I'm thrilled that we have a new President and his name is Barack! But I'm am also disheartened that California appears to still be full of bigots who think there should be a law that prohibits same sex marriage. And it's not like it was a national vote, it was ONLY California voters. Something occurred to me this morning- seems like people feel farm animals deserve more rights (Prop. 2) than same sex couples. Kind of makes me sick to my stomach to think that people are so closed minded.
I'm not a big political activist or anything, and normally do not have much of an opinion on politics at all. But this election peaked my interest more so than usual. I really wanted Obama to win. Watching and hearing him speak, he came across as the much more educated and sophisticated candidate. To me, it seemed that McCain threw a lot more mud than Obama did. Maybe Obama threw just as much mud, but he did it in a classier way. It also just seems like Obama is going to be someone who will truly be able to work with both dems and republicans. I don't see McCain as being able to put aside his differences and do what's best for the country- too much of a maverick.
I had my own issues with the McCain/Palin ticket that would never have allowed me to vote for them. Namely, their stand on abortion and Palin's lack of experience. To vote for them and the possibility of Palin being President if something should happen to Grandpa McCain, too much to risk. I do feel like McCain deserves some props for his concession speech last night though.
Well- that's all I have time for...our new baby girl is callin' my name!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Happy New Year!!
Lots been going on since we got back from Ecuador...
There were the holidays of course. But before the holidays, we decided to get new flooring in our place. We had been talking to Carpeteria before the Ecuador trip and just needed to say "Go." So, we did. But for some crazy reason, Ray wanted to get them started before Christmas. And crazy me, agreed! So, the tile work started the week before Christmas. On Thursday to be exact. That was demo day. Then Friday was install day. And Saturday was grout day. We had planned on heading up to NorCal on Saturday after they finished the grout work, but that didn't work out. There was just too much dust and cleaning up to do. We really didn't want to come home from the holidays and put back together our kitchen.
So, we headed up to NorCal on Sunday. Had a great visit with the B Pons. It was so nice to spend some time with them! On Christmas Eve, we headed down to Oakland. Our plans were to spend Christmas with my family, then on the 27th head up to Ray's mom's...after stopping in Tahoe to do some skiing/snowboarding. Well...that didn't work out so well either. I got the flu or something!! It was awful!! I haven't been that sick in a long time. Had stuff coming out of both ends...and I HATE puking!! It all started around 8am on the day after Christmas and ended about 2am the next morning. Great way to lose ten pounds quick, but would NOT recommend it to anyone! I felt better by Friday, but still not totally up to par.
Since I was so out of it, Ray and Sam spent a couple days exploring SF. They hit Pier 39 one day and then the Exploratorium the next day. I've never been to the Exploratorium. Sounds like a neat place and they had a good time Exploratorium-ing.
We headed back down to SD on the 30th. After driving up and down the state at least three times in the past year, there are DEFINITELY a lot more people driving themselves to places than flying. And every time we drive up to the Bay Area, my idea for some kind of a toll road spanning from SoCal to NorCal pops back into my head. People in California are soooo in their own little worlds! They don't heed to the "Slower traffic on the right" mentality at all! ESPECIALLY on a two lane highway! I gotta give props to Utahians. They do this staying to the right thing the best.
New Year's Eve was pretty uneventful. We got back and continued cleaning up our place. More dust had settled from the tile work. I think we spent the day cleaning up and were pretty pooped. Didn't feel like doing much and I think we went to bed shortly after midnight. But, we are NOT getting old!
So...Ray had to go back to work on the 2nd and I started my new job on the 3rd! :) It was REALLY hard getting up at 6. I started working at Cardinal Health. I'm a Bid Administrator for the Alaris product line. Alaris makes infusion pumps for hospitals. My first day was great! I'm a temp to hire through Adecco. I felt so welcomed and haven't felt like a temp at all. It's so different than how Sony treats temps. At Sony, temps are like the dregs of humanity. They can't use the gym, can't get into the family store and you know that they aren't going to be made perm. At Cardinal, it's very different. My first day, my phone had my name displayed on the LCD screen. I had a binder full of information for my job and inside was an org chart and a seating map (they just moved to their current location)...both of these docs had my name on it! They had tried to get my computer set up, but IT didn't have my profile set up in the network yet. It was just nice and refreshing to feel like part of the group on my first day...and to not feel like a second rate citizen. And the people I work with have made me feel welcome too. It's just been great!! :)
I just finished my first full week of work and I really like what I'm doing. I don't know if that's just because it's all so new. But I can see myself doing well as a Bid Admin. I'm ready for them to give me my first real job to run with, but guess I have to just wait until they feel comfy with doing that. I went to some training on Thursday where I met with three managers of different areas. It was very informative and interesting. I found that the Technical Support group really peaked my interest. They get all the calls from the biomed technicians in need of help with the systems. Could range from how to close a window on the screen to how to take apart and repair the machine. I think that part really caught my attention...I'm a geek like that. I like to take stuff apart and know how it all works. When my manager came and asked how it went, I told her how the Technical Support session was really interesting to me. She said I might be able to go to the 3 day training seminar that they hold for the biomed techies. COOL!!
