Temp Work

What an interesting day. I slept late this morning which after not sleeping much this week, I surely deserved.  And so as you see, no blogging this morning. I was feeling a lot more than dog tired.  

And this evening I feel light as a bird!  As I might have mentioned, or maybe not, I have been working as a temp this fall doing accounts payable at an local Edmonton firm that did business around the world.  I had the opportunity to apply for my position full time and I did, but I asked them to take my name out of contention.

My previous office experience was as an office generalist.  In a small business, I did a little of everything and for a very long time all of everything.  This was strictly AP and I found out some things about AP that are just plain weird.

For instance, did you know that most people figure that if a cheque doesn't go out fast enough, it must be AP's fault. Wow.  There were a few times where yes, it was my fault, but there were only 3 that I can honestly say it was me and only me.  There were dozens of people touching, signing, sorting, adding, deleting and sometimes losing from each and every thing I did, after, between, and before I did my part.  But I  and AP were the end of the line.  In AP you get all the abuse from inside and outside your firm. If it doesn't happen on time, it is your fault.  AP has to have a very strong self image and a surety of the quality of their work.  I was unprepared for just how much.  I should have known better.  I do now.

AP also has no ability to control what happens to anything ever.  That was a real struggle, to know that no matter what I did there were walls that nobody and nothing I did would breach.  And that was for payments that were clean and pristine and didn't have any problems.  I have always thought that if you worked hard and did your best things would resolve and be done.  Not so in AP.  A mountain is a mountain and sometimes, nothing will move it out of your path, even when you know how to drill through the mountain.

I had a good long talk with my sister who works in AP for a huge international company and I felt so much better.  I did take a bit of a 'suck it up buttercup' approach to my last week and I felt a lot better about the whole thing.

I know I did right asking for my name to be taken out of contention because when they told me I was done, I was content. Not thrilled, mind.  It was a great place and they had wonderful people, but content.  My first thought was Monday I can go to the yarn store for a good browse!

As we were were making dinner this evening (OK Hubby did it all - nice man that he is) I had a second thought. That thought was gee I wonder if I can knit a sweater in 3 or 4 days.  That is all the time I might have.  I do have some other irons in the fire and who knows what might happen and where I might go.

So I am going to take the next few days to do just that.  Knit a sweater.  I'm not going overboard here.  I know I can knit a Leisl in 2 days, but 2 of those is enough.  I was thinking Shalom.   A lot of people found it a quick knit.

I have some lovely rich gray  and turquoise from Custom Woolen Mills as well as some rich rust Cascade Eco Plus that might work nicely.  I have to think about which...

but not too long.  A sweater by the end of Monday. Hmmm. Do-able?  We shall see.