Totally Frenched Out

From the blogger formerly known as Samdebretagne

Thursday, December 11, 2008

So far, things are going really well at work. While I like the flexibility of working from home, I do miss the office environment, so it's nice to get a little taste of that every so often. Not to mention the after-work happy hours, lol! I'm starting to wonder though how my co-workers actually get anything done. I've been back three days now, and I honestly haven't accomplished that much. Which isn't a big deal, because I'm mainly here to put in some face time and "connect" with my co-workers, not to actually accomplish anything major. So far, my basic day has been:
8:00 - arrive, drop off my stuff, stop in by everyone's cubicle to say hello
8:30 - go downstairs to get some coffee. run into random people from other departments and stop to chat
9:00 - call a few of my customers before it's the end of the day in France
10:00 - go on break
11:00 - get a bit of work done
11:30 - go to lunch (they eat early here). end up with a really long lunch break because whenever one person leaves, there's always someone else who's on their way down
1:30 - go back upstairs, chat some more with co-workers
2:00 - get a bit more work done
3:00 - go on break again
4:00 - everyone gets ready to go, spend half an hour chatting again
4:30 - finally able to get some real work done since the office is empty

So on one hand, I think the open-space office is nice because it's so conducive to sharing (which is important in our line of work), but on the other hand, it also means that it's super easy to get distracted. But my co-workers travel just as much as I do, if not more, and work 60hr+ weeks, so they deserve a bit of down time when they are actually in the office.

Either way, I'm really enjoying myself. I mainly hang out with girls in France, and while I love my girls, one of the things my trip to Tunisia made me realize was how much I miss having guy friends. Though I'm sure there are exceptions to the rule, it's not really common to see boy-girl friendships in France - it's like the word "platonic" doesn't exist. So it's kinda nice to be back in that atmosphere again - besides one of my managers and the secretary, all the rest of my co-workers are men, and they're a great bunch. The atmosphere is so relaxed and laid-back, and there are always jokes flying left and right. And I think they like having me around too, it mixes things up a bit in such a testosterone-filled office!

PS. I don't really like to talk about the specifics on my blog, but for those of you who are wondering, I work for an engineering company with clients all over the world. It's a really bizarre and precise science, but they really are on the cutting-edge of technology and it's been exciting to see first-hand some of the new products they are working on.

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6 Comments:

Blogger Sarah said...

Sounds like things are going well, then, and from what I counted it looks like you're getting a total for 2 hours of work done before 4:30. Sweet! ;) I totally get you about the guy friend thing - I miss hanging out with my guy friends from back home, too.

December 11, 2008 at 1:29 PM  
Blogger GL'sD said...

gatI don't know where your company is located, but I was just listening to the radio and we are expecting the grandfather of all storms in Minnesota Saturday evening. Bet it's been a while since someone let you in on the Minnesota weather sceen, real or other wise.

December 11, 2008 at 4:51 PM  
Blogger islandgirl4ever2 said...

Hi Sam...

I don't really have "guy friends" here in France, either... Of course, it's diff. being married... I don't really need any MORE guy friends.. but I miss the ones I had in the U.S. -- 90% of my guy friends back in San Diego are gay... anyhow... but it was sure nice having that, too!!! I miss my gay, guy friends!!

Glad your having a good time!!

December 11, 2008 at 9:55 PM  
Blogger Starman said...

I wish you could talk about some of the cutting-edge products. Being a major geek/nerd, I would find that fascinating.

December 11, 2008 at 10:11 PM  
Blogger A Tank said...

it's funny you say that about platonic relationships, because i think of my (small) circle of french friends, it was about half and half... but in any case, i agree that guy friends are much needed and lots of fun!

December 12, 2008 at 2:04 AM  
Blogger Fned said...

Wow!! For a while there, I thought you were describing the working environment of a company in France (with all the coffee breaks and procrastinating to talk to people in the office).... ;s

Fned.

December 14, 2008 at 12:42 PM  

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