I’m working on my calendar for September, and I have serious doubts about my ability to survive. We’re rolling out a new internal system at work, and as the sole trainer and documentation person, it’s all on me: I have to train the entire company in the first three weeks of September. This is, of course, in addition to my three OTHER large projects that are rolling out in the same time frame. Oh, and each group I’m training will be using the system in a different way. Let the games begin!

I seem to have had some sort of premonition about all this, because I had booked off some vacation time months ago in preparation for various exciting things (PAX and our anniversary). As a result, I somehow managed to wrangle myself a month that has not one 5-day work week in it. Ha! Take that, productivity!

I’m fairly optimistic about the entire thing. I’ll feel even more so once my training presentations are done, but I’m working on that as we speak (I love you, alt-tab). I choose to be upbeat about the whole thing – it would be really easy to whine and bitch about it, but I do so love a challenge and man oh man will I have a(nother) excellent point to bring up when I discuss my missing raise with HR. More chickens, please, or the CRM gets it.

Plus, there are so many good times coming up! Ed and I are going to PAX this year, and we’ll be leaving on Friday the 4th. I’m taking the 3rd and 4th off to relax and get ready – I had originally planned to leave for Seattle on Wednesday night, but a) that is too early and b) I need relaxing time, not “impose myself on the Suttles” time. The following Monday is a holiday as well, so there’s another 4-day week. Hah!

September 21st is our 7th anniversary, and since we didn’t do anything last year because Ed was in Edmonton, we’re taking a mini-trip this time. We both have the Friday/Monday off, and we’re driving to Portland on the 18th and staying here – I can’t wait! I loved Portland when we passed through it on our way back from San Francisco; this time we get to explore the city for a few days and stay at what looks like an awesome hotel. WHEE! International humping!

By the time everything is done for Phase 1, it’ll be time for us to fly to Edmonton for Thanksgiving for 5 days or so: just long enough for me to recover and stuff myself silly with donairs before it all starts again for Phase 2.

Oh boy do I ever need more chickens.