Something else I noticed while meeting with these three managers. They seemed to like what they do. Like they had a passion for what they do or something. That too was really refreshing to see. I dunno...it was just different than anything I've been exposed to recently. Even at Sony, people didn't seem to enjoy being at work. And it isn't even enjoying, so much as being upbeat about it. I've heard that Cardinal is a great place to work, so I'm hoping they want to make me perm!
The rest of our floor work commenced this week. Or maybe it was last week? No, it was this week. Tuesday I think. They were supposed to come on Monday, but it had just rained on Sunday and they need to layout the carpet to cut it. So, it was installed. It looked really nice. We weren't happy with the state of our furniture when we got home. They dinged up one of our new nightstands and also our bed frame. Broke a desk lamp. But it was done in one day. The hardwood floors started on Thursday and isn't finished. Not so happy with the service. They dinged up the baseboards they had to remove and also dented our wall in doing so. I have started a list and would really like to go talk to Natalie and tell her it looks nice, but....
So...that's what's been going on. I think next week, I'm going to start working out during lunch (probably not every day...let's not get too crazy! hehe...) in the gym at work. :)
There were the holidays of course. But before the holidays, we decided to get new flooring in our place. We had been talking to Carpeteria before the Ecuador trip and just needed to say "Go." So, we did. But for some crazy reason, Ray wanted to get them started before Christmas. And crazy me, agreed! So, the tile work started the week before Christmas. On Thursday to be exact. That was demo day. Then Friday was install day. And Saturday was grout day. We had planned on heading up to NorCal on Saturday after they finished the grout work, but that didn't work out. There was just too much dust and cleaning up to do. We really didn't want to come home from the holidays and put back together our kitchen.
So, we headed up to NorCal on Sunday. Had a great visit with the B Pons. It was so nice to spend some time with them! On Christmas Eve, we headed down to Oakland. Our plans were to spend Christmas with my family, then on the 27th head up to Ray's mom's...after stopping in Tahoe to do some skiing/snowboarding. Well...that didn't work out so well either. I got the flu or something!! It was awful!! I haven't been that sick in a long time. Had stuff coming out of both ends...and I HATE puking!! It all started around 8am on the day after Christmas and ended about 2am the next morning. Great way to lose ten pounds quick, but would NOT recommend it to anyone! I felt better by Friday, but still not totally up to par.
Since I was so out of it, Ray and Sam spent a couple days exploring SF. They hit Pier 39 one day and then the Exploratorium the next day. I've never been to the Exploratorium. Sounds like a neat place and they had a good time Exploratorium-ing.
We headed back down to SD on the 30th. After driving up and down the state at least three times in the past year, there are DEFINITELY a lot more people driving themselves to places than flying. And every time we drive up to the Bay Area, my idea for some kind of a toll road spanning from SoCal to NorCal pops back into my head. People in California are soooo in their own little worlds! They don't heed to the "Slower traffic on the right" mentality at all! ESPECIALLY on a two lane highway! I gotta give props to Utahians. They do this staying to the right thing the best.
New Year's Eve was pretty uneventful. We got back and continued cleaning up our place. More dust had settled from the tile work. I think we spent the day cleaning up and were pretty pooped. Didn't feel like doing much and I think we went to bed shortly after midnight. But, we are NOT getting old!
