On certain days, I am not sure if I have a job.

It seems more like a one-way ticket to an insane asylum, complete with the straitjacket, pink elephants, and folks in white coats waving ink blots.

I have a pile of orders (I think it's about forty) and there were some I had printed out two weeks ago that I had done nothing more with than make notes on them because I was busy doing older orders and coping with people fighting with me over everything I asked for. Then I had new orders that had been assigned this week. So Tuesday afternoon I printed everything out, and yesterday I sat down determined to do nothing but look at every one of those orders, decide what needed to be done with them (print out any backup documentation that came with them, ask for quotes and/or sole source justifications, send for quotes, advertise, whatever). I was doing fine until I opened two attached Word documents that simply would not close again. After messing with it for a few minutes, I simply logged out of everything, shut down Windows, and shut off the computer, then rebooted and got back in.

The little suckers were still open!

If I could have ignored them, I would have, but no, every time I needed to open up another attached Word document, it would either say it couldn't open because another document was open, or when I did get it open and print it, it would say "normal.dot is in use; do you want to save it?" If I clicked yes, it said it couldn't save because it was in use by another document, if I clicked no, the same dialog box popped up again. Plus someone has loaded something called EndNote in with Word. So not only did "normal.dot" complain at me, but a file in EndNote kept asking me to save it. If I clicked yes, it said it couldn't save because it was in use by another document, if I clicked no...wait, you've heard this. The "OK" button for this would pop up ten, twelve times and I would have to click it each time before it disappeared. Or it would tell me something wasn't connecting. By the time I got finished, an hour later than I usually do because I had sworn I would get through those files—and I hadn't actually finished because Word/EndNote's little debacle had finally choked the computer so much that it would not open the final attached Word document that I needed—I was angry, my stomach was churning and I was nauseated, my back hurt, and I had a headache. I logged off, took three ibuprofin, and lay down in the nice, dark, cool, non-purchase order infested spare room until James got home.

I would say "hurrah" at the news that our contract/purchasing order generating software will be replaced in January, except that I've heard rumors from people who have used it that it is worse than what we have now. Oh. Joy.

The nice parts of yesterday were playing music for Schuyler and myself and also working out on the exercise bike for one side of "The Partridge Family Album." The beat is really good for a nice steady 13 mph.

Today is better so far, as I am doing orders rather than trying to print them out (the printer was also affected yesterday by Word/EndNote; it was taking so long to print out two- and three-page documents that I could do things like make the bed or use the bathroom during the printout and come back to find it still printing) and feel like I am accomplishing something. To fend off the 90 degree temps I am playing my autumn albums (George Winston, David Huntsinger). I worked with the hand weights today, but I don't exercise as long with them because of the pain in my elbows.

Labels: computers, work

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 2:29:00 PM

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