in for the long haul

'whatcha doin'?'

'watching the 'Lost' i taped. that Mr. Eko is a badass. why are you up so late, mister?'

'i'm just getting off work.'

'dude, it's 1 a.m. even i've been home for almost an hour. what time did you start today?'

'9 a.m. what? it's no big surprise; i worked from 8:30 to 2 a.m. yesterday and till 1 the night before that.'

'what the hell are they trying to do to you?'

'we have a big project going on right now. it's only for a couple weeks, but seriously, i'm at the end of my rope.'

'ouch.'

'can you please tell me, why does my schedule suck so much?

'uh, have you forgotten who you're speaking to? i believe in the last six days i've worked 4-midnight, 2-10p, 3-11p and 5:30-2a. come to think of it, my life evaporated as soon as i started this job.'

'okay, you do have it pretty bad. anyway, if i could just stick it out another 2 years, i can get promoted and make 30% more in salary. but godddd, it's gonna be rough.'

'that sounds pretty damn nice to me. you can do it. just don't give yourself an ulcer, heart attack or get hooked on uppers to get the job done.'

'we'll have to see about that. wait a second. okay, i'm putting up with this crap schedule for the sweet monetary payoff. what the hell are you in it for?'

'good question.'