So...Ray had to go back to work on the 2nd and I started my new job on the 3rd! :) It was REALLY hard getting up at 6. I started working at Cardinal Health. I'm a Bid Administrator for the Alaris product line. Alaris makes infusion pumps for hospitals. My first day was great! I'm a temp to hire through Adecco. I felt so welcomed and haven't felt like a temp at all. It's so different than how Sony treats temps. At Sony, temps are like the dregs of humanity. They can't use the gym, can't get into the family store and you know that they aren't going to be made perm. At Cardinal, it's very different. My first day, my phone had my name displayed on the LCD screen. I had a binder full of information for my job and inside was an org chart and a seating map (they just moved to their current location)...both of these docs had my name on it! They had tried to get my computer set up, but IT didn't have my profile set up in the network yet. It was just nice and refreshing to feel like part of the group on my first day...and to not feel like a second rate citizen. And the people I work with have made me feel welcome too. It's just been great!! :)
I just finished my first full week of work and I really like what I'm doing. I don't know if that's just because it's all so new. But I can see myself doing well as a Bid Admin. I'm ready for them to give me my first real job to run with, but guess I have to just wait until they feel comfy with doing that. I went to some training on Thursday where I met with three managers of different areas. It was very informative and interesting. I found that the Technical Support group really peaked my interest. They get all the calls from the biomed technicians in need of help with the systems. Could range from how to close a window on the screen to how to take apart and repair the machine. I think that part really caught my attention...I'm a geek like that. I like to take stuff apart and know how it all works. When my manager came and asked how it went, I told her how the Technical Support session was really interesting to me. She said I might be able to go to the 3 day training seminar that they hold for the biomed techies. COOL!!
Something else I noticed while meeting with these three managers. They seemed to like what they do. Like they had a passion for what they do or something. That too was really refreshing to see. I dunno...it was just different than anything I've been exposed to recently. Even at Sony, people didn't seem to enjoy being at work. And it isn't even enjoying, so much as being upbeat about it. I've heard that Cardinal is a great place to work, so I'm hoping they want to make me perm!
The rest of our floor work commenced this week. Or maybe it was last week? No, it was this week. Tuesday I think. They were supposed to come on Monday, but it had just rained on Sunday and they need to layout the carpet to cut it. So, it was installed. It looked really nice. We weren't happy with the state of our furniture when we got home. They dinged up one of our new nightstands and also our bed frame. Broke a desk lamp. But it was done in one day. The hardwood floors started on Thursday and isn't finished. Not so happy with the service. They dinged up the baseboards they had to remove and also dented our wall in doing so. I have started a list and would really like to go talk to Natalie and tell her it looks nice, but....
So...that's what's been going on. I think next week, I'm going to start working out during lunch (probably not every day...let's not get too crazy! hehe...) in the gym at work. :)
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Coming Together
"I love it when a plan comes together..." Anyone know who said that? I'm embarrassed to say...but it was Hannibal from the TV show "The A-Team." Aw...come on! It was the 80's! How about "MacGyver?" Now that show was good! Where else could you learn to use a stick of chewing gum to hold a one ton piece of metal to a piece of wood? ;p OK, OK...back to the present!
I've been busy not working! Got lots of things finally coming together. (For those of you following the travels of my Ecuadorian Mountaineering Man...you know I've been keeping up with that too.) I think I remarked last time (or meant to) about not realizing how much time it takes to apply for a job. So, I met with some great peeps at Adecco yesterday. I had a contact person there already from when I hired a temp for Ostrich Man's office. And we got along well. We especially bonded well when his bill was not paid...surprise, surprise. Anywho...I sent her my resume and asked her what she could do for me. Filled out an online app and met with them yesterday. It was nice to finally put a face with the cool person I've been dealing with. So, I met with one of her coordinators and he already had a possible job lead for me. It's temp to hire, but hey...it's a job. Sounds like a lot of coordinating , which I feel I'm pretty good at. I might have an interview with the company next week.
I also applied for a bunch of jobs online this week. I applied to Home Depot, Costco, a telecommuting Google gig (which would be WAY cool to work from home and get paid for it!) and an English tutoring job.
Why the Depot? Welll....after I dropped Ray off at the airport, I went to Home Depot. I came up with this project for myself while he's gone. I was going to work on painting the second bath. This bathroom has wallpaper all over it...CEILING included. And it's like this blue and gold tribal lookin' stuff. ICK! But...why the CEILING?? Oh, so while I was walking around the Depot looking at paint samples, it seemed like it'd be a cool place to work. I've got a couple DIY projects under my belt. You get to wear comfortable clothes all the time. Help people find stuff for their projects...seems like fun.
The bathroom project...to remove the wallpaper or paint over it? That be the question. I hemmed and hawed, evaluated the condition of the wallpaper and decided to remove it. It's the "right" thing to do. I got out the perforator tool (damn good thing ray and i were still able to text while i was gathering supplies!), scored the wall, applied the Baracuda stuff I got at the Depot and voila...the first layer came off great! But the backing was not coming off so easy. ARGH!! I could tell this was going to just SUCK! So, after working on it for almost three hours and getting really nowhere fast, I decided to outsource. I found a guy on Craigslist. He came out to look at it Tuesday night, told me he'd charge me $100 bucks to remove it, and here he is today...removing the wallpaper! Yahoo! He had me at "100 dollars..."
