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I don’t complain much.

Well, in livejournal I do, but at work I don’t actually.

In fact, I am thinking that perhaps I should. It has long been company policy that graphics approval do not hold up the official launch of a site. What’s that?, you say, they launch websites that the customer doesn’t want just to make numbers and so they can send them a bill? How very Enron of them to count profit on future work. Yes, I say, they do.

Essentially, it seems that several of the 15 new sites due to be launched this month are “hung up” in graphics approval between Hawaii and here. So, in order to launch these, many are being sent to me to create suitable temporary homepage graphics, so they can be hooked up to the property search module (our real product) and launched.

Yesterday, I complained ever so slightly. Why can’t I just make them a quick page with just html text links to the modules. It’ll be much faster and easier to swap out later with their real graphics. No, no, no. Didn’t I realize that these sites were not just for the customer to preview how they are going to work, they have to be “pretty” and “suitable for public viewing” so we can market them as officially launched. Oh, so I am starting from scratch making “suitable homepage graphics” that will take up my time to prepare, then cut and hook up, only to have to redo all this work later on when the REAL graphics come in, taking longer then because it will then be an upgrade process instead of a new site process…. even though it’s a new site.

So, on top of these new sites, which are already higher in number than normal, now each one is essentially more time consuming work. There goes my time spread even thinner.

Wouldn’t be SO bad if I wasn’t bombarded with emails and phone calls asking about reworks on already existing sites that I haven’t managed to get to, because, say, I’ve been retyping seven faxed pages of drivers names, car numbers, and point totals into tables by hand because Lanier Speedway hasn’t figured out how to email attachments yet.

I also love it when people come up to me and say, “I want you to do this, because if I send it to Hawaii, they are so backed up that Jay won’t even let me discuss it with him until Monday.” In those cases, I smile, discuss the site with them, take their notes, throw it all on the pile, and really don’t start working on it any sooner than Hawaii would. But they feel better because “we talked”. It’s the least I can do.

Then, there are the cases of overzealous project managers trying to bypass steps in the production process, and they can… because I’m local to do it for them. The process says designer designs, when approved, that designer then cuts & preps and builds the matching interior page banners & navs and matching agent site graphics. All that is placed, by said designer, in a folder here locally so that the builder/upgrader can attach it all. There are three people here designated as builders, of which I am one. The other two are not designers, they just build. There are three people designated as designers, of which I am one. Thus, 99% of the time, I design crap, then prepare, then build… whole process. That and reworks are really a full time job. Add to that me preparing & building other folks designs, when there are other people perfectly suited to do that, and you get me being stressed and pissy.

I think that’s enough ranting. Now that I’ve spent the morning typing for Lanier, then prepping and cutting two sites that are not mine, perhaps I can start doing some work that I can actually record on the time sheet.

In other news… last night, some shitty minature golf, another go at the batting cages, and some dissapointing wings at Hooters. I’m gonna buy one of those Hooters Air t-shirts, just for the novelty. I should have done it last night. Then we headed home for a couple rounds of shitty vitual golf on the playstation, caught an illusive “season three” episode of Family Guy, then tried to get some needed sleep. Didn’t do a great job. Well, I slept fine, just not nearly long enough. I think getting out of bed this morning was the hardest thing I’ve done in a long while.

Once again, face, skin – looks like crap. I’ve got some crazy dark circle-baggage eyes going on that no amount of makeup seems to help. I look like JamesT beats me up or something…

So very blah still. Trying to get things accomplished at work so I don’t feel so buried. Just have to take things one step at a time. Then, have to make the most of the evenings at home…. de-stress, DO something, not just sit around or sleep. Maybe I’ll go hit tennis balls at the wall later. Need to wear myself out.

Lunch today…. well, Geoffrey is here site building, so we’ll probably do pool, which I have just been god awful sucking at lately. It’s getting stressful for me and it’s supposed to be fun. I think I need a day off from “the guys” for some retail therapy. I’m sure I’ll catch flack for it. I’m already pissy that Jason IM’s me something, I ask him a question about it, then half an hour later click back over to the window to see if he’s answered, only to find it say “blah joins the conversation” like he’s just closed the window and ignored me. Other times I may get answers 2-3 hours later, which is why he has the nickname “delayed reaction”. honestly, it’s just bleeding annoying.