy... great hours, close to home, less total time at work... more total time at home.... I don't care if I have to switch medical programs, if I have to start over with a disability, 401K, etc.. (I'm rolling the other one over), and learn a whole new skill set... its fine.. I'll jump too it.

The best part? I get to work close to my hubby. I love my hubby. I don't get enough time with him, near him... around him. I see him at home, but not out and about, and not nearly enough. Im tired of quick hugs before I crash, and quick hugs before we part at night.

[Gossamer]

On a brief note... just a brief one, its 3:07 am and I have something to share for those laptop users out there. I'm in love with a new product from IKEA that I picked up on a whim while shopping that fateful day a couple of weeks ago. It's a laptop desk from IKEA. Its a little portable thing that really reminds me of a TV dinner type stand that you sit next to the couch or a chair in your home. The cool thing about it is that its really stable, but its main arm up has this huge curve to it so it places the table over where your sitting regardless of how your sitting... so no more straight up and down. You can't tell by the picture, it looks straight up and down... but it is sort of designed like one of those hospital tables that swing over a hospital bed so a patient can eat off of it. The table itself tilts from parallel to the ground to slightly angled down towards your lap to ease your wrists. It's totally adjustable too.. it goes from super short to super tall. Thats crazy fun. My hubby keeps stealing it for his tabletop when he moves out to the living room when we game together on other things. It allows you to sprawl while typing, and gets your hot laptop off your lap and allows air to flow around it so it doesn't overheat or burn your thighs. I've taken mine outside, to the couch, to the kitchen, sprawled on the floor... its adjustable, and the table it turns out is great for art, crafting, beadwork... anything you want to do while your sitting on a more comfortable seat.

There's also a million and one design plays for DIY on the internet ripping it off, so don't think I'm promoting IKEA. I just absolutely absolutely love this product. Its one of those 'nifty fifty' near the top... my top fifty list of all time 'coolest' products and gizmos. My top 1 item is a saddle stabalizer that I love using on flat backed horses. Its this killa strap that wraps under a foreleg so you can literally hang off the opposite side of a flat-backed horse and not worry about the saddle sliding off. My main trail horse has a set of whithers like a gaited horse... meaning they are high and bony... so they hold a saddle nicely... but those flat backed monsters like my drafts are hard as heck to get anything to stick to their backs especially while mounting and dismounting. If you can teach a horse to stand with one (which was easy as heck for me to do), you'd be a fan as well.

But anyhow, back to the laptop stand. When I go back to the store, I'm picking up a spare.... its just that great.

[Adder]

Now that is a nifty little table! Not that I'm going to drive all the way over to an Ikea to get one, but if I happen to pass one I think that'll be on my buy list.

But that aside, Yay!! Congratulations on the new job. A couple of months ago I moved the office closer to where I live and it just makes so much difference to only be fifteen minutes from home instead of forty five. Mind you I wouldn't mind having gas prices as low as $5 (about $10 here), I run a diesel nowadays, can't afford to drive my gas guzzling second car.

[Gossamer]

Normally on Monday I have no time to post. This monday is no exception. Last night, after two weeks of smooth sailing and nothing going on at work, the hammer fell and I walked straight into Hell.

I blame my coworker Joel. He works days and I relieve him at 7pm. Now, normally at night for the first 6 months I worked there, I was solo. I handled it. It was torture, but I did it. Joel has a spare hossler, and four support loaders to help him... all that on a shift that produces on average less product and less loads than ours do. So he doesn't understand when I look harried when he comes in. His busy days are unreal to me... his 'slow' days are unbelievably crunches for me. Sometimes I'm a jack of all trades, controlling inbound loads and making sure drivers going outbound get their loads, hit the road on time, and hooked to the right trailer. There's also this portion of the plant I mind where they blow bottles for soda. What happens is that they blow them, palletize them, and store them in trailers. Then I zip across the lot, hook, drag them across the street to an enormous warehouse, and if I have time I put them away. Thats over where my office is, which overlooks the main facility. All the inbound drivers know to come find me. I'll get paperwork, assign them docks, get them a loader, etc. Everyone knows me, and harasses me horribly.

