Ahhh...March 31st. D-day. Well, at least for most government departments. It's the last day of the current fiscal year. Tomorrow is a new day, new money (well, we assume and only if the budget ever comes in on time) and new challenges.
And as part of this new fiscal cycle, that also means a new learning plan for me and a closing out of my old plan. This plan is really my goals and objectives for the year in terms of work, career progression and learning needs. I must say that our department is quite amazing at following through on these plans and they really do measure us to these plans. I'm really happy with the outcomes and my boss was gracious in her praise, provided extremely supportive comments to help me get out of my box and to be better than I can be, and basically, extremely pleased with my work. So good, I'm not fired...at least not for another year. That's always a plus.
But on the flip side of good news like this, there is always drama at the workplace, personalities to deal with and just crap jobs that I don't want to do. But work really is just work. And I was suddenly given another reminder that even though we should take work seriously, it really is not the end all be all.
Recently, my ex co-worker and friend had a stroke and sustained head injuries when she fell while having the stroke. She's currently on life support and I'm not really sure what's going to happen. However, the updates do not look good and I'm cautiously optimistic. I'm glad that the family has come together to be by her side, to assist with getting her back to Vancouver (as she was down in Palm Springs when this happened), and they are truly pulling together as a family to be strong for one another.
There honestly isn't much I can do to help her get better except to send good vibes, hope for the best and visit...even though she won't know I'm there. But if this isn't a reality check and reminder for me to just leave work at work, I don't know what is. I've been good at doing it in the past, I just have to keep on remembering. Life can change in an instant and you can lose all that is important to you in your life.
Thinking of you Helen.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Online sales
I've been an active Ebayer lately. And that's because I'm selling a whole bunch of Coke items. Some have done better than others. But either way, it's money in the bank. I told some of my co-workers about this and they started to cut deals with me...i.e. I'll give you 10% of whatever this sells if you set this online to sell. Seriously, it's easy money. If you can't take a picture and describe an item, then it's free money to me.
However, to sell textbooks online for somebody? That's going to take some talent and I probably won't even do it. I find it a little more difficult and if it requires shipping and handling too...then it ends up costing too much. But maybe I'm the one doing something wrong and not selling this stuff right to make a profit.
Who knows? But I think it's just best that I stick to what I know....
However, to sell textbooks online for somebody? That's going to take some talent and I probably won't even do it. I find it a little more difficult and if it requires shipping and handling too...then it ends up costing too much. But maybe I'm the one doing something wrong and not selling this stuff right to make a profit.
Who knows? But I think it's just best that I stick to what I know....
Alarms
My office is just about finished their renovation. It's been weeks. And I can't even keep track of all the renos. However, it's taken much too long...but I am thankful that our kitchen finally has a sink...that works...and I don't have to read another update about it.
But the one thing that they goofed up on, at least for a day was to keep the alarm chime on. OMG. Do you know how many times the doors open in the office. And it would just keep chiming.
I guess I muttered under my breath about this chiming and my co-worker next to me mentioned that this chiming was nothing. I thought she was on crack. She said that the way her system is set up at home, when you have the chime on, that means everytime you open the door, you hear the alarm chiming as if you were setting it on and there's a male voice that blurts out "FRONT DOOR OPEN." And apparently it's not quiet. She says she sticks with her system because it's a heck of a lot cheaper than other home security systems around. Hmmmm. I don't think hearing all that noise is worth it!
But the one thing that they goofed up on, at least for a day was to keep the alarm chime on. OMG. Do you know how many times the doors open in the office. And it would just keep chiming.
I guess I muttered under my breath about this chiming and my co-worker next to me mentioned that this chiming was nothing. I thought she was on crack. She said that the way her system is set up at home, when you have the chime on, that means everytime you open the door, you hear the alarm chiming as if you were setting it on and there's a male voice that blurts out "FRONT DOOR OPEN." And apparently it's not quiet. She says she sticks with her system because it's a heck of a lot cheaper than other home security systems around. Hmmmm. I don't think hearing all that noise is worth it!
Monday, March 29, 2010
School
I recently went to my daughter's parent-teacher conference. Or should I say, student led conference. Basically my daughter walked me through everything that I would want to know about her life and her work at school. The teacher provided a checklist for her so she could ensure that everything was covered. Interesting way of doing things. And I suppose what they call empowering.
It was kind of neat to see all the different activities, how they learn math, and what level my daugher could truly read at. But what was most amazing to me was how much she's learned in terms of reading and writing. I was actually stunned. At the beginning of the year, everything was sounded out and it was painful to read.
