• Other consistently unprompted acts of kindness by N.Lo: Pulling out chairs for the rest of the staff at meal times. Attempting to clean up dog poo in the yard with sandbox toys. Saying to the CEO at bedtime cleanup, “I want to help you, Daddy,” and sliding off the couch to help put all the toys away.
• N.Lo accidentally shut himself into his cubicle last week and the rest of the staff didn’t notice at first. I finally heard a little voice repeating something like, “I’m stuck! Need the door open!”
• When something drops, usually a piece of food, he remarks with earnest, “Oh no. What are we going to do now?”
• N.Lo currently has a cold and has had some rough days because of it. Pretty whiny, clingy and cantankerous. Yay. Poor thing.
• K.Lo, we’ve been having a rough time with again on the Night Shift. We outsourced supervision on Saturday evening, and though Management is most appreciative of some time out of the office, getting back on track is sometimes difficult.
• N.Lo’s toothbrush had about had it (he chews rather than brushes), and so we went to Target for a new one. K.Lo thoughtfully suggested Transformers, though we didn’t see any there, so ended up with Spiderman. K.Lo’s toothbrush is fine, but she’s been talking for days now about her next toothbrush, which “we will go get at Target when my [her] Hello Kitty toothbrush gets old.” She will choose the Dora toothbrush. So cute.
• Training continues to encourage some more independence in the workplace. K.Lo is the personality type that loves to engage others, which can be great fun; but, it is frustrating at times when Management begins to feel as though they are waiting on the employee hand and foot. Obviously, the latter isn’t acceptable for anyone, either. It is a tough line between a little bit of spoiling and creating a diva. Or a tough line between enjoying the employees’ smallness for what it is and pushing them out of the nest. The Manager strives to be patient, but firm. Spoil a little, but not too much. It wears me out.
• The weather is cooling off again, temporarily, and the torrential downpours of last week have cleared up, so today we ventured outside to play.

K.Lo likes to stand on the swing. Big girl.

N.Lo whining, “Up! Please!”

K.Lo whining, “Push! Me!”

Getting a little too big for that swing, buddy… 

Looking to his coworker. Love this shot.

And this one.

We played basketball. With a football. I recently raised the height of the hoop, and am teaching K.Lo to toss it higher. She does very well!

These flowers come up every year, though I have no idea what they are. They look to me like fireworks.

Afternoon light, long funny shadows. This shot took some coordination, but the employees were surprisingly cooperative. N.Lo waved as well, but I was unable to capture with the way his body was turned. Hi!

The Lo.Co. is currently enjoying a wonderful bout of stomach flu. Reports will be sparse until recovery. In the meantime, please enjoy these fantastic photos of a recent excursion by a talented company friend.

The rumors are in fact true, and the Manager has taken a sick day—as much as the employees will allow. Headache, earache, sore throat and fever: I don’t know if it’s what’s been going around the office, but apparently I was long overdue to catch *something.* With the help of ibuprofen, our company made it to the grocery store today, and threw a couple bags of these gems into the cart.

Plastic Easter eggs. Highly recommended for companies with small employees, as they provide hours upon hours of fun. Bring out a few baskets, hide the eggs around the house or outside, fill them with small items, or let the employees determine their own projects. For just a dollar or two, your company will be stocked for several Easter seasons to come. And if you happen to be on a sick day, said plastic eggs just might allow you a little rest.

Or, you might end up tucked in with a large pile of paper napkins lodged carefully against your back, but that is another story for another day.

Yes, K.Lo is sick. Again. The CEO is also under the weather with a sinus and ear infection. This madness has officially been going on for months now. Months! I blame the yo-yo weather and wish the warmth would just come and stay. Kill all the germs from the Outsourcer and this exceptionally active cold and flu season. I know it’s not just our company. And also, I’m profoundly grateful that K.Lo wasn’t sick yesterday, since it was my birthday and all. And on a birthday, it seems mean to expect Management to clean up vomit, which this morning landed all over the dog.

