An exercise in frustration
Feb. 26th, 2007 05:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pegkerrOne of the unspoken but very real duties of secretaries legal administrative assistants case assistants in my law firm is that when an attorney has a birthday, the assistant is expected to brings in treats. She puts the treats up on the ledge over her desk and sends an email around the office: "Attorney X's birthday is today, stop by Y's desk for some chocolate chip cookies and wish him/her Happy Birthday."
So one of my attorneys had a birthday today. I have been assigned to twenty-one different attorneys at one time or another over the past fourteen years, which means I have brought innumerable pans of cakes, brownies and platefuls of cookies into the office. (I have five attorneys assigned to me right now.) I was tired last night and really Not In The Mood, but there is that unspoken obligation. So I went out to the grocery story, bought box mix for Ghirardelli brownies (the best one on the market, and dammit, I should know after so many attorney birthdays). I made them up and told myself, "Okay, don't forget to bring them in the morning."
Of course, I forgot them. I had an appointment to go to first thing so my morning routine was a little different than usual anyway. I had to go back for them. When I got into the office, I discovered that the attorney had decided to take her birthday as a vacation day, so she wasn't even there (can't blame her, really, since she was involved in the Big Honking Case in Iowa that just settled).
So, I didn't send around the traditional e-mail, but simply kept the brownies up on my ledge, telling people as they came by that they were welcome to take a piece. At the end of the day, half the pan was still left, and I was pleased, because it meant I could take the leftovers home to the girls, who love Ghiradelli brownies.
You guessed it. I forgot and left the pan of brownies at the office.
Argh.
So one of my attorneys had a birthday today. I have been assigned to twenty-one different attorneys at one time or another over the past fourteen years, which means I have brought innumerable pans of cakes, brownies and platefuls of cookies into the office. (I have five attorneys assigned to me right now.) I was tired last night and really Not In The Mood, but there is that unspoken obligation. So I went out to the grocery story, bought box mix for Ghirardelli brownies (the best one on the market, and dammit, I should know after so many attorney birthdays). I made them up and told myself, "Okay, don't forget to bring them in the morning."
Of course, I forgot them. I had an appointment to go to first thing so my morning routine was a little different than usual anyway. I had to go back for them. When I got into the office, I discovered that the attorney had decided to take her birthday as a vacation day, so she wasn't even there (can't blame her, really, since she was involved in the Big Honking Case in Iowa that just settled).
So, I didn't send around the traditional e-mail, but simply kept the brownies up on my ledge, telling people as they came by that they were welcome to take a piece. At the end of the day, half the pan was still left, and I was pleased, because it meant I could take the leftovers home to the girls, who love Ghiradelli brownies.
You guessed it. I forgot and left the pan of brownies at the office.
Argh.
