Zen and the Art of Taking Inventory

We're taking Inventory for the next two days where I work.
I love inventory.
Inventory is the most stress free my life gets once a year.
Everyone in my company hates inventory, because attendance is compulsory once you get on the list, and once you get on THE LIST you're on it for life.
They bitch because it's hot (think non-climate controlled warehouse in Florida in August.). It's long, we start at 7am and are on our feet all day long. We'll get done around 5ish. If we do a good job and there aren't any system problems we'll be done some time around 2 on Tuesday. If things go poorly it could last until Weds.
And I love it.
Why?
Because my job is one of responsibility. I love it, I do. But for two days I get this luxury of NO responsibility. Just an RF scanner gun, a small tote containing stickers and a pen and some scrap paper......and me. I'm a fast auditor (someone else goes in front of us and COUNTS and then we go behind them and audit the count/re-count) and I enter those numbers into the RF gun, which enters them into our inventory system. I putz up and down the aisles alone (if they pair a newbie with them, I am sorry but I ditch them, I don't want idle chatter with some random person or to explain WHY I don't have to count every single bin - SOME numbers can be eyeballed after all)and I don't talk to anyone. I sing. I sing Pearl Jam and the Smiths (the Unhappy Birthday song seems to annoy people alot) and I sing Guns and Rose and Korn and Willie Nelson and Elvis or the Information Soceity......I run the gamut. I sing and I audit and I walk around up and down the aisles looking for spots where there are not any people to work.
I will get hot and I will get dirty. Twice during the day someone will walk up and down the aisles shouting BREAK TIME....and I will go to break and sit in the break room drinking water and just listen to whatever random tales of nothing that someone is telling.....and I will not say a word. I will smile and nod appropriately and get more water and then when someone calls BREAK OVER I will go back into the warehosue and start counting.
When it is lunch time I'll go get in line when I'm told to, and I'll eat quietly, I might talk a little about the progress of the count, and how far off the variances are but that's about all. I will eat more food than the food NAZI says is allowed but I'm a Director so she won't say a word. If other people want more food I'll go up and get that food for them, applying the say rule as above. (Last year she was insisting that people who had worked in a 110 degree whse could only have one slice of pizza as food for lunch, I am afraid I disagreed with that).

It is the most peaceful two days of my year at work. I could audit the entire warehouse myself I swear, if they wouldn't mind how long it took me.

Inventory rocks.

Zen and the Art of Taking Inventory

We're taking Inventory for the next two days where I work.
I love inventory.
Inventory is the most stress free my life gets once a year.
Everyone in my company hates inventory, because attendance is compulsory once you get on the list, and once you get on THE LIST you're on it for life.
They bitch because it's hot (think non-climate controlled warehouse in Florida in August.). It's long, we start at 7am and are on our feet all day long. We'll get done around 5ish. If we do a good job and there aren't any system problems we'll be done some time around 2 on Tuesday. If things go poorly it could last until Weds.
And I love it.
Why?
Because my job is one of responsibility. I love it, I do. But for two days I get this luxury of NO responsibility. Just an RF scanner gun, a small tote containing stickers and a pen and some scrap paper......and me. I'm a fast auditor (someone else goes in front of us and COUNTS and then we go behind them and audit the count/re-count) and I enter those numbers into the RF gun, which enters them into our inventory system. I putz up and down the aisles alone (if they pair a newbie with them, I am sorry but I ditch them, I don't want idle chatter with some random person or to explain WHY I don't have to count every single bin - SOME numbers can be eyeballed after all)and I don't talk to anyone. I sing. I sing Pearl Jam and the Smiths (the Unhappy Birthday song seems to annoy people alot) and I sing Guns and Rose and Korn and Willie Nelson and Elvis or the Information Soceity......I run the gamut. I sing and I audit and I walk around up and down the aisles looking for spots where there are not any people to work.
I will get hot and I will get dirty. Twice during the day someone will walk up and down the aisles shouting BREAK TIME....and I will go to break and sit in the break room drinking water and just listen to whatever random tales of nothing that someone is telling.....and I will not say a word. I will smile and nod appropriately and get more water and then when someone calls BREAK OVER I will go back into the warehosue and start counting.
When it is lunch time I'll go get in line when I'm told to, and I'll eat quietly, I might talk a little about the progress of the count, and how far off the variances are but that's about all. I will eat more food than the food NAZI says is allowed but I'm a Director so she won't say a word. If other people want more food I'll go up and get that food for them, applying the say rule as above. (Last year she was insisting that people who had worked in a 110 degree whse could only have one slice of pizza as food for lunch, I am afraid I disagreed with that).

