09:52 CDT ========================================================================== I got behind on my phlog entries. We had some pretty hard rain in our area last week. It was to the point where flood advisories were issued. Fortunately, they didn't come to pass. This past Friday, I viewed a webcast "Town Hall" meeting with the Chancellor of our college. A good part of the session was spent on his handwringing over how the state law defining telework that passed on September 2025 was causing grief because the College was out of compliance for about a year. Being one to ask stupid questions, I used the Q&A text box to ask, "Exactly how was the college out of compliance at the time?" One of the executive Vice Chancellors was manning that keyboard. She said (I'm paraphrasing), "The law passed in September 2025, and we were out of compliance for about a year." Notice that this is not a response to my question. I typed back, "That is not an answer." All I got was radio silence. Then the Chancellor said that some employees may be cross-training. Again, being the one with stupid questions, I asked in the Q&A, "How will this cross-training affect headcount?" The Vice Chancellor replied, "We don't intend to change current staff levels. But if someone leaves the college, we are going to review that position." Between that response,the obvious desire to quash remote work, and the push to adopt AI, that tells me that my employer is considering replacing people down the road with AI agents. When the new Chancellor came on board over a year ago, he was talking about data and metrics.That had already raised a red flag with me. That's the type of corporate double-speak I heard when I was working at Dell. I'm just glad that I have enough seniority under my belt to retire at a time of my choosing. This reminds me of Goodhart's Law: "When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure." The coup-de-grace was when my boss told me that the Dean had initially rejected my telework request. She wanted a detailed timeline and task list of what I would be doing from my remote location. I told my boss that it was apparent to both of us that I was embarking on a fool's errand. It would be a waste of my time to pursue my request further. She did agree with me on that. This morning, I compared notes with another employee. She told me that after she submitted her telework request, which ended up being like an 8-page report. The Dean would point to a specific portion, tell her that it needed work. The changes were made, and the request was resubmitted. The Dean found something else that needed clarification/inclusion. TLDR: The Dean kept moving the goalposts on her. That's proof enough for me that I made the right decision not to pursue things further. I'm over the rejection, but I find it insulting that instead of just saying that they don't want anybody working remotely, my employer is trying to talk out of both sides of its mouth. I also feel devalued by this nonsense. It sounds like the college wants to be more like a corporation than an educational institution. From an employee's perspective, that never ends well. The corporate environment is the big reason for my leaving Dell after two years. I found it dehumanizing and odious then. Today? Even more so. In defense of the Cap'n (my boss), she has been on board with my working from home one to two days a week. We had a gentleman's agreement (if you will excuse the term) between us. She trusted me to be available during work hours. In return, I never violated that trust. It was like getting a raise in pay where the college didn't have to spend extra money. I think that this stonewalling of remote work is just a symptom of the desire of the administration to micromanage things more. When I retire, it would not surprise me if the college would try to merge my position at my campus into that of my counterpart at the Round Rock campus. I hope that I am wrong about that, for his sake. But I have no control over what happens after I leave. 20:47 CDT ========================================================================== I'm glad to say that the commute home wasn't completely awful. I didn't even see any stupid stunts from other drivers. I had not seen the news when I got home. Rhonda told me that Tennessee death-row inmate Christa Pike woke up from her botched execution. Over the years, my stance on capital punishment has changed. I no longer believe that its use is moral. Yes, Pike was convicted of heinous crimes, and does not get a pass for the fumbled attempt to kill her. But I still believe in due process under the law for everyone, even her. I don't think that the state of Tennessee should get a second crack at her. I believe that she should be commuted to life in prison without parole.