I'm getting closer and closer to being rid of Ostrich Man once and for all. Although, this is AFTER having a direct deposit posted to my account and then the next day it got reversed out. What a frickin' loser! Couldn't even get his shit together enough to make sure that an ex-employee's pay wasn't paid. One last thing to be confirmed with unemployment and then I think I (we) can finally be rid of Ostrich Man. I do feel less stressed in general knowing I don't have to go to work for a completely inept person. I think this will completely go away once I have a job.
I think things are s-l-o-w-l-y coming together. I just need to breathe a bit more and not stress so much...
I've been busy not working! Got lots of things finally coming together. (For those of you following the travels of my Ecuadorian Mountaineering Man...you know I've been keeping up with that too.) I think I remarked last time (or meant to) about not realizing how much time it takes to apply for a job. So, I met with some great peeps at Adecco yesterday. I had a contact person there already from when I hired a temp for Ostrich Man's office. And we got along well. We especially bonded well when his bill was not paid...surprise, surprise. Anywho...I sent her my resume and asked her what she could do for me. Filled out an online app and met with them yesterday. It was nice to finally put a face with the cool person I've been dealing with. So, I met with one of her coordinators and he already had a possible job lead for me. It's temp to hire, but hey...it's a job. Sounds like a lot of coordinating , which I feel I'm pretty good at. I might have an interview with the company next week.
I also applied for a bunch of jobs online this week. I applied to Home Depot, Costco, a telecommuting Google gig (which would be WAY cool to work from home and get paid for it!) and an English tutoring job.
Why the Depot? Welll....after I dropped Ray off at the airport, I went to Home Depot. I came up with this project for myself while he's gone. I was going to work on painting the second bath. This bathroom has wallpaper all over it...CEILING included. And it's like this blue and gold tribal lookin' stuff. ICK! But...why the CEILING?? Oh, so while I was walking around the Depot looking at paint samples, it seemed like it'd be a cool place to work. I've got a couple DIY projects under my belt. You get to wear comfortable clothes all the time. Help people find stuff for their projects...seems like fun.
The bathroom project...to remove the wallpaper or paint over it? That be the question. I hemmed and hawed, evaluated the condition of the wallpaper and decided to remove it. It's the "right" thing to do. I got out the perforator tool (damn good thing ray and i were still able to text while i was gathering supplies!), scored the wall, applied the Baracuda stuff I got at the Depot and voila...the first layer came off great! But the backing was not coming off so easy. ARGH!! I could tell this was going to just SUCK! So, after working on it for almost three hours and getting really nowhere fast, I decided to outsource. I found a guy on Craigslist. He came out to look at it Tuesday night, told me he'd charge me $100 bucks to remove it, and here he is today...removing the wallpaper! Yahoo! He had me at "100 dollars..."
I'm getting closer and closer to being rid of Ostrich Man once and for all. Although, this is AFTER having a direct deposit posted to my account and then the next day it got reversed out. What a frickin' loser! Couldn't even get his shit together enough to make sure that an ex-employee's pay wasn't paid. One last thing to be confirmed with unemployment and then I think I (we) can finally be rid of Ostrich Man. I do feel less stressed in general knowing I don't have to go to work for a completely inept person. I think this will completely go away once I have a job.
I think things are s-l-o-w-l-y coming together. I just need to breathe a bit more and not stress so much...
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Lu-Zah!
Well...finally found out that Ray's company is moving forward...just NOT with me. It's very bittersweet. I wanted to know, but now that I know, I feel like a loser (and make sure you pronounce it "Lu-Zah!"). I'll still keep applying to jobs, but having an "in" really helps at a company. The recruiter is going to forward my resume onto what sounds like a pool that HR peeps can pull from. So, hopefully someone will see it and want me. Oh well...
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Waiting Game
It just hit me that the title of this blog applies to more than the one thing going on in my life right now. I originally was thinking in terms of hearing back from Ray's company. I had my second interview last Thursday and haven't heard back. Wrote an email to my recruiter last Friday, but haven't heard back from her. And to be even more of a pest, I called her this past Wednesday trying to find out status, etc. Had to leave a voice mail. :( Ray's been asking around, but hasn't heard anything except that it took someone's roommate 4 weeks before she heard anything. And with Turkey Day weekend coming up...well, it could be awhile.
