This is a week where I am in the midst of changes. Not all I like. One or two are okay, but mostly I don’t like change. Still, we must accept that in life, change happens.
Except from a vending machine.
Life with the CPAP machine is settling in a routine. I complain about it in the evenings – you have to really. Just go google, “CPAP” mask to get the idea. It’s a bit like suiting up to fly a fighter jet, well without the fancy helmet or 100 million dollar airplane to fly around. I told a friend at church today, “If it wasn’t for the fact that it was working, I’d complain a lot more.”
So I don’t like having the mask and waking up in the middle of the night with an air tube wrapped around my head. However, the mornings are good and I like the fact that I now wake up feeling rested with more energy to take on the world. I haven’t taken on the world yet, but any day now, watch out world.
Another change is at work. Not a big massive change. Just a little annoying change. Remember the old saying from your childhood, “Just when you get your room the way you want it, mom makes you clean it up?” Okay, maybe that was just me. Anyway, my company has been expanding and finally outgrew the building, so this weekend all the stuff from my cube is in a moving van on the way to our new location.
This is typical in life here in Silicon Valley. If you’ve stayed in the same cube for more than a year, most of us get nervous and wonder if we’re about to be laid-off. The high-tech business is all about explosive growth and innovation. If you’re not innovating, you’re dying. If you’re innovating, and growing, you’ll need more office space.
That means that the company move is a good thing. Unless you’re aware of the quote, “Every silver lining has a cloud.” I think Eeyore was first credited with that saying. The move is good for me personally because the new office is about two miles closer to home and is adjacent to the creek trail so I’ll have some place nice to walk during lunch times (or when the boss pisses me off, again).
The real downside is that the nearest Starbucks is 1.5 miles away. At the old office Starbucks was just 800 feet away. Those figures are very precise. I used Google maps to measure the walking distance. Now, I don’t go to Starbucks more that once a week, but it’s the principle of the thing. It’s about loosing a privilege just because the company is growing.
And I checked, there isn’t a Starbucks delivery service in my area. If you’re thinking of starting one, put me down for one tall latte a week. I am sure that will impress your investors.
Tomorrow will be the first day at the new office and I have a set routine to go through with any move. It’s kind of sad that I move so often that I have a routine, but here’s what I expect tomorrow to look like:
1. My new key fob won’t let me into the building or parking garage.
2. The boxes I carefully packed will be delivered to the wrong cube, possibly a different building.
3. It will take me two hours to find where my monitors are.
4. The people at the help desk, will just give me new cables rather than trying to find the ones I packed.
5. The network connection in my cube won’t work until I complain to the VP of engineering.
6. The IT group will have changed my wifi password without telling me the new one.
7. My favorite English Breakfast tea won’t be in the kitchen, again.
8. The boss will again send an email to the catering company asking they stock my tea.
9. I won’t like my new cube furniture.
10. My new cube will be smaller.
11. The special ergonomic changes I need won’t be in place, even though the nice facilities lady made careful notes on what I need.
12. There will be a major problem with my production servers that will need to be fixed before I can setup my computers.
Other than my work life being in a bit of flux, life has been good and I am now some place between looking forward to and being in fear of, life’s next change.
Till next week,
Andrew
Andrew's View of the Week 
Smaller cubicle — I hate that. All of a sudden you don’t have room for anything you used to have less than an arm’s length away. Your writing space gets smaller because some of those items still need to be out on the desk; there’s no way of getting around it.
Glad you’re waking up refreshed now.
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The smaller cube isn’t fun. The way the business going it won’t be long before all we get is a big room with power outlets to reach our laptops. Why have desks, chairs, tables?
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Hope your move to the new office went well. And just think with all the money you’ll save from not going to Starbuck’s you’ll be able to buy more books from your Indie friends! 🙂 🙂
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So far the move has gone well. I’ll have a detailed update on Sunday.
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May your move go smoothly Andrew!
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You never know, it might.
