22nd Feb - Ash Wednesday

I'm asked to go to the ground floor to look at the lighting issues. The (lack of) management team in that area have decided that they want to finally resolve the mix of people, their seating plans and their lighting needs. What should have been the first resort is now the last resort. Useless management! We look at it, kick around some ideas and I promise to speak to the lighting technicians after they've moved their people around.

I have a look at the area where the new data points are to be located and identify who owns the cupboard that needs to be moved.

Speak to Steve about the scaffolding on the side entrance of the building and clear it with Health & Safety jobsworths. We need to make sure that we leave allowance for recycling truck to come in and empty our waste and recycle bins. Speak to our fleet manager who promises to call me back with truck dimensions so that I can make sure we have enough space. Still haven't heard from him but the scaffolding is up - can't afford to wait for slow-coaches.

In the meantime we've blocked off the side entrance so that we can make overhead deliveries direct to the second floor. An Idiot walks in through three barriers under scaffolding and a forklift truck because they can't remember the code for the alternative entrance!

The climate change as@@@@e says that we need to have a solar panel display in the reception and wants to know where to put it. I know where I would like to see it but am civil and suggest a few ideas.

Check through the finance for the project - it is starting to run away from us with the recent requirements running at some £60k and likely to get worse.

I then attend the Team meeting of Cherie and her managers. There are 3 of us today and Cherie is a bit late so she leaves instructions for John to handle it. He's trying to stop smoking (I've been here for less than 3 years and this I'd about the 5th or 6th time that he has tried to give up. I'd written up my approach and what I successfully did to stop and passed it on to him. He either hasn't read or doesn't understand the first line: you can only stop smoking if you really want to!). He's bloody grumpy and a hard man to deal with at the moment as a result of his withdrawal. We take the piss!

Marian calls to say that she's having a PC problem accessing the wireless. I tell her to use the card from our other machine but whilst I'm speaking to her a queue of people with problems develop at the desk so I have to rush off the phone.

I get the ICT guys to connect up the switch on door system so that we can activate our security tomorrow. They get on to it right away.

We the have an effing 3 hour long meeting chaired by Cherie and attended by the ICT team. There are some good discussions but it drags on for much too long. Some of these people like talking but I prefer meetings to be succinct and relevant. I'd have them in the pub if I want them to be otherwise.

Back at my desk I am informed of a problem with the door system: it does have to be physically commissioned even though we've been told otherwise by the installers! It ain't going live tomorrow! Heigh ho!

I get the early train back home and have a chat with Marian about the sad news we had the day before about her parents' dog - heart failure. They're missing him and are at a loss but luckily are talking about getting another dog. I do hope that they do get another one soon as I firmly believe that they need the company and life around them.