Back to Rational?

Almost, but not quite...

The production schedules came in, and for me, weren't as bad as I thought. We have two more weeks of downtime scheduled in March and April. The other plant is not so lucky as they will be dropping a shift. So, another 1,100 hourly layoffs and another 50 or so salaried layoffs. I'm sure this will mean a lot of shifting around at the various plants, and I'm guessing we'll have more new-ish faces to get to know and a lot of changes over the next few months. But we're scheduled for production all year, and while that can change as quickly as an email can be sent, for now it's a relief.

We have always teased Auntie Joanne about her amusing condition where as her stress level increases, her shoulders shrug further and further upward. You could tell when she was particularly tense or upset because you could barely see her ears. I realized a long time ago that I share the same tendency. It's either that or I clench my jaw. Fortunately, I haven't been clenching my jaw (no grinding, just clenching, which is painful at best), but every so often, and quite a bit yesterday, I had to stop, think, take a deep breath, and force my shoulders down. It makes me chuckle when I do it, as I picture Auntie Joanne and just think about all the shit we gave her over the years about that. I'm sure she's proud that the tradition carries on...