The annual performance review with the boss.

Every year I sweat it. Every year I come out embarrassed by his praise.

You know, either he's trying hard to encourage me or... some other folks don't work too hard.

But as I mentioned at the start, it's a good thing they don't have an evaluation category called "Takes care of truck".

This year I'd be in trouble.

Then I spent a half-hour tirading (my new verb, meaning to "be on a tirade") about the new software program, which the programmer has us all spending hours and hours changing dates from "09-03-89" (that's 9th of March 1989) to 03/09/89. Thousands and thousands of records. For each of us. Which, because of the security protocols they have on the existing software, has to be done one entry at a time since we do not have access to the raw data tables.

Worst of it? With data that is collected over a period of time, like from 27 Aug - 6 Sep, they insist the database can now only list the month and year.

So we have to truncate and abridge (otherwise known as "lie") to say just "August" or "September".

Insanely stupid. As I explained to the boss, if the new system requires you to dump 5-10 percent of the data, it's a bad system.

Don't use it.

And yes, I already knew he was one of the three people who set this new system up.

It's still stupid. And those are the words I used.

Maybe he'll forget by the time we do next year's review.

Before he headed out of town, I convinced the boss to join me down at the Depot.

The fawns are in!