"On Call"

I married a consultant. A computer consultant. Not a doctor. Not a lawyer. Not a vet. Not anyone who is in a profession where it is customary to be considered "on call" at times when you are not supposed to be working. Yet, somehow, I managed to spend this entire weekend with my consultant husband, Jim, "on call."

Jim has a 'go live' looming in mid-July. "Go Live" is when all the work he's put in his better-than-2-yr-project is turned loose and his clients are responsible for running the software he's installed. It's also the time when the software is actually used for the first time, so hiccups are inevitable. So inevitable, in fact, that he's going to be out of town across BOTH weekends in mid/late July. He has to stay at the client for almost 2 solid weeks to ensure that his baby -- this project he's sweated over since Meg was just a baby -- is treated well and that all goes as well as possible.

I try not to complain about Jim's job too much . . . I know that it provides well for us, and I know how much he enjoys it. But sometimes, it really gets to me. All the being alone, all the "no, sorry, I can't b/c my husband is out of town", all of the "When is Daddy coming home?" begins to weigh on me. This weekend was certainly one of those times when I felt it too hard NOT to complain about it all.

Glad I didn't marry someone that is always "on call." I'm not a very patient person when it comes to that kind of stuff. Maybe I just don't like the lack of undivided attention I got from my husband this weekend. Either way, I cannot WAIT for July to be over so that Jim's project is o.v.e.r.