Suddenly it Feels Like Winter is Upon Us

We were both up early, I waved Sam goodbye.

I found the statements for the accountant, well, some of them. He called me a week ago. Sadly, not all of them. That will have to do for now. How can I be that disorganised?

I must remember to look for the rest of them.

I wrote my journal quickly, sitting at my desk in my room. Notes, so I wouldn’t forget. If I have a framework, I can come back and fill out the details at a later date.

This was the week when Smoking Brenda and I were going to get everything done up front, all today, so we could spend the rest of the week completing the month end process, which will be good, good to see it in action.

I think it is the first time that Awful Eve has left smoking Brenda in charge, ever. It is certainly the first time she has rolled over the month. She hasn’t been permanent herself for very long. This is her first test, for a boss she doesn’t particularly like. And Brenda has done it all before, but not for Dexterity.

I got to work at 8.30.

“Good morning.”

She was in the office in black chiffon. She wears these kind of wrap around blouses. Chiffon top, black trousers. She’s got that post menopausal figures of a Doctor Seuss creature. “We’ve got a problem,” said Smoking Brenda tight lipped. Grimace.

I had been using Smoking Brenda’s sign in and she’s been using Bitch Eve’s. She’s been there 3 months and went permanent three weeks ago, but no one managed to update her sign in to permanent, so it expired. So her temporary sign in expired. Eve was supposed to do something about it, but didn’t, so there you go.

It took until lunch time to reset.

“Do you eat a lot of Asian food?”

“Oh, yes, I guess.”

“I don’t like food like that, but I’m sure it (my area) is good for all the people who do,” said Smoking Brenda. “There is a Peeking Duck place there near you?”

“The Old Kingdom?”

“Maybe? I saw them all hanging there once and I was nearly sick.”

Smoking Brenda is a worrier.

“I’m getting really concerned.”

The IT team that fixes that is based in Singapore and it still wasn’t fixed at lunchtime.

“I’m beginning to panic,” said Smoking Brenda. “Let’s go and eat.” 

It was lasagne and salad for lunch.

She stressed out all morning, knee jerk reacting to getting work done. “Do this, do that. I’ll do this. You do that. Where are you up to? Have you finished yet?””

I really was expected to know it all after one explanation. She laid the stress on on top of that, ramping up the pressure.

We stayed until 6pm. Smoking Brenda got it approved. Yay! Overtime.

It was already getting dark out side, when I picked up my bag and looked out the window as I left the place.

It was already getting dark out side as I left the office today. I could already feel that daylight savings had finished, it was clear. Suddenly, it felt like winter is upon us, for the first time, as I walked out to the car. The setting day was quite beautiful across the empty paddocks. Majestic, free, alive.

I was leaving late, end of month, Smoking Brenda had been in a panic. Admittedly, her panics are laid back and hardly of the monster variety. In fact, if she'd just stopped telling me, I wouldn't have even noticed. The sun had set and the light was draining from the day. That green/black of dust had descended, the light was shadowy.

I turned my head lights on driving home. The snaking road was quite free of cars, that is one advantage to working late, in the burbs. I quite like Smoking Brenda. She's normal, which is, really, my only requirement.

I ate prawn and asparagus risotto. I forgot to take it for lunch. Well, I didn’t exactly forget it, as I can get lunch from the work canteen subsidised and cheap, so I kept it for dinner, risking coming up against whatever dinner plans Shane might have.

Shane wanted to talk about the handsome Tulli. A Sydney prostitute, on a weekend off in Melbourne, so it would seem. He had a professional job too, lawyer, academic, something.

“My head is spinning, dohl.”

“I’m not surprised.

“A Sydney top.” Out of it laugh, laugh, laugh. “So now a professional things I’m shit hot.” Big eyes. Knowing laugh.

Big eyes back.

Oh really.

Shane and I smoked pot all night.