After working nearly 12 hours over Easter Weekend, I went back into work today only to find that those Thai fonts are STILL INCORRECT. I'm pissed off. Why did I even work on the weekend, if all my effort still resulted in a WRONG RESULT?!
Anyway, the bug with the Thai fonts required me to use some hardware test equipment. My test setup was cannibalized while I was on maternity leave about a year ago. When I asked around if I could borrow other people's development board, no one was willing to lend theirs out.
The reasons are:
1. I have a reputation for breaking hardware. (Although, I think this reputation is unfairly earned...)
2. The development boards are old, and expensive and there are only a handful of functioning boards left, and everyone is scared that if they lend it out, it will never come back in working condition.
3. It's a hassle having to setup a development board... so no one wants to lend it out just to have to set it up again. Especially if they "suddenly" need that equipment back.
So the question I have is... Is test equipment PERSONAL PROPERTY? Or is it communal? I always thought it was communal. But the way things are going... I might have to start treating the stuff I have as personal and even set up a log to track who I lend it to and when.
I'm irritated. I'm irritated that my company can't afford to keep us stocked with the test equipment that we need. I'm irritated that I can't quickly accomplish my task because of missing tools! I'm irritated that I worked on the weekend and didn't get any of my personal chores done!
Today...life sucks... I can't believe today is ONLY MONDAY... 4 more days left. I hope this week starts improving when I wake up.
O... but on a brighter note. My daughter is wonderfully cute. I love her more everyday. She climbs the stairs like a little pro... and she's moved from rice gruel to rice! Wow!
Monday, April 25, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Working on Easter Weekend
It's 9 AM on Easter Sunday, and I'm alone in the office. I also came in yesterday from 7AM until 12. Then I worked from home from 7:30 until 9. Why??? Because we received a customer request to make Thai fonts. Long story short, I'm trying to get the fonts out to them before Monday (Thai time). It's a frustrating task because
1. I don't know Thai.
2. This was a sudden request and there was not enough time for me to learn how to make fonts and create a font for a language I don't know!!!!
3. There are not enough test files for me to test and release the fonts with confidence.
4. This is not coding. I want to become a better software engineer... not a person who can make artistic interpretations on fonts while converting them from true type to bitmap.
This is frustrating, and I'd rather be spending my easter weekend with my family. I mourn the loss of the weekend. But I relish the opportunity to show my "go get 'em" attitude. Hopefully it'll core me some points when review time comes.
Praise to God that my daughter has been a real sweetie this weekend. So even though I ended up working and doing chores all of yesterday... her sweetness really gave me a few highlights that made the day bearable.
And props to my husband for watching our daughter while I'm working this weekend. And also, I feel so loved that he even read me a bedtime story so I could calm down from the stressful day and fall asleep.
1. I don't know Thai.
2. This was a sudden request and there was not enough time for me to learn how to make fonts and create a font for a language I don't know!!!!
3. There are not enough test files for me to test and release the fonts with confidence.
4. This is not coding. I want to become a better software engineer... not a person who can make artistic interpretations on fonts while converting them from true type to bitmap.
This is frustrating, and I'd rather be spending my easter weekend with my family. I mourn the loss of the weekend. But I relish the opportunity to show my "go get 'em" attitude. Hopefully it'll core me some points when review time comes.
Praise to God that my daughter has been a real sweetie this weekend. So even though I ended up working and doing chores all of yesterday... her sweetness really gave me a few highlights that made the day bearable.
And props to my husband for watching our daughter while I'm working this weekend. And also, I feel so loved that he even read me a bedtime story so I could calm down from the stressful day and fall asleep.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Men are Moody Too
There is the stereotype that men are not emotional... and ENGINEERS are all logic and no heart. But that is not true at all. As a female engineer I have my monthly moods... but a few of the MALE engineers around me have moods too. The difference is that I recognize my moods and warn my coworkers by saying: "I'm grouchy (today)/(right now), so please (leave me alone)/(don't tease me) today." I'm sure that's not the most professional way to deal with my moods, but at least I'm civil about it.
It seems that the moody men at work either don't recognize their emotions or don't know how to handle it.
Sometimes they don't realize that they are in a bad mood. Maybe some stress is happening in their personal lives and they bring it to work. This is when they will be in a bad mood and get annoyed easily. I've had several occassions where I had my head bitten off for a joke or comment that would have been perfectly okay a day ago. I've even had the experience of a coworker getting mad at me when I brought in donuts and didn't announce it first thing in the morning. He said I should've announced first thing in the morning before he ate his breakfast.
I have another coworker who will walk away in the middle of a conversation when he gets upset. Just today I politely asked him to clarify what he was asking for. (I thought I might be able to help.) When he felt that I couldn't understand what he was saying, he just sighed and walked away quite abruptly.
There are also the male engineers who get grouchy and send off clear non-verbal signals to leave them alone. Such signals may include growling, non-commital grunts as answers, or putting in ear plugs or ear phones when you start talking around them.
So what have I learned? I've learned to keep a professional distance away from the super-moody coworkers. What is a professional distance? It means no joking, no bantering, no sharing of food, no personal conversations, and no asking for favors. Just say good morning, good night... and if you have to work together, be polite and courteous. Never demand and always say "thank you."
That last rule applies to all relationships. =) I guess my Kindergarten teacher taught me the key to a successful life: "Always say please and thank you."
It seems that the moody men at work either don't recognize their emotions or don't know how to handle it.
Sometimes they don't realize that they are in a bad mood. Maybe some stress is happening in their personal lives and they bring it to work. This is when they will be in a bad mood and get annoyed easily. I've had several occassions where I had my head bitten off for a joke or comment that would have been perfectly okay a day ago. I've even had the experience of a coworker getting mad at me when I brought in donuts and didn't announce it first thing in the morning. He said I should've announced first thing in the morning before he ate his breakfast.
I have another coworker who will walk away in the middle of a conversation when he gets upset. Just today I politely asked him to clarify what he was asking for. (I thought I might be able to help.) When he felt that I couldn't understand what he was saying, he just sighed and walked away quite abruptly.
There are also the male engineers who get grouchy and send off clear non-verbal signals to leave them alone. Such signals may include growling, non-commital grunts as answers, or putting in ear plugs or ear phones when you start talking around them.
So what have I learned? I've learned to keep a professional distance away from the super-moody coworkers. What is a professional distance? It means no joking, no bantering, no sharing of food, no personal conversations, and no asking for favors. Just say good morning, good night... and if you have to work together, be polite and courteous. Never demand and always say "thank you."
That last rule applies to all relationships. =) I guess my Kindergarten teacher taught me the key to a successful life: "Always say please and thank you."
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