The Working Girl Blog #17: I can't reach that high

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The Working Girl Blog #17:
I can't reach that high, or
Why did they have to put the furshlugginer box of bond paper at the top


To see all of Bobbie's "Working Girl" blogs, click on this link: http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/book/19261/working-girl-blogs

   

Nothing much to write about today's boring workday,

except that my guys are really into the testing, and making test cases. In other words - borrring...

Par for the course.

Most of my team's been on the phone, checking back with the client if the testing team's test scenarios were correct. Not that big a deal, actually, since our project is mostly a workflow kind of system, so test data types aren't as strict as in, say, an accounting system-type project. We had a lucky break actually - the client's people promised to courier us a disk drive full of actual data and scanned documents that we can use, both before end-of-month and after end-of-month data (which is great because it'll give us a before and after view). If this turns out okay, then that takes care of 90% of our test data buildup. If we're lucky, that'll knock at least three (maybe even four!) weeks from our timetable. But enough tech talk.

Like most any team in the company who's in the middle of testing, we go through paper like water. And because I had my own printer (it's just a DeskJet - I didn't rate my own laser printer), I was one of the heavier paper users. Anyway, I ran through my remaining ream of paper in an hour.

I didn't know where to get more paper. I asked around among my guys and one of them pointed me to a room which was just off the boss's room. So I went. What greeted me was a windowless room full of cardboard boxes. One wall was stacked with these boxes up to the ceiling, almost, each box helpfully labeled "typewriter paper." Cool. Thing was, the boxes were in stacks, with the lowest stack maybe three feet over my head. (I am what you might call "vertically challenged").

Experimentally, I tried pushing up the boxes to get at one in the middle, but to no avail. (Not being too strong comes packaged with the shortness thing). Anyway, the only logical thing to do was to take the topmost box. But I did say I... wasn't too tall, right?

Anyway, after a futile fifteen minutes of trying, Sammi comes in and shrieks, "What are you doing?!"

Sammi, being Sammi, sweet-talks one of the taller gents to come and get the top box for lil ole me. He takes it down and brings it to my office. Sammi then scolds me (in a friendly way), and why didn't I get one of the men to do it for me. That's what they're there for.

I guess a more, ummm, emancipated kind of girl will insist on doing things herself, and not be a powder puff kind of girly-girl, and have Neanderthals (no offense, guys!) carry stuff around for her. Guess after this incident, maybe Sammi thinks I'm that kind of girl. Truth is I get a kick out of people carrying stuff for me, or opening doors, or pulling my chair out for me, or, even better, paying for the restaurant bill! Heheh. Yup - all totally and unforgiveably stereotypical, unfair and, in a way, chauvinistic. Apologies.

Anyway - lesson learned. Get the guys to do things - check.

But now what'll I do with the thirty reams of paper in my office?

   
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Comments

LOL

Here in the house, the wife's got an inch on me, and that ends up giving her just the extra inch or two reach that lets her REACH to the top shelf in our kitchen. LOL I have to use a pair of tongs, or go get a chair. LOL Around other girls, I'm not vertically challenged, most of the time... But, around guys, I am. I'm hoping this will help, come the day...

I'm surprised there wasn't one of those step stool things in the room. But, hey... Probably some tall guy set it up.

Now, getting that load of test data! That IS awesome! So many clients can't manage to put that kind of thing together. *sighs* Our jobs would be so much easier, without users... But then, without them, we'd not have jobs. LOL

Thanks for sharing,
Annette

You can never have too much paper!

But now what'll I do with the thirty reams of paper in my office?

Simple: not go and fetch paper the next 29 times you need it!

Stack it up somewhere, put it under your desk, behind the door, use boxes as footstools...

Even the next time you feel vertically challenged, take a couple of reams for an instant boost!

How about this: pretend it's Christmas, and go around everyone else's offices/printers and give them all an extra ream. It'll be gone before you know it, particularly if you really do use it like water.

Paper Supplies


Bike Archive

Typical lack of testosterone

syndrome. I can lift to about breast level, but beyond that ... don't ask. For that matter, I was not that great even pre-E. Though there are plenty of exceptions to the rule. I have an acquaintance post op T-girl, Jenn, who does rock climbing and I got a look at look at her torso one time and *whistles* she has 12 pack ( forget about 6! ) abs - incredible musculature. Yet she is not the overly aggressive butch type one might expect or super jockette type. I do not know how she manages it. Now THAT is knowing your own skin, instead of trying to fit into silly media driven ideals.

