Twelve days and counting...

I like my job.  I like that I have a job.  It’s not the "world's best job" but it will do nicely for now.  My coworkers are nice people (mostly) and I feel I’m learning a thing or two.  For the first time in my life I had someone else do my taxes for me (for free!!!!) and yesterday’s 15-minute chair massage from the company-paid massage therapist made my workday that much better.  After hearing about how awful my predecessor was during previous tax seasons I have promised myself to be patient and courteous to my coworkers during this stressful time.  However, as our deadline draws closer and my work load increases I’ve found myself getting annoyed at some of the small things I’m normally able to ignore.  I’m hoping if I vent them here then I can remain calm at work until after our April 15th deadline.    

Tax Season Pet Peeves:

• People who put the full body of their emails in the Subject line and leave the email blank.
• People who remove staples from documents and leave them lying on the table, especially the tables with garbage cans directly underneath them.  Do you know what it feels like to have a loose staple get jammed under your fingernail?  I do.
• Clients who lean over my desk to stare at my computer monitor.
• Having to fake laugh every time I offer a client a beverage and having them reply, “How about a gin and tonic?  AHH HA HA HAAAAA!”  This happens way more often than it should.
• People who pile their dishes in the breakroom sink instead of washing them.
• People who loudly agree everyone should do their own dishes and then secretly pile their dirty dishes in the sink. 
• The guy who comes behind my desk, says “Mind if I steal ____?” and then grabs whatever it is he wants.  First, to “steal” something from me means you’re taking it against my will so yes, I do mind.  Second, why can’t you just keep a stash of things in your office like everyone else does?  Third, if you’re finished using a folder, don’t give it back to me all beat up and dirty.  Keep it for the next time you want to steal it from me.
• The smoker clients who reek while waiting for their appointments and then leave their stench behind as they walk down the hall.
• My coworker’s sickeningly sweet perfume that makes me gag.  It's like snorting cake.  I think she reapplies throughout the day (since the stink never goes away) so someday maybe I can take the bottle from her purse or desk while she’s away.
• Not being able to yell back at that one guy who yelled at me because I couldn’t tell him why his son was meeting with a different accountant than the one he sees. 
• Telling clients that the accountant they’re trying to reach is on the other line, only to have them ask, “Can you tell me when he/she will be finished?” 
• Dealing with that other guy who calls and asks for his accountant by some nickname I’ve never heard and then making fun of me because I’m new.
• The last and greatest pet peeve: stupid, inefficient tasks.  For example: Jane (not her real name) wants a letter from 2008 updated to 2009.  How would you normally go about this?  You would find the document on the server, change the date, hit Save and print it out.  How does she do this?  She finds the letter on the server, prints it out, crosses out the “8” in “2008”, writes in a “9”, walks down the hall and puts it in my in-box.  I then take the letter, find the original on the server, change the date, print it out and then take it back to Jane.  I hate this.  I loathe this.  It makes my eyes burn.  It is completely illogical.  I can’t even understand how this was originally thought out.  Does she have a Save button phobia?  Is she trying to teach me a lesson?  Perhaps it’s a character building exercise?  Yes, I understand that some of my coworkers are a bit old-fashioned and have trouble with some of the newer technology, but dude.  This is so bad.

I know this is a pretty gripe-y list but there are lots of things to counteract all the bad.  My girl Cleone is always there to cover for me when I need to move on to other tasks and she’s more than happy to share her own (very similar) pet peeves with me.  My boss is AWESOME and she has the best dogs ever.  I’m constantly told how much better things are with me here (yeah, my predecessor was that bad).  I even feel better now that I’ve vented.  Just don’t email me without putting your message in the proper text box the next couple of weeks.  I will cut you.