N.Lo seems fine, though slightly fussy and forlorn. Maybe he misses his fully functioning coworker. But he remains pretty darn companionable and cute.

The Lo.Co. is all mixed up. After my ill-advised complete jinx of a post regarding recent happenings on the Night Shift, K.Lo proceeded to have the one of the worst Night Shift performances in a long while. Screaming and crying ensued, and K.Lo herself wasn’t in much better shape. And, most unfortunately, a bad Night Shift is inevitably followed by a bad Day Shift. K.Lo did make it to the Outsourcer, but cried a little at drop-off, which she has not done in months. N.Lo and I then had a productive morning out running errands for our company, which I don’t discount. Everything went downhill after that.

Cutting four canine teeth simultaneously is a tricky operation, and adding coworker germs into the mix doesn’t help. N.Lo was crabby and fairly inconsolable for the better part of the afternoon, and woke up from his Afternoon Break with a fever. Meanwhile, K.Lo greeted me at Outsourcer pickup by immediately devolving into Whiny Dissatisfaction with Everything. In response, lacking the patience that comes only with a good night’s sleep. the Manager herself wasn’t exactly all positivity and perk.

Night Shift performance so far this evening has been bleak—for N.Lo. He’s still running a fever, even with Tylenol in his system, and cried and cried until he was “rescued,” at which point he puked.

This work week has been pretty much a wash. Looking forward to emerging from Cold and Flu Season (soon, please), so our company can get back to its normal business operations, with more acceptable levels of employee and managerial performance. That is all.

The fun continued here at The Lo.Co. this morning, with K.Lo still sick, and N.Lo still cutting teeth. I called in K.Lo’s absence to the Outsourcer, and just as I was explaining that we’d be going to see the Company Doctor, who would make her feel all better, she began wailing in misery that her mouth hurt. I should have known not to pick her up, should have shuttled her to the Employee Rest Room, but no, no, my protective Managerial instincts kicked in instead, and I swept her up into a big hug. My repayment: vomit all over my uniform. And K.Lo, and K.Lo’s hair, and the couch. And also the floor. Hooray. I’m not really sure how I convinced her that a bath would be a good idea, but I did, and at least got her cleaned off.

The Laundry Fairy is working overtime, currently, and is not super happy about it.

We made it to the Company Doctor, where the wait was shorter than I expected, i.e. under an hour. The employees surprised me by not playing at the numerous waiting room stations; they are usually big fans of the Thomas the Train table, as well as the pretend kitchen. Instead, they each climbed in a chair and looked around, perfectly content with observation. K.Lo was most accommodating with the Company Doctor, until the third time he cleaned out her ear in order to get a good look. The last go hurt, apparently, and her face sort of melted into a little puddle, and she wouldn’t talk to him for the rest of the visit. As soon as he left the room, however, she wanted to collect her sticker. Luckily, the nurses at the front desk met her wishes.

Prognosis: Fever. Well, I knew that, thankyouverymuch. She has a little bit of what looks like a viral rash on her arms and possibly legs, but her throat, nose, ears, and chest all checked out fine. So, if symptoms get worse, we go back in. Otherwise, we dose her with ibuprofen and suffer it out.

And also, pray that whatever “it” is, it is not contagious.

Today at the office, we had what could definitely qualify as a Case of the Mondays. At least one member of our staff has been ill since around Christmas, up through February, but for the past week, everyone had been well. The moment the thought occurred to me was the moment the magic spell broke. K.Lo was up in the early hours of the morning with a fever and claims that her mouth hurt, which I believe means her throat. She did sound a little raspy. I’m also concerned about her ears, as they still contained some fluid from January’s ear infection, discovered over a week later at her 3-year well check. Hooray. With the help of some Tylenol, she fared mostly fine today; although, unless I see a big turnaround tomorrow morning, I will likely keep her home from the Outsourcer. Preemptive Managerial Guilt from the last time I dropped her off with the aforementioned ear infection and she had a miserable day, ending with her asleep by the time I picked her up.