There's this one old guy named Forest. No teeth, been driving a thousand years, refuses to listen to a word I say until he tells me a joke... normally of a rather debase nature. Then I laugh, he laughs, and he goes and docks. We play this game... I always find where his load is, then give him the most horrendous dock to hit... which gets progressively better (meaning I give him and easier dock) if his joke is tasteful or funnier than normal... meaning, something I can repeat. If his joke is truly bad, I give him this dock with a cement wall on one side, a drop, a dumpster, and a blindside back. I always give him this smirk and say 15 FOREST! Then the dickering ensues. He screams that I'm a witch, I scream that hes a crotchety old man and he should be able to hit anything in the yard blindfolded and armless... Its the highlight of my night. I adore the guy. He steals cookies I bring, and brings me my favorite juice if he's hit the pepsi plant where Noel bottles the best orange juice ever. I never actually make him back into that hidious dock, but its our game and we love it, and he always feels wonderful if he talks me down to say dock one which is right by the door (he's got OLD legs dontcha know!..and I outta be ashamed of making him walk ALL the way from 15!). His buddy Nevada was in first thing.... Forest was in the hospital.. had a stroke. I felt sick. Nevada flagged me down in my car on my way in on his way out just to tell me Forest wouldn't be in and not to worry, it was some new guy named Scott. He gave me his hospital room and the number, so I could call and harrass him tomorrow to make him feel better.

So there was that. That sucked bad. Forest is literally 80, and one of the favorite things about my job. I always introduce him to the other drivers that come in as the meanest driver alive. Its pretty true. But thats okay.

Then, after a brief conversation in the middle of the street and an exchange of a number and hospital room, I continue on into the plant.... where I pass one of my hossling goats with parts spread all over the ground in front of one of our outside warehouses. I saw a tie-rod, couple spreader arms... all torn to ****. A bad feeling hit the pit of my stomach. I drove on in.. parked, and heard the news.

Not only were we getting hammered, they were running 2 liter (which runs fast and quadriples my workload) but they were blowing dairy bottles for nesquick (yea pepsi owns everyone these days), which adds a tremendous workload... and I had only one goat to use, my night help hossler had called in sick, the two forklift operators I leaned on to help unload bottles on busy nights were out sick, and my favorite loader Rick needed to be on the bottle line because another guy was out with an injury.

Ever get that feeling you're up that creek?

Well it got worse. It was sunday, no mechanics... the only other spare truck in the yard was Dave's... and he was going to be leaving out about 2am for a run. I normally like to run two goats, so I don't have to drop and hook so much. I dove in, and immediately got my arse kicked, plus we had about 70 canadian drivers come in early wanting loaded. The yard was a mess, and about midnight, my only remaining hossling goat sparked up and had an electrical fire that killed it dead.... under one of our only spare trailers that I was using to offset the rapid fire production and give me time to organize inbound loads that were coming in at an unreal rate.

The guys on the line called the big boss at home wanting to shut down 2 liter and dairy to relieve everyone, and he said no.. stack it on the floor or the parking lot if need be... we needed to make production. Well... we did. Day shift walked into a nightmare. While he was saying this, I was quietly having a meltdown in the parking lot.

I was an hour away from no vehicle. I called night dispatch, and they said.. and I quote... "They will just have to make do until morning."... No that doesn't work with this company. If they go down they charge whomever's at fault $525 a minute. I'm not kidding. Can you imagine that bill for half a night? I laughed, hung up on them, and called my terminal manager. The meltdown he had ecylpsed mine in comparison. He got four mechanics up, they drove in... tore the goat in pieces apart, and had it back up and running by 6am... the one that had the electrical fire was still in pieces when I left. I ended up hossling with a big california truck with a huge sleeper (that I couldn't crawl into and make it all go away!)... which is next to impossible in a yard like ours. I cranked hundreds of trailers up and down, up and down.... I dragged trailers blocks away and squished that huge semi into places no road truck was ever meant to go.

Seven AM came around, Joel came back in, saw the mess, and just started laughing. His day hossler came in, had nothing to drive, and hopped in his truck and drove said "I'm taking a personal day!" and headed home. Smart guy. I think several choice names for him is in order.... but it was really my turn to laugh at my relief. "Welcome to my world, Joel... don't let it eat your soul!" and with that I hopped in my car and drove home.

Gods I don't want to go in tonight. But it should be better. I called my night help and bawled him out and told him I'd hunt him down and skin him alive if he wasn't there with bells on tonight by 6pm... and to count on staying until at least 5 if not 6. I don't mind authorizing the overtime, but I wanted him to pack a big lunch. He's going to need it.

It was so satisfying, at 7am... after all that hell and having some tea to work up the strength to face my plant boss.. and tell him I'm giving him my two weeks notice. I love my job, but I don't love nights like that. I want things going smoothly. I don't leave messes for my relief. I clean them up. I'm also satisfied that the chef mechanic was going to drive over when he got back in for the day and politely explain to my relief that he'd much rather have a call on a sunday at 4pm to come fix a truck... where he had four more hours + of sunshine and didn't need coffee rather than being awoken at 1am by the hossler for the company's BIGGEST contract.. the contract thats keeping our major company alive in the fuel crisis times... because someone wasn't being vigilant and taking care of problems when they happened.

I'm also glad, even though yesterday was Monday, today is Thurs. Thank whomever invented condensed work weeks. Three days of this madness is all I'm gonna be able to handle this week.. .and I'm going to need my entire four days off just to recover.