all i really want is a wavelength

ok so today is a weird day. by weird i dont mean that it was hot as hell all day and is now pouring like there is no tommorow. no, not that kind of weird.

so here is what happened at work today (names and all have been changed. this is however a true, albeit slightly boring, but true story)

the assistant to head boss comes up to me and says head boss wants to see me.

now the only reason why the head boss wants to see anyone is that if they are either a director and above (which i am not) or they want to fire them.

so since im pretty shitty at hiding emotion when im shocked, i went white or like in semi cardiac arrest mode. so the assistant is like to me relax its good news oh and yea you better go now and stop eating your food.... but then im thinking really how would she know.....but apparently she does know.

so the good news is that i got a raise of .....wait for it.. 5%.

so for the split second before i sat down in front of the head boss, i was thinking shit maybe they are actually giving me a promotion. woohoo. for someone who has never ever gotten a promotion (ok granted i havent been working for long - but whatever the point is i haven't ever so yes it is a big deal for me).

so anyway that never happened, instead i got a whole spiel on how they are trying to make everything on par with other colleagues in the bank (what the hell, have i been underpaid the whole time!), and oh how well i am doing (which i thought she said very sweetly so i think i believe it - but then she really is a sweet person so maybe thats just part of their drill)

so anyway thats the obama phase of the news. now the post obama phase. its actually not retroactive. so technically its applied to half a year. so its 2.5% technically. and considering the amount of tax i pay to live in this beloved city (50% goes to the bottomless vortex of tax money). so we are looking at 1.25%. 0.25% for medical insurance, dental etc. leaving me with a grand total of 1%.

and that is the reality of it. and that is precisely how the whole financial industry survives. on the notion of good tidings.

but not to be ungrateful, an increase is still an increase and with the recession and all - so thank you god. but, i really hope this isnt my consolation prize for not being promoted at the end of the year.


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so in other weird news another MD comes up to me (ok some background this MD never talks to me, i mean we occasionally will have the wierd awkward conversations while waiting for the elevator, oh yea and he once asked me where did i get my baskin robbins icecream from). and honestly im a little scared of him, and usually when he is sitting through my meetings i am messing up big time (nothing to do with him just in general). either i forget to number my pages in gigantic research document or i stutter (sharukh khan style) [ ok gross exaggeration ] or i just blank out.

anyway so he goes to me you have a minute to talk. in my head i am like what IS happening today, why does everyone want to talk to me? so anyway, i go in and he is like you are a mathematician right? at that moment im like err.. thinking is this a trick question...so he moves ahead and asks me a pretty basic question. and im like err... so is this a new performance measurement process testing people on the basics or did he really not know this. both cases result in the same outcome. weirdness. so anyway i think i explained it well, but who knows.