So, the days are quickly ticking down to Ray's Ecuador trip. You can go to his blog to find out exactly how much time is left to go before he departs...he has a ticker on his blog. I know this is something he really wants to do and he has trained really hard for this trip, BUT...I'm still nervous about him going. But also excited for him. :) I just hope he'll be able to call or email me somehow from Ecuador. We don't know if his cell phone will work (or how much that's going to cost). Maybe I'll call T-Mobile next week to find out the deelio on that.
Hoping for my first unemployment check to arrive sometime next week. It won't be much, but at least it will be something. I don't feel like I've really been "hitting the pavement" that hard yet. I've applied for a few jobs online and will apply for more next week. And I have a contact from a temp agency that I'm going to send my resume to next week. She was really cool to work with when I got a temp in the Ostrich Man's office. Hoping she does Direct Hire, but assuming she does Temp-to-Hire. I'm sure she could hook me up with a temp job too. And...my BIL might be hookin' me up with some internet research. ;)
That's all for now...just hangin' around...waiting...
So, the days are quickly ticking down to Ray's Ecuador trip. You can go to his blog to find out exactly how much time is left to go before he departs...he has a ticker on his blog. I know this is something he really wants to do and he has trained really hard for this trip, BUT...I'm still nervous about him going. But also excited for him. :) I just hope he'll be able to call or email me somehow from Ecuador. We don't know if his cell phone will work (or how much that's going to cost). Maybe I'll call T-Mobile next week to find out the deelio on that.
Hoping for my first unemployment check to arrive sometime next week. It won't be much, but at least it will be something. I don't feel like I've really been "hitting the pavement" that hard yet. I've applied for a few jobs online and will apply for more next week. And I have a contact from a temp agency that I'm going to send my resume to next week. She was really cool to work with when I got a temp in the Ostrich Man's office. Hoping she does Direct Hire, but assuming she does Temp-to-Hire. I'm sure she could hook me up with a temp job too. And...my BIL might be hookin' me up with some internet research. ;)
That's all for now...just hangin' around...waiting...
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Ugh...
Maybe someone can explain to me why the last part of my last post is such a small font! I can't seem to fix it either. I've tried several times to highlight my whole posting in edit mode, change the font type and size and then re-publish. Nothing happens. Weird. Of course, if no one else is seeing what I'm seeing, then ya all think I'm just technologically challenged and losin' it.
And since I'm here, is it crazy to spend $3K on a bed? Even if it helps alleviate Ray's back pain? How nice would it be for him to wake up and not feel any pain? This bed is so comfy! It's a Tempur Pedic Celebrity Bed. It might even help with my neck pain. But I think my neck issues are due mainly to stress. I still need to order my Theracane! Have you tried this thing? OMG!! It's like having a little masseuse whenever you want it. If the bed helps with his back pain, then he can stop going to the chiropractor. He's been going for a few months now and it's not really alleviating the pain. The cool thing is that we'll have 90 days to test out the bed. If it doesn't seem to be working or we don't like it for whatever reason, we call up Sleep Train and they'll take it away. Then I guess we would go ahead and get a regular spring mattress...for a little less than $2K.
When I was coming home from the gym this morning, I saw lady waiting on the sidewalk while her dog was doing it's thang. I did NOT see a poop bag in her hand. I REALLY hope she didn't just leave her dog's crap on all up in the bushes.
And let's hear it for our neighbor's who did NOT have a loud music fest in their home last night! Whoohoo!! Gave us quite a scare when we came home at the same time they were coming home and they had a case of beer in their possession!
K...now, I think I'm done for today... :)
And since I'm here, is it crazy to spend $3K on a bed? Even if it helps alleviate Ray's back pain? How nice would it be for him to wake up and not feel any pain? This bed is so comfy! It's a Tempur Pedic Celebrity Bed. It might even help with my neck pain. But I think my neck issues are due mainly to stress. I still need to order my Theracane! Have you tried this thing? OMG!! It's like having a little masseuse whenever you want it. If the bed helps with his back pain, then he can stop going to the chiropractor. He's been going for a few months now and it's not really alleviating the pain. The cool thing is that we'll have 90 days to test out the bed. If it doesn't seem to be working or we don't like it for whatever reason, we call up Sleep Train and they'll take it away. Then I guess we would go ahead and get a regular spring mattress...for a little less than $2K.
When I was coming home from the gym this morning, I saw lady waiting on the sidewalk while her dog was doing it's thang. I did NOT see a poop bag in her hand. I REALLY hope she didn't just leave her dog's crap on all up in the bushes.
