We will get done with our grading project tomorrow. The planned end date is Monday. I've done these projects before and we have never been so close to the projected end date as we are with this, and like I've said before, we haven't even been close. Previous projects (most of them, granted, have been math) we could have been finished last week.
So after hemming and hawing over my fear that we are working ourselves out of a job ... you know, maybe I overreacted, just a tad. Our production trend was such that I really thought we would get done as early as yesterday (Thursday) or even Wednesday, thus taking days' worth of paychecks out of our own pockets. But somehow, even though our production has been robust all week, it appears we may have taken a half-step back. To the point where, for the past couple days, the projection was that this assignment would be now done Monday. That's better than losing a job early, but that would be bad for me because I start my next job on Monday, and I have no idea how skipping out of an assignment before it's finished (even if I told everybody who needed to know when I started this project) would reflect on future opportunities with this company, which I love to work for.
Well, yesterday (Thursday) we got back on the snake and started whipping ourselves back up production-wise. I guess our supervisor saw that because we went from a theoretical chance we would get done today (Friday) to (and he never said this, mind you) a good chance. Seeing this, he and his boss, for the first time in my memory working for this company, allowed us to stay after hours to the point where we might get overtime for the week. The irony is that the combination of these expanded hours before the week is through and our jacked-up production means that we will get done some time before end of business Friday, probably enough that we will finish short of the 40 hours we would get to be eligible for the overtime my supervisor dangled out there as incentive.
I got back on the rollercoaster again after hearing the new projections yesterday (Thursday) afternoon that we are picking up speed. This was also the time where I saw the number of papers I read that day as well as the day before, and I am lagging behind. My God, I'm reading so many goddamn papers that look the same and have the same fucking chicken-scratch writing that I can't help but space out. I'm trying my best, but I lose my train of thought and then I have to go back and look through them again for mistakes. Yes, I think I could have ticked up my production a bit. But that's only so I look good compared to everybody else in the room -- although, again, maybe we needed to get to work so we could done by today (Friday), which would be worse than getting done on Monday. (My cumulative number puts me firmly in the middle; without that I think I would be in serious trouble with the company.) Now that we could get done by lunchtime today (Friday), maybe it would be a good idea to, you know, pace ourselves a bit? And maybe get that overtime bonus I think we all could use? And maybe make me look good by comparison? Maybe?
Probably not. Fuck, we'll get done by 10:30 tomorrow.
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