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As somebody who has moved homes 8 times in the last 13 years and had multiple jobs, I feel your pain! Especially since I spent the previous 20 years in the same house working for the same company (although I was in several different roles and moved around in the building a bit) Although I resist it, I think change (like the office move your describe) is good, especially as we get older. It encourages new neurologic activity because we have to adapt to things that are different. Always good to get the little gray cells cranking… Medical changes are definitely a mixed-bag, but overall, it sounds like pro’s outweigh the con’s with the CPAP thing. I recently had to start sleeping on my back (something I NEVER did) due to an injury. I’m better now, but find myself choosing to sleep on my back now. Go figure…
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So far the CPAP is working. Like you say, it takes a bit of getting use to, but I think I’ve got it down now.
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Your post makes me start singing that old David Bowie song, “Ch, ch, ch, changes.” 😉 Hope the changes turn out to be better ones for you. My husband has used a CPAP for several years now. At first, he felt (and sounded) like Darth Vader and it took him quite awhile to get used to the mask and hose, but now we both get a good night’s rest (he was an extremely LOUD snorer before), so we’re grateful for that change.
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Yes, was humming that a bit.
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Perhaps the company is doing well enough to invest in a nice latte machine for the office? 😉 One can hope!
Happy to hear that you are sleeping better at night also. Makes a big difference in enjoying the days and keeping your sense of humour, which yours seems to be rested and ready to go!
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Looks like they did. As soon as the plumber fixes the water leak by the machine, we’ll get to try it out.
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Yay for you! I hope it exceeds, at least meets your expectations. If so, you could indulge in more than one a week. Things are looking up 🙂
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and they found my missing box already!!!
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Ah shucks, thought maybe you’d get a day or two redecorating or playing solitaire while they seeked it out for you! 😉
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You realize what your next post will be: An update on each checklist item, whether it was true or not. I’m waiting.
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that could be a very long post, but will have to wait until the moving guys find my box.
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I hope that you find a silver lining in that mushroom cloud today, Andrew.
Happy Monday,
Ω
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I am going to go in hopeful, but won’t be disappointed if the silver lining turns out to be a bit tarnished…
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Like a ring around a bathtub?
Ω
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exactly like.
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As has often been said, the only thing we can count on is change. Adapt and succeed.
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As I often tell my coworkers – change is constant.
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I’ve been through all that with the exception of the Starbucks which wouldn’t bother me anyway. I just sat back and said “Get it working and I’ll work” and my boss had it working within half an hour.
Maybe you have enough staff to get Starbucks to allow a franchise in the building?
Hugs
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One time, a company move went very wrong and most of the gear for my lab went missing. The boss came by worried I’d be upset. My response was, “I get paid by the hour. I can work or I can sit here till I have the equipment to work. Don’t matter to me.” About 30 minutes later the moving crew magically found all my stuff.
and they’ve hired a new catering company who promises they’ll be able to make a latte for me. We’ll see.
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As someone who is up several times a night, I’d have a heck of a problem with that CPAP. But I’m glad it’s working for you and you are resting better. And having the office 2 miles closer to home sounds pretty nice, even though I consider moving to be one of life’s most unpleasant, exhausting, frustrating activities.
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The CPAP can a problem for some folks. Getting mask off and on isn’t that difficult, but sleeping with it can be a pain at times. I am hoping the commute time will be shorter.
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Just a change in someone’s pillow can be difficult to adjust to so I can only imagine how difficult a CPAP machine is! But as you say, the rested feeling in the morning is nice. Hopefully you’ll adjust soon and won’t notice it so much.
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The mask is annoying, but the effect makes it worth the effort. From what I’ve read about it, patient compliance is the number one problem. Some folks never really adjust.
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Well, I sure hope that isn’t the case for you.
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so far I seem to be adjusting.
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I’m glad you are waking up more energetic :D. I feel your pain about the change in venue, I like my things in their proper place, change is hard and tiring at times. I hope it goes as smoothly as possible. 🙂
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Hopefully it won’t be as bad as last time.
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I’ll keep my fingers crossed 🙂
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🙂
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