And let's hear it for our neighbor's who did NOT have a loud music fest in their home last night! Whoohoo!! Gave us quite a scare when we came home at the same time they were coming home and they had a case of beer in their possession!
K...now, I think I'm done for today... :)
MIA?
K...so it's been awhile huh? Was August really the last time I blogged? I told ya I'm not so good about keeping this kind of thang updated. Wow...where to begin...
How about with Firestorm 2007? We live in Rancho Bernardo (because of the fires, peeps now know where RB is). We went to bed on Sunday night and there were two fires burning. Bummer, but I thought they'd be under control by Monday morning. The wind was SOOOO strong and gusty that Sunday night, that it kept waking us up every couple hours. Finally, at 5am I turned on the TV and there were now EIGHT wild fires going. The fire got about a mile and a half away from our condo. We were packed and ready to evacuate if need be. We were also glued to TV and watching the news. Every new street they named in RB where the fire was, we would Mapquest it to see where it was and how far away from where we were. The air was very smokey. Even with all our doors and windows shut, the smoke was getting inside our condo. At times we would wet face towels and breath through those. At one point on Monday, we had to go take care of Jane's cat since she was out of town. But in order to do that, we had to pack up the car and take our cats just in case we weren't able to get back to our place. For the same reason, we didn't want to split up. What if Ray went to take care of Jane's cat, but wasn't able to get back? Monday was the most stressful. Not really knowing what the winds were going to blow where. But we didn't really feel that our area was in too much danger. Although, in addition to watching the news, we looked out our windows often.
So...what else is going on? Oh! I know...how about me being gainfully unemployed. Yup! Got "let go" on 10/25/07...for those of you keeping track...that was the week of Firestorm 2007. There was no way I was going to work on Monday. I don't remember if my ex-boss called to tell me I didn't have to come in, or if I called him and told him I wasn't coming in. Then Tuesday, he called and told me he was going to keep the office closed and we'd try again on Wednesday. Then Wednesday came and I got a call that he was going to keep the office closed again. I was ready to go back to work, but he told me I didn't need to. Then Thursday morning, he called and told me he wanted to have a "little meeting" and asked what time I would be in. I don't know about you, but when a boss tells you that he wants to have a meeting, I get a little concerned. I didn't know what the meeting was about, but figured it was just a meeting to discuss work stuff. So, I go to the office, go into my office and notice things are looking a little bit cleaned up in my in boxes. Stuff I had IN my drawers are no longer in there, but are now out and on the shelf above my desk. Interesting. I get situated and ask if he did some house cleaning and he tells me "Kind of." So, we have our meeting and he tells me that he just doesn't know what he wants to do. Part of him feels like he wants to make a change, but part of him doesn't know if he should. We talk about his lack of communication. That I can't read his mind, yada yada. We had a pretty good honest discussion. I tell him that I am feeling frustrated because I can't do my job am not getting what I need from him. I tell him I've tried several different approaches and still not getting what I need. He tells me that he KNOWS he doesn't communicate with me, that he knows he needs to. That he knows billing is KEY and just needs to do it and give me his time so I can bill for it. Same stuff we've talked about before. So, seemed like the meeting was finished with him committing to trying harder to communicate and give me the stuff I need in order to do the billing. He leaves my office. A few minutes later he comes back in. And tells me that he has decided that he wants to make a change. That it has nothing to do with my performance (which is why I have a hard time saying I was "fired") and I didn't do anything wrong. I told him it's his company and if that's what he wants to do then that's his prerogative. But also told him that I don't think it matters WHO he has working for him, he still needs to communicate and get his billing done.
