Week 9- Mastiffs, Scammers, and Sultans of Syntax

This has been a good week. I've been really exhausted, so I'm going to try going to bed a half hour earlier each night to see if that will help. Other than that, everything is going great. Monday and Tuesday are always chaotic because the directors have their big meeting on Tuesday afternoon, so people want everything processed in time to make it into the meeting. I also make the assignments and set up the agenda for the meeting. Thankfully I don't actually have to attend the meeting, which goes over three hours.

Desk of the Week: Front Reception Desk (meaning lots of traffic and questions that I don't know the answer to). Why is it my job to know about the fourth floor bathroom having a leak? I'm a writer, not a magician.

Tidbits from this week:

• I didn't have to deliver any mail this week!
• I edited a document that details how we report our work. I have no excuse for not following the rules now. Unfortunately. I don't get paid, so you would think it wouldn't matter if I didn't log my hours, but I guess they use it for research purposes.
• I created a letter telling managers what to do with the computer equipment when an employee leaves. I got to slap them on the hand a bit because people keep trying to hold on to equipment for other employees. It was kind of nice to write something that was nice and clear and says "Do not...! This includes...!" Nice and simple. Nobody can tell me they didn't understand THAT.
• Carter and I saw this huge mastiff across the street (with its humans) and decided we needed to go pet him. This dog probably weighed fifty pounds more than me. He was also adorable. Once he realized we were there to pet him he sat right down (on Carter's foot). His ears were huge and super soft, like fuzzy elephant ears. He was also very slobbery. We got a lot of love. He tried to kiss Carter on the nose, but Carter declined that offer.
• This is what a Mastiff looks like:

• I actually got some writing done this week, which was really nice. Writing is the part of my mission that I find the most meaningful because I get to share the gospel and by writing I am providing something unique that I hope can help others.
• Someone's bishop shouted at me this week. Yep. You see, everyone who works for the Church has to be temple worthy. This includes people in the videos we make. So every time they want to interview someone they might have in a video, the HR assistant calls their bishop. Since I am in training, I got to make some phone calls. It's supposed to be really easy. Well. First phone call I make and the bishop decides I am a scammer. (What possible gain I would get, I have no clue). So this bishop starts tearing into me with righteous indignation because my "area code is wrong" and "he doesn't believe" me. I can't be "who [I] say [I] am" because "that question is totally inappropriate." When he finally listened to me I explained (for about the third time) that I could call back on an office phone which would have the correct area code. As it turns out, I am not a scammer (wow, really?), and the person was totally temple worthy, so I don't know what he was protecting. I'm sure he felt rather sheepish, but I was just downright mad (I kept my temper, thank you very much). He yelled at me...for being something I wasn't. I guess it just goes to show that nobody is perfect. I can laugh now, but seriously, I was so steamed that he would blatantly tell me that I was a liar. Me, a sister missionary doing her job! So for future reference, if you are going to chew out a scammer, make sure they actually ARE a scammer. That part is important.
• A new institute class is starting, so I am enjoying going to that as well. You just don't get that kind of spirit in CTR 7. I try to bring the spirit to primary, but it is hard to feel it myself when I am trying to teach while helping the kids behave.
• I interviewed two writers this week. One of them was super fun to talk to and I learned a lot from her. The other one seemed to think he had nothing interesting to say and so he didn't give me very much to work with. If there is one thing that I have learned from these interviews, however, is that everyone has something interesting about them and has something interesting to say. It's like the Doctor says, "900 years of time and space and I've never met anyone who wasn't important."
• I saw a guy standing in his cubicle on Monday and was distinctly reminded of a giraffe in a zoo. He was really tall so his head and shoulders came over the cubicle wall and he could see everything around him. I almost wanted to laugh. It's a good thing nobody in our family works in cubicles. That would be a lot of giraffes.
• I realized I never want to work in any kind of leadership or management position. I hate attending meetings and running errands. People come to me for all sorts of things, thinking I know the answer. I feel like I never actually get anything done. Also, the amount of silly paperwork is ridiculous. Thank goodness there is a lot less of that in teaching. 
• The sister I ate lunch with last week stopped by to say hi and told me something funny. Apparently someone who works in the translation department saw me delivering the mail and thought I was cute. So he told his sister who asked my friend if I was the dating kind of missionary (I'm not). But it made me feel good, especially since when I deliver the mail on that floor I'm usually very frustrated and tired. Also, I can just enjoy the compliment because I can't date so I don't have to worry about actually doing anything about it. No strings attached. =)
• I also attended two writers' meetings this week. I love writers' meetings. Our manager is hilarious for one thing. His e-mail lists his job title as "Sultan of Syntax." I think I will use that as his code name. It's a little like being at BYU again, with people who think a lot like me and enjoy a similar sense of humor (a rather verbose one). I also get to learn a lot from these other writers. I miss school and it is hard now that I know everyone is going back, but I love our community of practice meetings where I get to learn from the experts. This last week one of the writers gave a presentation on the conference she attended on spiritual/religious writing. She learned a ton and made us all want to go for ourselves. 

I think that is it for the week. I want you all to know that I love you. The gospel is true. The Lord loves each of you. Remember, he isn't bothered by our imperfections and failings, he takes us just the way we are. When Enoch and Moses told the Lord their faults, he didn't say "Then again, I'll ask that other guy." The Lord qualifies those whom he calls. He knows our weaknesses and will help us despite them.