What made you happy today?

[stui magpie]

Happy Birthday Bro.

[stui magpie]

This sort of fits in this thread and the pisses me off thread, but I'll put it here.

Long day today being on site for the big move.

Everything going well at first, out there by 8am, all the plastic packing crates out by 9:30 then the lift shit itself.

Now this move was a special, moving two groups simultaneously. swapping areas. Two loads of trucks and removalists, each start on one site, load up, go to the other site and unload. So it wasn't just moving us out to our new place, it was moving the people out of where we're going into the place we were vacating. And the lift shit itself.

So about 10, I went to my new site with the truck full of crates behind me and left the manager of the group moving into my old site to take care of things there.

Tech called, lift motor farked, needs a part, might be able to get it Monday. Frikken ripper. Murphy you bastard.

So I supervise the unloading of all the crates, then go about pulling off all the desktop shelf unit in one department and stacking them down the back. That worked up a sweat and gave the back a work out, some of those things are heavy.

Then I go to set up my laptop. Got connectivity, tick. Can access all the key systems the staff will need on Monday, Tick. Beauty.

Then the first IT guy arrives bout midday, expecting to see all the computer gear ready to set up.

The next 4 hours go slow, the IT guy uses my laptop to start configuring the network for the new phones, making sure the printers will connect etc.

Finally about 4pm, the truck arrives with the computers. Poor bastards had spent the afternoon running up and down the stairs at my old site, manually carrying down all of our stuff and carrying up all the stuff for the people moving in and setting that up before they could come back to us.

But once they got there, shit they were quick. 15 minutes and all unloaded and whacked on desks. I gave the IT guys a hand setting up the computers for a bit (I got 6 done) and pulled the pin a bit after 5. They'll be there til 8 tonight and back tomorrow to finish and test.

Never mind, it's done. Didn't go smoothly, but it worked and I'm pretty sure come Monday one thing I won't get nagged about is computer and printer access.

Home by six, peel off the clothes and get a drink (tequila and lime juice on ice with a beer chaser) and the phone rings. The bloke who was in charge of the removalist teams just wanted some feedback on how I thought his guys worked, to which I said IMO really well. No stuffing around, they were quick and efficient. Then he gave me some feedback from his blokes.

Apparently they really appreciated having a manager like me on site. Seems like (and I'm paraphrasing here) they aren't accustomed to having site managers being able to give clear directions and talk to them like actual people, nor to having managers actually getting physical and helping them out when required.

So that little bit at the end is what tipped me from being pissed off to happy.

[Mugwump]

^ good stuff, Stui.

[pietillidie]

Watching Six Nations rugby at a Dublin pub. Great atmosphere.

[stui magpie]

Unwinding my head, sitting in the shade in the front yard, glass of tequila lime and soda and a smoke, reading some books on the Kobo.

Batteries are recharged enough to at least stand the nagging I'm going to cop tomorrow.

[Morrigu]

Holiday planned yay!

Auckland pick up a camper van for about 8 days or so mainly to see the volcanoes, then Tonga to see the humpback whales for 10 days or so and then a little chill time 3 days should do it at a child free resort in Fiji on the way home - Likuliku Lagoon Resort is winning so far looks fantastic

[ronrat]

[Morrigu]

[think positive]

[Morrigu]

[stui magpie]

^

I went to Tonga when i was 12. Went in a convoy of army trucks from the port to a beach where they did a massive feast and I scored a touch of food poisoning. (I've got good guts, couple of upchucks and a good nights sleep I was fine)

My main memories was the beach was basically pulverised coral that wasn't fine enough to be sand so you couldn't go barefoot with messing up your feet, and the the local in the truck with us was utterly fascinated with my mop of really light blonde hair. Oh to have been a few years older.

Have fun.

[Morrigu]

^

I have to try and learn to snorkel - I've tried and tried but every time I put the thing ( no rude comparisons now!!) in my mouth I gag cause it reminds me of intubating people in ICU and I splutter and flap around like the whales I want to see - maybe they will adopt me!!

Anyone know anywhere that is good to learn by chance?

[ronrat]

[stui magpie]

Not being silly, you could buy one and practice at the local pool. First time I tried snorkelling on the great barrier reef I had a mild panic attack at first and was breathing too heavy but once I focused and slowed my breathing, it was really cool. That water is really buoyant, once you get the hang of breathing you just lie face down and slowly kick your legs.

Make sure you either wear a full lycra suit (very unflattering I know) or douse yourself in sunblock on your back and back of legs or you'll get crisped in 30 minutes flat. I reckon the suit is best.

[Morrigu]