My Flash Drive Tragedy

A couple of years ago, Melanie saw me working on the schedule and, in her cheery way of brightening my life, said, "I can help you with that, you know! My mind is quite mathmatical and just works that way!"

It kind of reminded me of when I was a kid and I said to my mom, "I WOULD LOVE TO MAKE MY LUNCH!" And she said that would be great! She said I'd be very good at it! Playing on my need for control she went on to say how it would be fun to be able to choose what the kids got in their lunches. And then I, the eldest, was stuck for the next 7 years as the lunch maker for me and my 4 school aged siblings. What kind of a dirty trick is that?!

Or the day I announced, "I'm becoming a vegetarian! I think it's a sin to eat animals." To which she calmly replied, "Oh, that's too bad. We're having fried chicken today." Oh, that was sneaky. My mom made a mean fried chicken.

So, Melanie, if you are reading this, let me apologize in advance...

Anyway, since Mel started working on the schedule, it's been a nice relief not to worry about filling shifts and figuring out the puzzle. However, just before Mel went on her break, she warned me that the scheduling had become much more complicated since the merger. Add several staff, ministries, and buildings... It's bound to happen!

I spent probably a day getting a handle on the schedule and working it out for the summer. Summer used to be a slow time around here, but now it's a time for being short-staffed due to vacation. And the scheduler feels the pain!

(It's okay. She's taking some time off right now. Shh.)

I managed to develop a master schedule and many weeks worth of schedules. Up until next week. I went to begin the fall scheduling program and lo and behold, my flash drive wouldn't work. I tried it again and again on different computers with the same result. I called Office Joe at work in a panic.

He was so sweet. He was super busy doing some highly technical testing, working daily overtime, with the flu! Yet he came by during his lunchtime. He worked his magic and recovered quite a bit. But NOT the weeks of scheduling. And NOT the list of upcoming holidays and time off needed by various staff and volunteers. And NOT my beautifully crafted master schedule. How sad.

So, yesterday afternoon I took the hard copy Masters and set myself to work again. I've got the initial draft here, then I need to tweak weekly copies for people's days off. That's this morning's project.

Joe and others have told me it's highly unusual (more like unheard of!) for a flash drive to go berserk. Lucky me. I'm special.

Look at the bright side. I am truly a sandwich artist. Subway can't hold a candle to me!