Over at N.Lo’s desk, the employee was on-and-off grouchy today for no apparent reason, until I confirmed that indeed, he is cutting all four canine teeth simultaneously.

Fun times! Let’s hope it’s just the Mondays, and Tuesday proves to be a more productive, positive workday.

Over the past month, our office has been plagued by colds. The Manager would like to put forth that she is tired of wiping little noses and hearing little coughs at night, already. It’s downright pitiful at this point, N.Lo especially. K.Lo brought home a lingering cold from the Outsourcer around Christmas, and the whole company caught it. It lasted a few weeks, with N.Lo’s never really going away at night, since then. We have a vaporizer in his room to help, although at this point I question whether it’s making a difference. In the past day or, the cold seems to be back, for everyone but The Manager, and this one’s even nastier. The noses are runnier, the coughs are hackier, and N.Lo’s cheeks and forehead are bright red. What is that? Windburn from our time out in the snow? It’s just another point of concern added to an already long list.

There is really no point to this post, other than to complain.

Sincerely,

The Manager

K.Lo called in sick on the Night Shift around 4AM. She whimpered for hours and once coherent, Management realized that she might have an ear infection. Off to the Company Doctor we went for the second time this week, where indeed, K.Lo was found to have an ear infection. She was shockingly compliant and polite as could be with the doctor, a complete turnaround from her last visit.

You know your employee’s not feeling well when they think curling up with a metal muffin tin is the right thing to do. Hope you feel better soon, Miss Lo.

MEMO

To: N.Lo
From: The Manager
Re: Speaking Up

Please be advised (my darling little employee) that if you find your working conditions less than satisfactory, you are encouraged and even required to speak up. Voice your concern to The Manager, who will address that concern accordingly. That means, next time, should your eardrum rupture, it is okay to complain! Even be in a bad mood! Before two whole weeks have passed, and Your Manager still hasn't done anything about it because nothing seems to be bothering you, other than a little ear gunk.

So, fuss a little, please! Stop smiling and being all cute and pleasant! File that Sick Leave Request. Just keep The Manager apprised, it's all I ask.

This increased effort toward clear communication will ensure that our company operates at maximum productivity, with minimum levels of employee dissatisfaction. Thank you kindly for your cooperation. My sweet little N.Lo.

Sincerely,
Your Manager

Problem: Everyone in the office is sick. All employees would like The Manager to take care of them. The Manager would like someone to take care of her. The CEO is at The Other Office, and anyway, he's sick, too. Resources are spread thin. Everyone is getting a little bit of what they need, but overall no one is getting enough. Employee dissatisfaction is high. An all-company meltdown is imminent.

Solution: A big cup of Dunkin Donuts hot chocolate--er, coffee, to the employees it's coffee--piled high with marshmallows. It solves everything.

Such is our plight, as managers. That's all I've got for today. Here's to a tomorrow without any sneezing, sniffling, coughing, runny noses, sore throats, headaches, and above all, whining. My own included.

K.Lo and N.Lo have both put in requests for sick time, which the managerial staff feels slightly miffed over, as it is the end of the year, i.e. our time to relax and rest a bit during the holiday season. At times, the staff does seem unreasonably demanding. Although, may I also note that the CEO isn't feeling up to par, either, which as a cosmic rule just happens when he takes time off from The Other Job. Ahem.

For now, we made it through. The morning looks like this. Let another workday begin.

This morning, K.Lo adamently requested a pickle for breakfast, and while I put my foot down to cookies, who am I to deny a pickle in the morning? It's something I would eat well before noon, and I'm sure I have. In fact, the one memory that immediately popped into my head was one day when I was home from elementary school, the last sick day in a string of a few and feeling much better, I begged my mom for a pickle. She thought it was weird, but I think she eventually let me have it. And I'm pretty sure I didn't chuck it up. Pickles are rad.

In other news, N.Lo may be requesting sick leave soon for a doctor visit. He hasn't pooped since Friday. It's terribly disturbing, and calls to mind Sophia from The Golden Girls, who once commented that if you hadn't pooped in "x" number of days, you'd be in a bad mood, too.