I need to vent . . .

You know it's time to take a break from work when you feel like choking every person that comes in the office.

That's how I have felt for the last 2 days. Let me explain.

Monday morning, my two social workers leave to go to a conference in Cape Cod. Flights, shuttle, hotel, rental car - all set up. I'm thinking they're going to have a wonderful time and I won't hear a word from them. They got on the 6 a.m. Groome shuttle to Hartsfield.

Then I get a call around 8 am. One of them has left their ID in their car at Groome in Macon. Somehow though, Delta managed to let them go through without it. But I know from experience that flying back from Boston is a different story. They don't mess around at Logan. No ID, no flight. So I have to come up with a way to get the employee's key so I can go to his car, get his ID and overnight it to him. After much hassle, someone is finally located with a key to his car. I think this is the end to this debacle.

Oh, but it's not. I leave work around 11:45 am to head to Groome to retrieve the missing ID. This trip should take 10-15 minutes each way. It takes almost an hour. Work is being done on Riverside Drive, so it's a one lane road. So I sit on Riverside for 20 minutes because we have to wait for the other lane to pass through. Why are they doing this at lunchtime on a work day in an area with a lot of traffic? Ahhh, the stupidity of the South.

I finally get to Groome, locate the ID and head back to the office. I decide to take a different route (no way was I sitting in traffic again). Drive back is ok and I pick up some lunch along the way. However I now have the beginnings of a migraine due to aggravation and not eating (low blood sugar). I pop 4 Advil, eat and start to feel better. The ID is on its way to Cape Cod, all should be good now, right?

Wrong. Social workers land and go to get their rental car. The car was paid for as indicated on the reservation, so I'm thinking they should be able to get it and go. Nope. Turns out there is a $200 deposit needed. They call me in desperation. Stupid employee says it's standard procedure, all companies do it. I told her that if it was standard, why is it not listed on the reservation or anywhere on their website? She doesn't care, just wants the money. So I tell her to put it on our business credit card, but she can't do it over the phone. Nor is she willing to fax me a credit card authorization or anything. Social worker gives them her debit card as a last resort. They get the car and off they go. My day finally comes to an end, thank god.

What I don't know is that the bullshit is going to continue into today. A vendor shows up unexpectedly and begins work that was supposed to be completed in March. They didn't finish it because a part was missing. So they show up today, without notice, and turn off the A/C to finish the job. Yay, how lovely. Thank god I have a separate unit in my office, but that means we are deluged with calls about why residents have no A/C.

Then a resident showed up to complain about his parking buddy. How she was rude to him, wouldn't give him enough space to park, etc. What am I running, a daycare??? Grow up. Treat each other with a little respect, act like adults and you wouldn't have these problems. All the residents in the back parking garage are now getting a letter which states that if they want their own space, they can park in the Wachovia garage a block away. Sometimes you have to pay a price for convenience.

Then another resident comes in the office and begins whining about why she has to come in for her recert. Talia patiently explains it's time for her annual recert. The resident continues to complain about how she just did it, she doesn't have time, blah blah blah. Yeah, you just did an interim, but now you have to do your annual. HUD rules, not mine.

I finally got sick of the whining and told her that she didn't have to do anything, she could pay market rent. She said we'd only raise her rent if she came to the appointment. She then said to Talia that we get off on doing stuff like this. Well, that was it. I told her she would not be disrespectful to my staff and that the rules were not ours, but HUD's. I also said all the residents had a choice to not do their recert, but their rent would go to the market rates. She stomped out of the office. Talia and I were both livid. Luckily it was 2 p.m. and we could close the office for weekly filing and paperwork.

So now I am taking Friday off as a mental health day. If I don't, it won't be long before I am qualified to live here instead of work here.