‘Twas the Day of Grant Deadlines

‘Twas the day of grant deadlines and all through my head,
Balancing budgets filled me with dread.

Narratives completed and edited with care;
Hoping that changes, no one would dare.

Papers were stroon across my whole desk,
Last minute changes, not welcomed guests.

I with my glasses, the computer booted up
Hot steaming coffee filling my cup.

When out in the hallway there arose such a clatter.
I sprang from my chair to see what was the matter.

I ran to my colleagues to discover the fuss,
A boatload of edits? I wanted to cuss!

The new edits done despite my dismay,
I dared anyone to find anything else gone astray.

Then what to my horrified eyes should appear?
A page full of errors? Character limits, I fear.

With the clock winding down and no time to waste
Into the online form, I cut, and I paste.

Check commas and periods, semicolons too.
Check facts and figures to assure it’s all true.

Triple check character count to make sure it still fits,
Whoever designed this system has no wisdom or wit!

I stared at the screen to assure it’s all done,
Then hit the SUBMIT button and onto the next one.