Rax E. Dillon ([personal profile] rax) wrote2009-09-23 12:28 pm

Working From Home: Pros, Cons

Lately, due to a series of minor maladies and injuries not healing in the ways they should, I've been spending a lot of time working from home. It's actually gone very well; I think I get more done. While the repertoire of things I can do that are not my job is larger, my good ol' Puritan Work Ethic kicks in much harder when I'm not already at the office for some reason, and the "in by 9 out by 5" that I try to stick to is totally out the window. So if I find myself spending twenty minutes reading the news at the office, I say "Well, I was at the office," and whatever. But at home --- where I probably started working at like 8 anyway --- I say "Oh well I spent that time not working so clearly I need to do something extra" and at 6:30 PM I'm still logged in and working on documentation. I suspect my boss has figured this out, and this is part of why he is not stopping me from working from home so much. :) (In addition, much of my work can be done over the phone, since most of the people I work closely with are in DC or Houston anyway.)

In some ways this is great for my sanity, too; I can spend my obligatory staring-into-space time doing laundry or hanging art on the walls in the office finally or talking to the cats, who are much cuddlier than my coworkers. (As it should be.) My favorite perk is that I get to make my own hot lunch every day --- it's cheaper than going out with coworkers, it's less time-consuming, and it's at least a little bit better for me. However, having worked from home three or four days a week for the better part of a month now, I have started to notice longer-term problems. Specifically, as I was making my lunch today, I realized I was talking to the lunch. Specifically, I said: "Join me, smoked red chipotle pepper! Let us usher in a new era of burning flavor across the earth! Muahahahaha!" as I added flavor to the pasta sauce.

[livejournal.com profile] bossgoji , I blame you for this.

[identity profile] bossgoji.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 05:37 pm (UTC)(link)
I take full responsibility for the injection of awesome into your daily routine. With our BLAZING CHIPOTLE JUSTICE we shall strike out into a new era of PEPPER-BASED FREEDOM!

[identity profile] rax.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 05:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you, Bea. :)

[identity profile] bossgoji.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 05:59 pm (UTC)(link)
Just doing my duty as the designated anime character. ^____^

[identity profile] athereal.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 06:22 pm (UTC)(link)
Rachel, I hate to break it to you... but you've talked to your food well before this. I distinctly remember similar exchanges involving Sriracha sauce!

[identity profile] mmsword.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 06:45 pm (UTC)(link)
Sriracha is a special class of food and is demonstratively sentient in certain laboratory conditions.

[identity profile] krinndnz.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 10:35 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm pretty sure singing in the kitchen makes things tastier.

[identity profile] bossgoji.livejournal.com 2009-09-23 10:49 pm (UTC)(link)
The tiger speaks truth. For example, when I sing "Car Wash," everything tastes like soap.

[identity profile] gaudior.livejournal.com 2009-09-24 12:34 am (UTC)(link)
"Join me, smoked red chipotle pepper! Let us usher in a new era of burning flavor across the earth! Muahahahaha!"

I love you very, very much.

That is all.

[identity profile] lhexa.livejournal.com 2009-09-24 03:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Talking to your lunch is a problem? :)

Also, cherish being able to work at home consistently, particularly if you continue to do so after healing... plenty of my friends would envy that life.

[identity profile] bookofjude.livejournal.com 2009-09-28 08:51 am (UTC)(link)
Talking to your lunch is okay. When your lunch responds with, "No, please don't eat me!" however... :)