MissyS said:
LOL very true. I read a quote once, something like "the wheels of bureaucracy turn slowly", and that's true just about every time anyone has dealings with government workers. Unless you owe them money, that is, then they're right on it, eh?
For five years oh so long ago I worked for a Municipal gov't and I can tell you first hand the rule of the office was never do anything by yourself that you can get ten people and 5 departments involved in. I wanted a picture hung up on my office wall so naturally I asked to borrow a hammer from building services and they almost ripped me a new one.
A person from one dept. came to my office to see the picture to determine if in fact it was appropriate to hang up.
Once approved another person from another dept came to my office to see where I wanted the picture hung and measure it's location.
A third came to drill the hole in the wall and install the drywall anchor.
A fourth came to actually physically pick up the picture from the desk, hang it up and stare it for about ten minutes.
A fifth came by to confirm the job had been done as requested and I was happy with the newly installed office decoration.
I kid you not, the above is 100% entirely true, from request to picture being hung took a total of 17 days, I kept a running count on my office calendar and daily killed myself laughing about it.
I could tell you many many many more stories that are very much like the above, having worked in the civil service I am amazed that anything ever gets done. Five years was all I could hack before I felt my soul being slowly sucked out of me...