Attention Deficiency Alert!

My brain hasn’t been working on all eight cylinders (it’s an old, high-octane brain) for several weeks now. Watching my mom’s decline scares me into thinking that I might have early Alzheimer’s too. More likely is that I just have a lot on my plate right now (plate? Heck, I need a platter!) Found that I am experiencing at least three of the things that make ADHD worse.

Trying to do multiple things at once just isn’t a skill I have any more. How every did I ever handle having four kids in six years? How did I balance having school-aged kids in three different schools (elementary, middle and high school) and get them all delivered and picked up? Mostly the lapses come on annoying stuff, but yesterday I really messed up at work.

I had several things going on. ( I should KNOW now that this never turns out well…) It was the last day of open enrollment for my insurance for this fiscal year. Naturally, I couldn't find my enrollment forms. I probably laid them down and you know what happens from there…the “I-just-had-it-a-minute-ago” fairies came in and poof! I don't have a clue where to find it.

My wonderful payroll lady emailed the forms and (you are never going to believe THIS…) gave me her HOME phone number in case I had any problems with the process! (I work swing shift. She works day shift) I didn't have to call, but it felt good to know I COULD.

The enrollment “quiz” for the health insurance was twelve (count them – 12) pages long on-line. They wanted to know the last time I chewed a hangnail, and how often I had done that in the past six month. (Well, maybe not THAT, but everything else!) It took time. You can't complete the enrollment process without the quiz. What a crock! If you answered yes to anything, a window dropped down with two or three MORE questions on it. Damn you, Bill Gates!



I also had some water samples to process. We are doing a storm drain study for the city and culturing the samples to see if there is any cross-contamination in the storm drain lines. (There is.) They have been making repairs as we investigate. But, I had ten new samples to culture and put into the incubator. In addition to that, I was monitoring the equipment (well – this is the whole point of the story) in another building. (But not very well…)

I finished the cultures and glanced at the computer monitor for the other building’s equipment and saw that the temperature was VERY high. Too high. I dashed out of the lab and started for my truck. Coming out of the storage doors of the other building was BIG, white, billowing clouds, of what looked like smoke. I thought I had created a fire. I just stood there like I had grown roots! A thousand things were running through my mind. I wish I had a picture of my face. All I could think was, “I am SO screwed…”

Turns out it was not smoke. It was quick-lime dust. We use quick lime as a stabilizing ingredient in our process. The material it usually mixes with had stopped flowing. So the conveyor belt was cascading dry lime dust off a fifteen foot drop. I mean it was EVERY where. I couldn't see through the building to the door open on the other side. It was BAD. I grabbed a mask, got the blowers on, shutdown the equipment. I was totally alone. It is 10 PM. I didn't know how bad the damage really was, but I knew it wasn’t good.. I wanted to sit down and cry, but I just didn't have time for that. I did what I could to minimize the situation. I wrote a note to my lead operator basically saying – It’s bad. I did it. What time is the firing squad? And went home.

Going in today was hard. I didn't know what to expect. Turns out the equipment was fine. The guys did everything they could to make me feel better. They told me mistakes they had made. Assured me that it could have happened to anyone. It turned out better than my worries ever imagined. I just have remember that “multi-tasking” isn't a good idea right now. All my wires aren't hooked up correctly. (my oil is probably a quart low, too!)


Mood today – relieved. Celebrated with Sushi!