I have a love/hate relationship with Tuesdays. Most people dread Mondays, I love Mondays. Tuesdays are not always so loved. Sometimes I think that Tuesday’s purpose is to challenge my affection for Mondays, which signal the return of the work week.
I write code and build reports for traders (commodity and spec traders) to compile information together in a automated, repeatable fashion. Unless something goes awry with one of our IT systems, I spend most of my Monday in project meetings and at my desk doing what I love – writing my code. My users are typically extremely busy with their own job responsibilities on Monday, which frees me up.
It is as if Tuesday, is unofficial “check in with your IT project” day, and by about 8 AM every Tuesday I am swamped by trader inquiries. This is further complicated by the fact that I can’t stay late at work on Tuesday, so I really feel the pressure to get a lot of things done in a short time frame.
The upside of Tuesday is that the more the traders are involved with their projects, the more effective the results, and the big upside is going home to Brainy Bird and Little Chirp.
Today, I tackled Tuesday without feeling stressed. Brainy Bird did not have any homework because they are doing their standardized state testing this week. Normally, the rule is no video games at all on school days. Together the birds and I mixed up a pot of beef tips, mushrooms and gravy, and we left it to cook while we went upstairs for some special video game time.
Brainy Bird is tackling the original Nintendo Legend of Zelda game. I beat the game when I was a kid without any cheat books, and Brainy Bird is determined to do the same. Brainy Bird and I are really different people. To be honest, I do not see many of my traits in him. Little Chirp on the other hand reminds me totally of me. Watching Brainy Bird problem solve his way through Zelda tonight was interesting. His thought process is similar to my own. He wants to gather up all of the items that help you win the game first before tackling the monsters in the dungeons. He has each mission mapped out in his head, and he knows when he is headed to get what next. I went about it the same way, and it is how I go about the life.
Winding down at the end of today, I find myself thinking about my five year plan. I know where I want to be career wise in five years, and I have a plan for getting there. The key to my plan is working hard and taking on extra projects in exchange for the opportunity to learn, sort of like gathering up items to make your player stronger in the Legend of Zelda. I am working my tail off, but I am really enjoying work right now. I have a 10 year savings plan that will be me in a sound spot to retire early. I have a two year plan that I hope will get me to the finish line of the Boston Marathon. I have a six month plan for helping Brainy Bird train for his triathlon, and I have a 1 year plan for helping Little Chirp learn to read. He thrives on this process and the special attention. Every day, I take steps forward in all of my plans.
I should just log out now, before the questions comes into my heart – So, what is the plan on a personal front? Well, I don’t know. You can put a two year plan together to complete the Boston Marathon, and you can train every day, and you can make it happen. You can’t make love happen. You can’t decide that you want to be married in five years. I feel like all our lives are a book, and I wish that I could peek at the chapters ahead in my own book. Honestly, I would like some sort of indication that Mr. Right is going to come into my life.
In the meantime, I am really focused on the plans that I do have control over, and I am enjoying my life everyday.