Kim

I used to be DAMN strong.

I'd estimate that I have less than 50% of the strength that I used to. And besides, I have nothing to prove any more. :)

Gwen

It reminds me of

the line from that Eagles song, "City girls just seem to find out early how to open doors with just a smile." Stereotypical and chauvanistic maybe, but it sure is fun, isn't it! It got me thinking back to a day out as Alison a couple of winters ago when I left my car lights on when I went into a coffee shop. How am I ever going to get anyone to stop and give me a jump...? Amazingly it worked!

Yep, what else we are for? :)

I know from many personal experiences that I'm not a fetch boy - it really grates me to be treated as such. However, other so-called menial tasks like carrying a weight or reaching somewhere I can and will accomplish with only a minor bout of grumbling - after all, how can I do them and be on the internet on the same time? ;)

Faraway


On rights of free advertisement:
Big Closet Top Shelf

Where you can fool around like you want to and most you get is some bemused good ribbing!

Faraway


On rights of free advertisement:
Big Closet Top Shelf

Where you can fool around like you want to and most you get is some bemused good ribbing!

Tree Killer! :)

I remember in the very early 80's, they'd plunked one of the first actual desk tops on my desk and told me to learn how to use it. God, those first machines were awful, God they were awful! In one of the classes I was taking I was taught that the computers would make the business place "paperless". Does anyone remember that promise?

OK, I am a computer code dunce. But would someone try to explain to me why writing code uses lots of paper? I am thinking of buying a really big TV/monitor, and that way I could have maybe 6 windows open at once. Maybe I wouldn't need to print at all?

Much peas

Gwen

Also works for water coolers

Hi

At work we have 19 litre (~640 US fl oz) bottles of water for our water coolers. Taking off an empty bottle isn't an issue. Putting a new one on is. We store them at the other end of the office, so carrying one of these heavy loads is difficult.

My male colleagues jump up when they see me remove the empty and say "Don't worry Karen, I'll sort it."

Rather nice really, especially since the majority knew me before transition. Oh, and the ones that were around are wonderful. None of them have told any of the people who have joined since about my past.

Karen

Carrying one is okay.

... but I found it was very difficult to put on. I managed it like about 3 times, just being the feminist that I am and just to see if I can do it. It isn't worth the trouble and like you said, I let the men handle that kind of heavy lifting as to tip it over onto the cooler takes a LOT of raw arm AND upper body strength and I weigh only around 110 pounds soaking. But with a little thinking and a little preparation, it can be done, using some leverage to your advantage. Kinda water cooler martial arts :).

Kim

Thirty reams?

Let's see - they're probably in boxes, each containing five reams? And each box secured by means of a band of webbing?
So that's six boxes to store somewhere. Don't suppose there's any room in front of your transparent desk? :)
Seriously, I'm sure you'll find some nook or cranny to hide the boxes in until needed.

But your paper output reminds me of the greatest oxymoron of recent times:

Paperless Office.

Hahaha. I've told everyone before I support an ESCR (Electronic Social Care Record) system. However, we haven't got around to implementing the mobile version yet, which means the social workers scribble their assessments on paper, then type them up onto the computer. However, they then have a policy of printing out the electronic version of the assessment, and storing both copies in a paper file. And when a six page scribbled assessment morphs into 35 in Print Preview when electronically entered, we have to provide them with reports that hide all unanswered questions (which is a lot, since quite often they will only complete the bare minimum required case recording...)

 


There are 10 kinds of people in the world - those who understand binary and those who don't...

As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!

The paperless office.

Where I work in the hospital I do the graveyard shift so we're partly playing the fetch roles for lab,or medical records. I work very closely with the records department who have been running out of space from sheer file paper bulk. They've been saying for ages that they want all the hard files to be changed over to discs but the Doctors are really resistant to not having it in their hands rather than on a tablet.
Every new patient gets a chart, every day surgery gets a chart even if we'll never see them again, they all get charts and they get filled by other department stuff.
They even have a sheet they add that says they've entered all the information into the system. They are still saying the scanning costs are too high, but aside from the red tape inter-departmental stuff it's already e-filed. I've seen that office, the ungodly paper use is staggering and we're just a small hospital.
You'd think they'd save money after awhile with the paper they'd save.
Anyway very agreeing with you.

Bailey Summers