|
“I hate January. There’s nothing good about it. The weather sucks, there’s too much to do in too little time, and every time the phone rings it’s somebody wanting something from me. What do you want?”
That’s what I said to Tim this afternoon, and it made him laugh. I was serious, but I didn’t mind being laughed at. It’s better than having him tell me what he really thinks of me, which I don’t want to hear. I’d rather live under the carefully cultivated illusion that my contribution is highly valued. They tell me that often enough that I probably should believe it.
He didn’t want anything from me, he said. He just wanted to ask a question. (“Just a question.” As if that isn’t wanting something.) And he proceeded to grill me about spreadsheets I haven’t had a chance to finish yet, with comments so far out of left field that I just stood there with the phone in my hand and my jaw clanging on the floor. I so want to tell him to ask someone who knows what they’re talking about, but that might blow my cover.
It’s not that I mind answering legitimate questions. But both Tim and the Boss have a skewed idea of what’s important, and some of their questions aren’t just out of left field, but out of the parking lot across the street from the ballpark. They can be amusing when I have time to think about it. Otherwise? Just annoying. | 