OK...so here's what sucks...on that Thursday, after we had had our first meeting, I was helping him with something at his desk and saw a message that was taken on 10/23, in someone else's writing. I asked him about and he said it was a friend of a co-worker who happened to be in the office while he was on the other line. Hmmm...that co-worker supposedly wasn't in the office that week. So, after doing some investigating on my own...I KNOW he had someone else working in there while the office was supposedly closed due to the fires. Ya know...fine, I got let go, but it's just the sleeziness of how he handled the situation. That's what bothers me the most. I shouldn't be surprised though. The way in which I was hired was handled in much the same way. However, I believe the lady I replaced could tell a change was coming. I was pretty much blind sighted. But honestly, it was the kick in the ass that I needed to get the HELL out of there. Who would want to to work for a man who is a HUGE procrastinator? And a terrible communicator? Nice guy, but really not a good business man. And not honest. How do you work for a man that you don't know if you can trust? In August, my paycheck did not get direct deposited. The company that processes his payroll had been leaving him messages for him to call back, but he was not returning their calls. Well...payday came and I did NOT get paid. I called him and asked what was going on. Got a call back that said he was going to look into it and would be in touch later that day. Never got a call back. I spent that whole weekend stressing about not getting paid. And the disrespect I was shown by him not prioritzing and taking care of it. Or at least making it a priority to make me feel at ease. It was until the next week that I actually got paid. And that was after I called Paychex to find out what needed to be done. I would take messages from design clients wanting to know the status of their remodel jobs, he did NOT return their phone calls. So, they would keep calling and I completely sympathized with them. If it were me, I would have dropped his ass from the projects and hired someone else. He told me he is a procrastinator. That even in college, a project would be due on Thursday and he would pull an all nighter to finish it. And then he would say something like "not that we're expecting you to pull an all nighter." But really, I think that is exactly what he is looking for. Someone to put up with his bullshit and not try to make his company successful and run smoothly. So, yeah...I'm a bit bitter. But it really was the jolt that I needed to find something better.
So, I've had two interviews for a job at Ray's company. The second one was just last Thursday. I'm going with the "No News is Good News" mentality as I didn't hear back from them on Thursday afternoon or Friday. I've passed my resume on to a couple people and hope I get good results from my little network. I applied for a job that Monster sent me. It's in Carlsbad. Sounds like a pretty good company to work for. They won some type of a Best Workplace award back in 2003. Also qualified for Unemployment and will hopefully get a little help from that.
Let's see...what else is new? Still not preggers...and not due to a lack of trying either! ;) We kid with each other that maybe his swimmies are old and tired and that my eggs are old and dried up. We haven't really gotten into the ovulation tests and the temperature readings yet. I have done an online ovulation calculator that predicts when I'm going to be most fertile based on the last three months of rag times. I'm more of a spontaneous kind of person and would like it to just happen. I don't want to have to chart it all out. Ray read somewhere that if after trying for a year and no results, to go see a doc. So, while we aren't getting any younger, we still have some time. :)
Hmmm...I think that's about it for this time. I'm not MIA, just not very good about keeping my blog updated. I didn't think anyone really read it or cared what I had to say. Then there's the other side of that where I could say more and really put myself out there, but feel like I have to be careful and not say too much. It seems like a very fine line. And is probably why I don't blog as often as I could. Anyway...til next time! :)
How about with Firestorm 2007? We live in Rancho Bernardo (because of the fires, peeps now know where RB is). We went to bed on Sunday night and there were two fires burning. Bummer, but I thought they'd be under control by Monday morning. The wind was SOOOO strong and gusty that Sunday night, that it kept waking us up every couple hours. Finally, at 5am I turned on the TV and there were now EIGHT wild fires going. The fire got about a mile and a half away from our condo. We were packed and ready to evacuate if need be. We were also glued to TV and watching the news. Every new street they named in RB where the fire was, we would Mapquest it to see where it was and how far away from where we were. The air was very smokey. Even with all our doors and windows shut, the smoke was getting inside our condo. At times we would wet face towels and breath through those. At one point on Monday, we had to go take care of Jane's cat since she was out of town. But in order to do that, we had to pack up the car and take our cats just in case we weren't able to get back to our place. For the same reason, we didn't want to split up. What if Ray went to take care of Jane's cat, but wasn't able to get back? Monday was the most stressful. Not really knowing what the winds were going to blow where. But we didn't really feel that our area was in too much danger. Although, in addition to watching the news, we looked out our windows often.
