Absentee Blogger

Sorry, I've been a bad blogger. But I'm back now.

So a bunch has happened in the last month and a half! I got a job, moved into my small room in NYC, visited home for Easter, and decided to move again!

Let's go through those one at a time.

JOB
Can I just say, "yay!"? I can't tell you how good it feels to be working again. I'm learning all sorts of new things, getting paid more than I was in SF, AND I have less responsibility.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it in my one and only other entry, but I was really adamant about not going back into property management. I was going to be an event planner! Well, I'm over it for now.

At the end of February, I started working at a really high profile building kitty-corner to Central Park. I'm the senior Administrative Assistant, so for all you gals I worked with at CB, that means I'm a Property Administrator again. Except this time, I have an assistant! Who also happens to be a temp who thinks he's my boss.

Apparently, he's a little bitter because I'm the one filling the permanent role here, and he thought he would be awarded the position. Whatever, you snooze you lose, buddy.

There have, however, been some pretty funny interactions--I just wish the building managers had been listening to his rants.

The first time I realized D hated me was when I asked one of the managers here how to order cups for the kitchen (This admin thing is new to me!).

Apparently, D overheard this and took great offense to it. Because (now envision a very petite, gay, African-American twenty-something talking with his arms--not hands--arms) he monologues to me, "Adriana, I'm noticing a lack of communication here, a major concern of mine is that we don't communicate. You don't know what J (the other temp) and I have done for the last several months, you don't know ANYTHING! You really need to ask us when you have a question because we probably have the answer for you. You don't need to go ask the managers, just ask us. And just so you know, we ordered cups before you started working here."

During this whole exchange I stood there with a shit-eating grin on my face, stunned that he was saying this. So I said back to him, super-professionally, "D, I am trying to build relationships with my managers. I'm sorry if you feel that I'm not coming to you with enough questions, but I don't want to burden with my lack of knowledge. And besides, I asked you earlier how to order the cups, and you told me you didn't know. It's also been two weeks since I started working here, and we haven't recieved that cup order that you made before my time. Do you think maybe it was lost? Oh, and I'll be sure to come to you with ALL of my questions from now on."

He gave me the cold shoulder for the rest of the afternoon, and finally I asked him, "D, Did I do something to you?"

In return I got another monologue, this time about how I am terse. Damn straigt I'm terse! Things were ok since then. A lot of uber-politeness between the two of us. Then there was this week!

Here's what happened on Wednesday: Derek, the guy from the mailroom upstairs, comes into the office and hands D two interoffice envelopes. D immediately shoots back at Derek, super sarcastically, "Now Derek, you know darn well I'm not the only Administrative Assistant here! Walk these over there!"

My big comeback is, "That's Tenant Administrator to you! Ha Ha Ha"

So Derek gives me the two envelopes, we make introductions, Derek goes on his way. I take the two envelopes, and drop one on each manager's desk. When I come back out, D is laughing and looking at me (I swear I don't have a complex about this!). I'm like, "what?"

"Adriana, you are Something Else, Hahahaha!" he says.

I replied, "I'd rather be 'Something Else' than 'More of the Same'. What did I do this time?"

"I can't believe you just put those envelopes on Paul and Jean's desks!"

"What? That's who they were addressed to."

"Haha. No, no, no, we're supposed to open the envelopes for the managers!"

"Well, we're all big kids here, they can open their own. I have other stuff to do."

"Ha ha ha. Something Else."

5 mins later

"You know, Adriana, we may all be big kids around here, but there ARE procedures that you need to follow."

WHAT? WHAT? DID THAT REALLY JUST COME OUT OF HIS MOUTH? Oh. My. God. You uneducated little shit. This is war now. I'm the boss.

So I did what all warriors do. I tattled on him to my boss! Ha ha. Guess what?! He's out. Per my command! It turns out all I had to do was mention this to a manager, and we're done with him! Justice is served. However, he's still an uneducated, passive-agressive little temp, and I have to put up with him until (if) we find a permanent person. Yay!

I'm sure I'll have lots more good work stories, but for now, that's it. I'll tell you about my current home next time.