Engineering Manager or House Manager!

The Client from Houston says we are behind on our deliverables – piping, electrical, instrumentation, structural. We are working our tails off putting in 60 – 70 hours a week. Yet I have to attend to the complaints (sometimes first thing in the morning) about the new house I live in from my co-workers living in the same house – “hot water heater does not work, sliding window in my room won’t close letting mosquitoes in, the water pump makes too much noise disturbing my sleep, the maids are mixing up clothes”, and so on. I contact Quintas - our reliable savior to get the repair man fast, and then contact the TV technician, the wireless technician, the lady supplying the curtains. No one shows up on time or never finishes the job at one time. My colleagues say TIA – “This is Angola”. I feel like an apartment manager and not an engineering manager at times. But Client has no clue or doesn’t need to care about other issues of living and working in Angola. They need their deliverables. I feel like I am working two jobs.

On the brighter side, in 10 days I will be “off rotation” for two weeks. I think I am ready for a break. No wonder other expats start counting days and hours towards the end of their 6-week rotation.