Where do I start?

No, really....I don't know where or how to start. This week has been a complete whirlwind, and I'm still running on nothing.

Because of the recovery act that the President signed, the National Institutes of Health was given something around $7 billion for research. Because of the line of work I'm in, writing government proposals and preparing budgets, I'm SLAMMED. There are deadlines for different kinds of grants. So, the first huge deadline is April 27. I have seven grants going out. One went today, and then the others go April 27. Not only is that almost not possible to get done (on average one grant can take a month to do or if it's large up to 4 months), but it's insane. The fact that I was out sick for a week has not helped either though I know and my managers know that it was beyond my control. What goes into submitting a grant is not easy. It requires meetings with the investigators to figure out what the heck kind of science they are proposing. Then, I have to figure out how to budget for it. Keep in mind, we have no medical background, so creative writing is essential! With budgets come justifications. This is a document that explains every single item budgeted for and why and how I came to that number. And these are not small budgets. These are anywhere from 1 million to you name it. Then there are all kinds of paperwork you have to prepare and collect. You have people send it to you in a format that makes you want to scream, so you end up re-doing it. Yesterday, I had a doctor send me his research plan and I literally screamed loudly out loud. Nothing about that document was right. And...he was leaving that afternoon to go overseas and would not be back before April 27. I literally felt myself hypervenialating. And then today, a smiliar thing happened. I keep telling myself, it's just a job, it's just a job. But, when it comes down to it, I still have to meet deadlines. And you have people ...important people, relying on you. The stress is just incredible. If you can imagine all of this with one grant, imagine it with seven. And not only seven grants for this one deadline, but also having normal workload come into your inbox that you then have to tell them they will have to wait because you are about to commit yourself to a mental institution. Luckily, it's not just me. We are all stressed at work. We all have a heavy workload. However, I seem to have the crazy investigators who don't know what the heck they are doing. I had one today tell me he was going to submit without going through any Duke approval. Lovely. That was panic attack number 3.

On Tuesday....or was it Wednesday?? The days run together. Whatever day it was, Tyler woke up and I discovered a tick on his back. I was fine with that until I realized that we couldn't get it off. The head got stuck in his skin, it was 7:45, and I literally could not listen to him scream any longer as Josh performed surgery on his back to get it out. It was heartbreaking. I told Josh to take him to urgent care. We later learned that it will scab over and it will fall out. Who knew? We're still watching it to make sure it doesn't swell up or get red. Right now it sure does look red and swollen to me. And Toby is still on my bad list. I love our dog, but I hate ticks. Though I know Tyler will get them regardless because he loves being outdoors and we live in the woods. Still...I have to take it out on someone...or something. I know he got it overnight because he didn't have it before bed. Toby sleeps on his bed during the day. So, the door is now closed when we leave in the morning. I hate ticks.

Let's see, what else. I will most likely have to work this weekend. I made TONS of progress this week, but I'm not where I need to be. Too bad I don't get overtime for this. It's ok though. I know it will be over soon. And then I'll move on to other deadlines and stresses.

In the meantime, I'm trying to enjoy my weekend as best as I can. The weather is supposed to be great this weekend, so I hope that Tyler and I will be able to take advantage of that. Josh is working, which is a bummer. I'm missing a girls night out Saturday. Boy, could I use that! But there will be other dates. I think I just need some relaxation! I've just completed a 50 hr work week, and it's not over yet.

So, that's it for now. Me and my strawberry dacquari (heavy on the rum) have had a great relationship the past two nights. I have a pitcher in the freezer waiting for me each night.

I just remembered I haven't eaten dinner. Guess it's time to go.