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This week was Graduation week at the college and while this may be hectic for the graduates, for those of us setting up, running and tearing down everything, it is a nightmare. My question? Why do people have to make it even worse?
I have mentioned we use inmate workers from our local Federal Prison. They work on a three month furlough, we have to fill out and send paperwork to Washington DC for approval, which they send to the prison. A secretary at the prison then sends out the internal paperwork to the appropriate departments. Last winter we had a SNAFU where our paperwork was sent to every department in DC but the one it was supposed to go to. Our guy at the college found a way to get approval for the entire year after that, so all that needed to be done was the internal paperwork at the prison. But despite us reminding them for the last three weeks, she didn't do it.
So no inmate workers, we start off graduation week down 6 people, which means we have to do the jobs they were going to do in addition to our own. And the college wound not give us any extra hours, which means most of us have to do half days so that we actually have the hours to work on graduation night.
And of course there are the regular jobs we do. It is amazing how people can have Doctor in front of their names and still be idiots. One teacher wanted us to move all his furniture out of his office, paint his office and move his new furniture back in, on Thursday,.... the day before graduation. Our ranch facility wanted us to come out and spend the week cutting up dead trees. Of course when we point out that it is graduation week they all say the same thing; "I thought you had some one else doing that."
They gave me money to get some landscaping done, but despite my schedule, the college President wants the trees planted before graduation. So I have to scramble to get them in and planted, messing up our schedule and probably pissing off our landscaper by messing up his as well.
Most of the set up in the gym goes great except for the chairs. We get over 1000 chairs from a party company and after no sign of them after lunch on Thursday, my supervisor finally gets a response to his calls. They will be here after 4pm. That's nice, we won't. They manage to get here at 3pm and we some how get them all set up in under an hour.
And then we get to Friday, we had a slow rain all day. Last year, when I came in at 5pm, half the parking was all ready full. This year we were wondering if we got the date wrong. But as the rain slowed, the people came. And it is bad enough parking with all the huge ass trucks, but did you really need to haul an even bigger huge ass trailer,....with a tractor and a Volkswagen on it as well? And no, you cannot park in one of our three entrances.
And then there are the late people, all pissed off that they have to park all the way in the back. Maybe if you didn't arrive 10 minutes after it started you would have been able to park closer. And one thing I don't understand, some people left just as graduation started, why come all this way and leave before all the graduates have even entered the gym?
And then we have the people. Can't follow directions, seem confused by stairs, bringing little kids knowing full well they will not get to see a moment of the ceremony because they will be in the hall way keeping them from crying, or just letting the run wild up and down the stairs. And ladies, exactly when do heels become stilts? I have seem circus performers on 6 foot stilts who could walk across the room smoother than some of the women here.
And finally it is over and we have to stack up all 1000 chairs so they can be picked up Saturday and then we have to move certain items back to where we "borrowed" them because there are other events this weekend. But of course the people don't leave. They stand right in our way, glancing at us but not actually acknowledging us. They stand in the doorways, in the stairways, right in front of out carts, in the parking lot, ignoring the cars trying to leave. When I came back to load up all the stage plants, I got stuck behind "Family Photo Time". I swear they took a picture of every possible combination of family members. And every time they would thin out and I thought I could get by, they would move to block me.
It was 11:30 when I got home, tired, exhausted and glad Graduation only happens once a year.
I have mentioned we use inmate workers from our local Federal Prison. They work on a three month furlough, we have to fill out and send paperwork to Washington DC for approval, which they send to the prison. A secretary at the prison then sends out the internal paperwork to the appropriate departments. Last winter we had a SNAFU where our paperwork was sent to every department in DC but the one it was supposed to go to. Our guy at the college found a way to get approval for the entire year after that, so all that needed to be done was the internal paperwork at the prison. But despite us reminding them for the last three weeks, she didn't do it.
So no inmate workers, we start off graduation week down 6 people, which means we have to do the jobs they were going to do in addition to our own. And the college wound not give us any extra hours, which means most of us have to do half days so that we actually have the hours to work on graduation night.
And of course there are the regular jobs we do. It is amazing how people can have Doctor in front of their names and still be idiots. One teacher wanted us to move all his furniture out of his office, paint his office and move his new furniture back in, on Thursday,.... the day before graduation. Our ranch facility wanted us to come out and spend the week cutting up dead trees. Of course when we point out that it is graduation week they all say the same thing; "I thought you had some one else doing that."
They gave me money to get some landscaping done, but despite my schedule, the college President wants the trees planted before graduation. So I have to scramble to get them in and planted, messing up our schedule and probably pissing off our landscaper by messing up his as well.
Most of the set up in the gym goes great except for the chairs. We get over 1000 chairs from a party company and after no sign of them after lunch on Thursday, my supervisor finally gets a response to his calls. They will be here after 4pm. That's nice, we won't. They manage to get here at 3pm and we some how get them all set up in under an hour.
And then we get to Friday, we had a slow rain all day. Last year, when I came in at 5pm, half the parking was all ready full. This year we were wondering if we got the date wrong. But as the rain slowed, the people came. And it is bad enough parking with all the huge ass trucks, but did you really need to haul an even bigger huge ass trailer,....with a tractor and a Volkswagen on it as well? And no, you cannot park in one of our three entrances.
And then there are the late people, all pissed off that they have to park all the way in the back. Maybe if you didn't arrive 10 minutes after it started you would have been able to park closer. And one thing I don't understand, some people left just as graduation started, why come all this way and leave before all the graduates have even entered the gym?
And then we have the people. Can't follow directions, seem confused by stairs, bringing little kids knowing full well they will not get to see a moment of the ceremony because they will be in the hall way keeping them from crying, or just letting the run wild up and down the stairs. And ladies, exactly when do heels become stilts? I have seem circus performers on 6 foot stilts who could walk across the room smoother than some of the women here.
And finally it is over and we have to stack up all 1000 chairs so they can be picked up Saturday and then we have to move certain items back to where we "borrowed" them because there are other events this weekend. But of course the people don't leave. They stand right in our way, glancing at us but not actually acknowledging us. They stand in the doorways, in the stairways, right in front of out carts, in the parking lot, ignoring the cars trying to leave. When I came back to load up all the stage plants, I got stuck behind "Family Photo Time". I swear they took a picture of every possible combination of family members. And every time they would thin out and I thought I could get by, they would move to block me.
It was 11:30 when I got home, tired, exhausted and glad Graduation only happens once a year.
Yes, another stupid holiday where the customers have an excuse to go all batshit on us at the stores. UGH!
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