Work Visit

Since I have nothing scheduled today, I called up my boss’ assistant and scheduled a meeting to discuss my eventual return to work. I left the house around 10:00 am and got to work around 10:45 am. I pulled up to the parking garage and my badge would not open the gate. I let a car behind me use his badge and was able to drive in and park. I then went straight to the lobby since it was evident that they inactivated my badge. In the lobby, the receptionist called up HR and basically told me that since I was on medical leave, unless I had a not from a doctor saying I was able to return to work, I cannot enter the building. I guess it’s CYA in case I was still “sick” and got injured at work.

Since I could not enter, I asked the receptionist to call our assistant to tell my boss that he would have to meet me in the lobby or something. Since he was the CFO, usually he can get some rules bent. In the meantime, about four coworkers came to the lobby to greet me. After about 10 minutes, someone from HR came down and said they made an exception so I can enter the building for today. I work in a cubicle; there’s not much chance that I will injure myself.

I spent the next 20 minutes greeting coworkers and explaining that I’m not back yet, and this was an one day visit. I went and met with my “new” staff that were hired after my surgery, and a couple of new analysts in the department. Next I met with my boss and updated him on my health situation and planned return date. He was agreeable to everything and just happy that I’m recovering well. For lunch, a few coworkers and I went out to a nearby ramen shop. After lunch, I helped out with a few issues and talked to more coworkers, finally leaving at ~3:30 pm.

It was a good visit to see all my coworkers after eight weeks. I’ve know some of them for close to 20 years, having worked at the same previous company, so many are good friends too. Some of there were really worried about me since I just stopped showing up for work one day. It was also good for me to know that I could drive two hours round trip without being too tired. After working non-stop since high school, I’m not used to sitting around idle.