Oct 21, 2004

I SO needed another work scare.

Work is hellish right now, as we are gearing up for a convention we're producing in Phoenix next week. And I get to go! It is hot shit. I haven't ever been to Phoenix. Although I might as well be going just down the street, for my job is to be the PA, and I will be in the hotel/banquet hall from morning til night, day after day after day, until next Friday when I blearily haul my ass back to DC. I am leaving Saturday and I know you will miss my literary outpourings, and for that I am sorry.

Today is all sorts of insane. For example, a few hours ago I was remembering how when I went on that last trip, I couldn't figure out how to set up an auto-reply on my Outlook to tell people that I was out of the office. (I know this should be easy, and I swear I've been able to do it in the past, but on this computer I couldn't find the option anywhere. It is Outlook 2000. Does that program suck? Is it defunct? Can someone help?) So I was on the Microsoft Office downloads page, thinking that maybe if I installed something called an "update," suddenly the program would be all spiffy and modern and Auto-Reply would, like, leap out at me in neon lights or something.

I had to close Outlook down to do this. I got halfway through the download when it prompted me to put in the CD of the Outlook program, and I know for a fact that my boss never hung onto that thing, so I just hit cancel and closed the downloading window. And then! Oh god, it was so scary! I tried launching Outlook again and it would not open. It did an hourglass for a second and then NOTHING. Gaaaah! I tried it like nine different ways, thinking that one particular shortcut button was broken (I know, that's retarded. Desperation, people!).

Finally I gave up, and I was scared. I went ahead and just checked my emails through the internet, which sucks because it's slow and you end up with 9.2 kazillion windows open at once, all of which become so small at the bottom of the screen that you can't tell which has what email in it. Plus I was terrified that I had somehow installed a crazy worm that had EATEN OUTLOOK, and now my boss's laptop was all fucked up. (And I think we all know how much I do not want to make my boss mad at me anymore. At least for another month or so.)

So basically I was freaking out. And then, like an hour later, the heavens parted, and all these blinking Outlook bars just appeared across the bottom of my screen! Outlook was launching the fuck out of itself! Holy lord: ten, eleven, THIRTEEN bars of Outlook! (I guess I had pressed various shortcut buttons thirteen times. Heh, I am crazy.) They were all blinking and frenetic and, like, look at me! And read me! Attention whores.

At least that crisis is over now. I can return to the regular work craziness, and, when I get home tonight, the packing craziness.

Eh, who am I kidding - I always pack 23 minutes before I have to leave for the airport. I'm smooth that way.

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