So...what else is going on? Oh! I know...how about me being gainfully unemployed. Yup! Got "let go" on 10/25/07...for those of you keeping track...that was the week of Firestorm 2007. There was no way I was going to work on Monday. I don't remember if my ex-boss called to tell me I didn't have to come in, or if I called him and told him I wasn't coming in. Then Tuesday, he called and told me he was going to keep the office closed and we'd try again on Wednesday. Then Wednesday came and I got a call that he was going to keep the office closed again. I was ready to go back to work, but he told me I didn't need to. Then Thursday morning, he called and told me he wanted to have a "little meeting" and asked what time I would be in. I don't know about you, but when a boss tells you that he wants to have a meeting, I get a little concerned. I didn't know what the meeting was about, but figured it was just a meeting to discuss work stuff. So, I go to the office, go into my office and notice things are looking a little bit cleaned up in my in boxes. Stuff I had IN my drawers are no longer in there, but are now out and on the shelf above my desk. Interesting. I get situated and ask if he did some house cleaning and he tells me "Kind of." So, we have our meeting and he tells me that he just doesn't know what he wants to do. Part of him feels like he wants to make a change, but part of him doesn't know if he should. We talk about his lack of communication. That I can't read his mind, yada yada. We had a pretty good honest discussion. I tell him that I am feeling frustrated because I can't do my job am not getting what I need from him. I tell him I've tried several different approaches and still not getting what I need. He tells me that he KNOWS he doesn't communicate with me, that he knows he needs to. That he knows billing is KEY and just needs to do it and give me his time so I can bill for it. Same stuff we've talked about before. So, seemed like the meeting was finished with him committing to trying harder to communicate and give me the stuff I need in order to do the billing. He leaves my office. A few minutes later he comes back in. And tells me that he has decided that he wants to make a change. That it has nothing to do with my performance (which is why I have a hard time saying I was "fired") and I didn't do anything wrong. I told him it's his company and if that's what he wants to do then that's his prerogative. But also told him that I don't think it matters WHO he has working for him, he still needs to communicate and get his billing done.
OK...so here's what sucks...on that Thursday, after we had had our first meeting, I was helping him with something at his desk and saw a message that was taken on 10/23, in someone else's writing. I asked him about and he said it was a friend of a co-worker who happened to be in the office while he was on the other line. Hmmm...that co-worker supposedly wasn't in the office that week. So, after doing some investigating on my own...I KNOW he had someone else working in there while the office was supposedly closed due to the fires. Ya know...fine, I got let go, but it's just the sleeziness of how he handled the situation. That's what bothers me the most. I shouldn't be surprised though. The way in which I was hired was handled in much the same way. However, I believe the lady I replaced could tell a change was coming. I was pretty much blind sighted. But honestly, it was the kick in the ass that I needed to get the HELL out of there. Who would want to to work for a man who is a HUGE procrastinator? And a terrible communicator? Nice guy, but really not a good business man. And not honest. How do you work for a man that you don't know if you can trust? In August, my paycheck did not get direct deposited. The company that processes his payroll had been leaving him messages for him to call back, but he was not returning their calls. Well...payday came and I did NOT get paid. I called him and asked what was going on. Got a call back that said he was going to look into it and would be in touch later that day. Never got a call back. I spent that whole weekend stressing about not getting paid. And the disrespect I was shown by him not prioritzing and taking care of it. Or at least making it a priority to make me feel at ease. It was until the next week that I actually got paid. And that was after I called Paychex to find out what needed to be done. I would take messages from design clients wanting to know the status of their remodel jobs, he did NOT return their phone calls. So, they would keep calling and I completely sympathized with them. If it were me, I would have dropped his ass from the projects and hired someone else. He told me he is a procrastinator. That even in college, a project would be due on Thursday and he would pull an all nighter to finish it. And then he would say something like "not that we're expecting you to pull an all nighter." But really, I think that is exactly what he is looking for. Someone to put up with his bullshit and not try to make his company successful and run smoothly. So, yeah...I'm a bit bitter. But it really was the jolt that I needed to find something better.
So, I've had two interviews for a job at Ray's company. The second one was just last Thursday. I'm going with the "No News is Good News" mentality as I didn't hear back from them on Thursday afternoon or Friday. I've passed my resume on to a couple people and hope I get good results from my little network. I applied for a job that Monster sent me. It's in Carlsbad. Sounds like a pretty good company to work for. They won some type of a Best Workplace award back in 2003. Also qualified for Unemployment and will hopefully get a little help from that.
Let's see...what else is new? Still not preggers...and not due to a lack of trying either! ;) We kid with each other that maybe his swimmies are old and tired and that my eggs are old and dried up. We haven't really gotten into the ovulation tests and the temperature readings yet. I have done an online ovulation calculator that predicts when I'm going to be most fertile based on the last three months of rag times. I'm more of a spontaneous kind of person and would like it to just happen. I don't want to have to chart it all out. Ray read somewhere that if after trying for a year and no results, to go see a doc. So, while we aren't getting any younger, we still have some time. :)
Hmmm...I think that's about it for this time. I'm not MIA, just not very good about keeping my blog updated. I didn't think anyone really read it or cared what I had to say. Then there's the other side of that where I could say more and really put myself out there, but feel like I have to be careful and not say too much. It seems like a very fine line. And is probably why I don't blog as often as I could. Anyway...til next time! :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
