National Push Weekend

This weekend is National Push Weekend. Sounds kind of exciting, doesn’t it? Like maybe I get to push people I do not like off a tall ledge. Or I get to push all of my worries right out of my head. Or, in the immortal words of Salt’n’Pepa, I get to “Push it good. P-push it real good.” Alas, none of these are the case. Rather than anything provocative, or even moderately interesting, National Push Weekend is a work event.

National Push Weekend is an all-day event Saturday and Sunday dedicated to trying to tackle our backlog of cases and “push” through the work. That’s right. I will be working a full eight-hour day on both Saturday and Sunday of this week. It’s voluntary, of course. As a leader on the team, however, it is “voluntary” for me in much the same way as taxes are voluntary or breathing is voluntary or my eventual return to ashes (sorry…feeling a bit morbid today) is voluntary. Actually, I am sure I could say that I already have plans and my manager would be okay with it, but that certainly wouldn’t be very leader-like, now would it?

In actuality, I really do not mind going into the office this weekend. My business trip to New York was cancelled in lieu of this team-wide Push Weekend. Given the option of a few extra hours on one weekend or spending two full weeks away from my family working night and day, I will happily take the Push Weekend. Plus, the company is providing breakfast and lunch each day. What, really, is there to complain about? I anticipate I will be chowing down on bagels and rocking out to Florence and the Machine on my iPod while plugging away. Poor Ruanita, on the other hand will spend not two…not four…not six…but SEVEN entire long days alone with our children this week. And then turn around and do five more starting on Monday. I suppose she is really the one who deserves a bagel, huh?