The Shitstorm Cometh

“When the Going Gets Weird, the Weird Turn Pro” – Hunter S. Thompson

If the last 48 hours are any indication of how weird this week is going to be, then boys and girls, I am in for a world of shit.

When I left for work Monday morning, I knew for a fact that it was going to be a busy day. Lots of little projects on my plate, and the day didn’t disappoint. I also knew that I would be coming in later that night to do some work I had scheduled about a week in advance. In the Communications Bidness, we have what are known as “maintenance hours” when we are actually authorized to do preventive maintenance and network changes that would normally affect a lot of customers.

Knowing that I was going back to work a mere 5 hours after I left, I tried to get some rest when I got home. Rest wouldn’t come for some reason, and I ended up watching TV and eating junk food until it was time to go back to work. The work I had scheduled was routine, firmware upgrades on some of the equipment scattered throughout our various communications sites. At first, it started off routine, easy, predictable. Around 1:30 AM, I was thrown a serious curve, and had to go out to one of our relay sites to do some hands on work. There’s nothing like crawling around atop a 14 story building at 2 AM in the rain to put a damper on a guy’s mood. I finished that little piece of work with no problem and went back to my office to continue with the project.

Around 5 AM, another snag with some equipment located a good distance from my office. It was working, but it wasn’t working the way it should. Since everything else was done, I packed my stuff and headed down to the site in question. This time, I’m standing around in kind of a lonely place, opening up an equipment cabinet and getting my laptop out and ready to do some troubleshooting. Naturally, it starts to rain again, and now I’m tired, wet, and a little pissed off. I had also slipped on some wet grass and landed on my ass. Now add muddy to the equation. After an hour, I realize that I can’t fix it before everything has to be buttoned up and back on the air, so I pack my shit and head home, stopping by McDonalds to grab one of their famous greasy $1 breakfast sammiches. Inhale the greasy goodness, a quick shower and in bed. The plan is to grab 4 or 5 hours of sleep, then back to the office. More shit that has to be dealt with, in an attempt to keep a certain Oriental gentleman from crying like a 4 year old girl with a skinned knee.

At 8:30, as I am just getting to sleep, the phone rings. Someone asking me a routine question that could have waited 5 hours. Two minutes later, another phone call, same person, another question. Five minutes later, another asshole, another question. I finally get to sleep, but wake up at 10:30. Grab something to drink, throw some clothes on, and back to work.

A couple of hours later, the wife calls me from the Philippines. There is a problem with the insurance company and the surgery that she is supposed to have this week. Now the insurance company is telling us, because of the nature of the surgery, they won’t cover it, and we have to find a way to shit $5K to pay for it. Money that we really, really don’t have. I send emails and make phone calls, and the results are still the same. The Gorgeous One’s doctor has already talked to the insurance assholes, and they are standing firm. I feel like a real dirtbag asshole that I don’t have the cash or credit to pay for the surgery, which my wife needs. While it’s not life threatening, she needs the surgery to improve her quality of life. I can’t shake the feeling that I am letting her down and disappointing the woman I love so very much.

A couple more phone calls with the wife, and she starts discussing options. She plans on visiting a doctor at a hospital closer to her village to see if she can have the same surgery done there at a less expensive hospital. Same level of medical care, less cost. My darling wife is noticeably tired, has a headache, and is very frustrated. In the last 24 hours, she also had to take her sister to the emergency room, and spent the night with her in the hospital.

As I sit here in my living room in front of this keyboard, I just have to wonder, what the hell is next? What part of life is going to throw us another curve this week? What karmatic event is going to shit all over me? Maybe I’m just overtired and a little frustrated. Maybe I should just have a couple of beers and take my ass to bed and see about getting 6 or 7 hours of sleep.

Who knows, maybe it will all look a little brighter tomorrow morning. I have some serious doubts about that, but who knows?