It is the most peaceful two days of my year at work. I could audit the entire warehouse myself I swear, if they wouldn't mind how long it took me.

Inventory rocks.

A Week Of Friends!

It's pretty cool when you get to see people you really like on a regular basis. We used to see the people we liked at school. Go to school, your friends are there. Work can be like that but I have the added caveat of being the boss.......so it's tougher. There are some friends there, but I can't roll up in there going "OH MAN I GOT SO PLASTERED LAST NIGHT LISTEN TO WHAT I DID" ....you know, a little decorum is required. I have to at least whisper if I'm telling that story.
But I have friends who I don't work with that I love to see. One of them flew in on a jet plane and made time in his busy tittybar/convention - trade show thing schedule......and it was wonderful to see you. I miss you! You are still my favorite Kentuckian. I think next time you come we have to migrate someplace near the water for visiting......after all, you are in Florida, you would probably like to see the ocean, eh? I think I take it for granted too much - so sorry.
This weekend I'm doing a big river tubing adventure with my local friends. Four hours floating down a river on a big tube.
Being the WHITEST person in Florida I'm expecting to burst into flame about 30 minutes into the thing. Any stories of spontaneous human combustion in Florida are probably relating to me.
Okay it's midnight. I have to get up at 6am. I haven't packed. I haven't gotten my shit together. I should probably get off of here and get jiggy with it.

A Week Of Friends!

It's pretty cool when you get to see people you really like on a regular basis. We used to see the people we liked at school. Go to school, your friends are there. Work can be like that but I have the added caveat of being the boss.......so it's tougher. There are some friends there, but I can't roll up in there going "OH MAN I GOT SO PLASTERED LAST NIGHT LISTEN TO WHAT I DID" ....you know, a little decorum is required. I have to at least whisper if I'm telling that story.
But I have friends who I don't work with that I love to see. One of them flew in on a jet plane and made time in his busy tittybar/convention - trade show thing schedule......and it was wonderful to see you. I miss you! You are still my favorite Kentuckian. I think next time you come we have to migrate someplace near the water for visiting......after all, you are in Florida, you would probably like to see the ocean, eh? I think I take it for granted too much - so sorry.
This weekend I'm doing a big river tubing adventure with my local friends. Four hours floating down a river on a big tube.
Being the WHITEST person in Florida I'm expecting to burst into flame about 30 minutes into the thing. Any stories of spontaneous human combustion in Florida are probably relating to me.
Okay it's midnight. I have to get up at 6am. I haven't packed. I haven't gotten my shit together. I should probably get off of here and get jiggy with it.

SNAKES ON A PLANE!!!

You know, it was a quiet evening until I received this from Kristine. Oh yes, I was just MINDING MY OWN BUSINESS........but well, some of you know. Because shortly after I got this, Samuel L. Jackson started calling and emailing my friends.
I certainly hope he calls you and some of your friends.

I think that this movie will now be a wild success because of their silly internet marketing gimmick. I know me and some of my friends are now going.....because well, we don't want to piss off Sam.

Only one friend hasn't confirmed for me that he received this phone call from Sam Jackson and Scott H from Lexington you know you got one.......you're just too cool to call me back about it, aren't you? I seriously spent like an hour sending that thing off to people.

I was absolutely slaying myself sending it off.

If you need to release some tension.........send that bad boy out to a few people.
It's good times.

SNAKES ON A PLANE!!!

You know, it was a quiet evening until I received this from Kristine. Oh yes, I was just MINDING MY OWN BUSINESS........but well, some of you know. Because shortly after I got this, Samuel L. Jackson started calling and emailing my friends.
I certainly hope he calls you and some of your friends.

I think that this movie will now be a wild success because of their silly internet marketing gimmick. I know me and some of my friends are now going.....because well, we don't want to piss off Sam.

Only one friend hasn't confirmed for me that he received this phone call from Sam Jackson and Scott H from Lexington you know you got one.......you're just too cool to call me back about it, aren't you? I seriously spent like an hour sending that thing off to people.

I was absolutely slaying myself sending it off.

If you need to release some tension.........send that bad boy out to a few people.
It's good times.

But am I really Supposed to be afraid of CHRIS?

HERE COMES THE RAIN AGAIN.......

But am I really Supposed to be afraid of CHRIS?

HERE COMES THE RAIN AGAIN.......

In Memoriam......

of the three pounds that I lost at WW when I weighed in today!

YIPPEEE!!!!!

That calls for some chocolate.......right?

In Memoriam......

of the three pounds that I lost at WW when I weighed in today!

YIPPEEE!!!!!

That calls for some chocolate.......right?