Blast Off

A few months back, we whispered about it. It was just a rumor at the time. We didn't know what was going to come of it.

Then we got a phone call. We high-fived and started to talk about it. Out loud. On the phone and in cubicles. In conference rooms. This thing that we couldn't describe in complete sentences. Each thought spurring another thought until The Parking Lot was a four lane highway.

There were white boards and dry erase markers. Notebooks and pencils. Tables and wireframes and mock-ups. Pages upon pages upon pages of "the system shall." And then a faxed signature.

Kick-off! There was a meeting. Me, my manager, and my team. I was so nervous before that meeting. My first team meeting. I wanted it to go well. And I wanted them to like me. I wanted them to respect me. Even more, I wanted them to not see how nervous I was.

"Oh, wow. Cool. Yeah, that will work! Nice. This is going to be good. Pretty complex, but it will work."

Nice. My nerves calmed. And we got started. Designing. Specifying. Refining. Building. Coding. Running. More coding. Compiling. Debugging. Posting. Testing, testing, testing. Unit. Smoke. Bash. Integration. Picking it apart and putting it back together. Over and over and over again. Prodding. Questioning. Thinking. Deciding. Answering. With a side of coffee. Lots and lots and lots of coffee. Plus a green tea for good measure. Or two.

Documenting, documenting, documenting, documenting, documenting... There were emails and phone calls and Instant Messages. Mostly there were instant messages. And they are all sent at the exact same time. Seven windows at once, almost all day. Everyone's question the MOST important.

"Wow. This really is complex. But it's working! Can you believe that? It's working."

Another post. And a presentation. Again, the nerves in an excited state. But it's a GO! And so we launch. I wait, making sure that everything is perfect. I sit. I pace. I communicate via instant messenger with seven people at once again. I get more coffee. I bring my cell phone everywhere I go. I ping and plink and "sorry to bother you" but I just want to know where we stand!

When it is finally complete, I emit a loud, long sigh. I instantly feel the exhaustion that has been building these past few weeks surge from my eyes to my toes. I am so tired I can barely type. But also so content, and so proud of the accomplishment. Of OUR accomplishment.

The fun has only just begun...

(Really. I get to do this all again next week for Great Idea #2!)