Analogies

I've always been a big fan of analogies. Sometimes I spend more time working out analogies than the actual problems they represent. Here are 3 that came to me at work this week to describe my job and how I feel about it:

1. I have been put in charge of a task that involves elements I've never worked with before, and has been passed on through several different people who I may or may not be able to contact to ask questions. I feel as though I have been told, "You are going to fly the plane." I respond, "Well, I know how to drive a car, but I do not know how to fly planes." The response is, "Yeah. Well, you are going to fly the plane." I answer, "OK, I'll sit in the cockpit. But you better make peace with your god. Because I can't tell you we're not going to crash and die. I am already resigned to this, so I'm not going to panic or scream or run around because it won't help, but just don't assume we're actually going to land safely."

2. Every task I am assigned is like being told, "Here is a box of snakes. Some of them bite. Some of them are dead and in various states of decay. Stick your hand in it and untangle them."

3. Yesterday, I had a dentist appointment after work. Someone asked how my day was going, and I said, "I am going to the dentist soon, and I am honestly looking forward to it. I would much prefer to sit in that chair right now than the one at my desk."

I was a little cranky this week.