Best and Worst

It was the best of times…it was the worst of times.
Of days that is.

Today started out rough. I thought I was going to lose 2 workers. Then just as we were getting things organized and started for the day, I was summoned to the far end of the plant where one of my workers was mixing the solution we use to treat our parts. Only he was using floor cleaning soap instead of a preservative. He’d been doing that for nearly a month. The guy who was supposed to show him what to do just told him to go do it and instead of asking more questions he just tried to figure it out on his own. I was mortified. I thought I was going to lose my job. I immediately wrote a corrective action procedure and will follow it up with training. I still get sick at my stomach thinking about it.

Then, if that wasn’t enough tension and stress, the rep from corporate offices, THE packaging specialist, came to spend the day. This was where the day turned surprisingly pleasant. I suggested to Ed that I take her for lunch. We went to the coolest restaurant in town. Cuisine. Fancy presentation. Amazing food. And someone else picked up the tab—doesn’t get much better than that!

But the food wasn’t the only cool part. I had been given the impression that this person was cold and aloof. We hit it off, shared really personal information, laughed and just plain got real. It was a tremendous lunch!

Then we went back to work and she gave me all kind of insight, pointers, and help. She listened to my questions and wrote down my concerns. I felt heard and helped—that was beyond priceless!

At the end of the day I attended a meeting. Again I felt heard and helped. It was valuable.

Then I went back to my office. I had so much to do. I could see at least an hour or two of work staring back at me. I turned off the light and went home. Nelson and I had Chinese. I went and did grocery shopping. We watched “Commander in Chief”—I’m liking it except for the million commercial interruptions. And now I’m going to bed. Tired but smiling. I’m actually looking forward to tomorrow. Maybe it’s because I haven’t stressed about it all evening.

It may have been a rough day, but it was a really good one too!