i am never, ever volunteering for anything ever again. unless it sounds like something i’d really like to do. and then, if i stop liking it, i will quit. period. of course, in this case, i was volunteered for the position in such a way that if i’d turned it down, i would’ve looked like a stupid jerk. (i’m sure i posted about it, but to refresh your memory: someone asked if, since i was an english major, i wouldn’t mind helping the church by writing things from time to time. i said sure. then, later, i was asked to go to a meeting, and when i got there, i was told i was chair of communications for the stewardship committee. and given a rather lengthy list of tasks. at the time, i didn’t have a job, so i figured i’d give it a shot. besides which, i had no idea that i was going to be volunteered for something like that, so i was caught off guard. since “volunteering” i have received almost no cooperation. no one ever gets back to me about anything, i never have any idea what to do, and no one ever has anything enlightening to tell me at the meetings. so i’ve spent most of my tenure on the committee, frustrated and embarrassed. so now we’re caught up.)
anyway, i finally got just about all the information i needed to complete the brochure by last friday. so i spent friday working on it, calling the printer, etc. i neglected one of my school assignments to do this. tonight, i get an email saying that more work needs to be done on the layout, and can i come in for a couple of hours in the next couple of days to work on it? 
no. no, i bloody well can’t. i’ve put so much time and effort into this stupid thing, and nothing i do with it is ever right. i’m there at every freaking meeting. i wait forever til it’s my turn. i ask everyone for input on whatever project i’m working on. i get vague, unhelpful advice, then am told that we’ll get back to it some other time. so i plug along as best i can. i send updates to the chairman for him to look over and advise me on, so i can keep working from there. i never got any feedback at all on one of the projects, which has been looming over my head for months now, and still isn’t finished. (it’s been sitting there, while i wait to hear what i’m supposed to do with it next. even though i’ve emailed it out twice and asked for help in person multiple times.)
and i’m really angry. i worked very hard on that brochure. i didn’t know how to use publisher at all when i started on it, so i had to take the time to teach myself. then, since i haven’t used excel in years, i had to re-learn that, too, to make the graphs look halfway decent. i took into account all the scant advice i was given in regards to how everyone wanted it done, and still managed to make it look, for the most part, like it hadn’t been done by committee. i did the best i could with what i had, and it still isn’t good enough. i can see why both co-chairs quit. one of them never showed up to any of the meetings, and the other one showed up to every single meeting, only to be nitpicked to death. (her official reason for resigning was a family issue, but i’m pretty sure she’s probably glad to be rid of this job.)
i have no problem volunteering my time. (though every bloody thing i’ve volunteered for this year, i’ve ended up doing some of the most boring, moronic tasks. like separating and folding grocery bags for the book sale.) it’s not like i expect a lot of thanks or attention. i give my time because i like to help others. but in the case of this committee, it seems like way more stress than it’s worth. no one wants to help me get my jobs done on time, and i can’t be expected to do it all myself. i was constantly told something would be ready by a certain time, and it never was. so i’d be anxiously awaiting it, while deadlines passed, panicking because absolutely nothing was getting done. i’ve spent time that i needed to be focusing on stuff like schoolwork, trying to see to it that the projects were going somewhere. (like all the time surrounding finals week last semester, and then when i was trying to get the house ready for guests, etc.) well, this is the last straw. i asked and asked for the information before last week, and was told every time that it would be sent to me right away, and of course never got it. each time that i went as far as i could with what i had, and sent a draft, it was either ignored or there was something new to fix, which i did. i just don’t have time for this anymore, and, at this point, i have no real inclination to help. it’s too stressful and i have enough going on in my life as it is. it’s all going to be crap anyway, and since i’m going to be blamed for it no matter what at this point, i’m just not going to put forth a ton of stress and energy to put out a mediocre product. maybe it was supposed to be fun, but i don’t think it’s a lot of fun to see deadlines whizz by while i’m waiting on something and continually begging for attention to be paid to the things i send. if i had any cooperation whatsoever, i probably really would’ve enjoyed this opportunity. as it is, i didn’t.