"I red a buk." Ouch.
But by the last entry, she had written full sentences, fully articulated how she felt about something, described something in detail and had no spelling mistakes. It was really incredible!
Nice job to my kid for grasping all of it...but thank you to this teacher and all the other teachers that help our children learn such amazing things!
It was kind of neat to see all the different activities, how they learn math, and what level my daugher could truly read at. But what was most amazing to me was how much she's learned in terms of reading and writing. I was actually stunned. At the beginning of the year, everything was sounded out and it was painful to read.
"I red a buk." Ouch.
But by the last entry, she had written full sentences, fully articulated how she felt about something, described something in detail and had no spelling mistakes. It was really incredible!
Nice job to my kid for grasping all of it...but thank you to this teacher and all the other teachers that help our children learn such amazing things!
Monday, March 22, 2010
Work
I was having lunch with someone today and they were telling me their current daycare nightmare. Basically, they can't find anything for their little one. And the husband basically isn't working but is looking for employment.
Wow. That's a tough one. Because with one person out of work, basically the other person's paycheque is paying for everything else...and the cost of daycare these days, well, that's a whole cheque, if not more.
I'm not quite sure how she is going to find daycare either. I put one of my kids on a number of wait lists...and I had 2 centres that called me back...just to find out if I'm still interested.
Since my time of looking for daycare, apparently many of the daycares now are asking people to pay an annual fee to just to keep their name on a waitlist. OMG. That is insane. It's only been a small number of years since I've had to look and secure daycare. Let's just say, I feel terrible for this co-worker and I hope she finds something soon. Talk about a STRESS inducing situation!
Ugh. No drama for me please.
Wow. That's a tough one. Because with one person out of work, basically the other person's paycheque is paying for everything else...and the cost of daycare these days, well, that's a whole cheque, if not more.
I'm not quite sure how she is going to find daycare either. I put one of my kids on a number of wait lists...and I had 2 centres that called me back...just to find out if I'm still interested.
Since my time of looking for daycare, apparently many of the daycares now are asking people to pay an annual fee to just to keep their name on a waitlist. OMG. That is insane. It's only been a small number of years since I've had to look and secure daycare. Let's just say, I feel terrible for this co-worker and I hope she finds something soon. Talk about a STRESS inducing situation!
Ugh. No drama for me please.
Celebrities
How many celebrities do adult acne ads? Ummm...more than I can think of. Anytime I see this one product that deals with this issue, it seems like it's a different person each time. Seriously? These ads must pay these celebrities good money or the celebrities are not selling the product quick enough.
But wow. It's like a revolving door!!! Well, if they ever want to use me as a spokesperson, I'd be happy to oblige.
But wow. It's like a revolving door!!! Well, if they ever want to use me as a spokesperson, I'd be happy to oblige.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Back to Work
Well, it's obvious not much has changed at work. I know I've been gone a month and hoped for a miracle. But so much for wishful thinking.
Some folks are still crazy. Some demands are just stupid. Some are just as negative. And some rules, just don't make sense.
And now that my eyes have been opened to the "other" side, the other side does seem appealing. Don't get me wrong, I'm not giving up my government job because let's be honest, it's not financially sound in the long run and security is not something you can buy these days.
But the thought of getting things done because of rules that make sense, the thought of being able to think outside the box and being rewarded for it is very appealing. I hope to bring some of that experience back into my office. But already, there seems to be resistance to that. And it's a shame. I don't feel bad because they're not accepting my own personal ideas, but it's the fact that sometimes new ideas are just thrown aside because it's easy to and rules allow us to.
Ideas from me may not generate the answer to anything. But it can be the spark that leads someone to think of a great idea. And isn't that worth exploring?
I just think I'm extra sensitive to the negativity at the workplace and to the things I dislike about my environment. Don't get me wrong, it's really not that bad compared to some places I've worked. But gosh, being positive most of the time and being shot down almost all the time seems like a lot of wasted energy some days.
Some folks are still crazy. Some demands are just stupid. Some are just as negative. And some rules, just don't make sense.
And now that my eyes have been opened to the "other" side, the other side does seem appealing. Don't get me wrong, I'm not giving up my government job because let's be honest, it's not financially sound in the long run and security is not something you can buy these days.
But the thought of getting things done because of rules that make sense, the thought of being able to think outside the box and being rewarded for it is very appealing. I hope to bring some of that experience back into my office. But already, there seems to be resistance to that. And it's a shame. I don't feel bad because they're not accepting my own personal ideas, but it's the fact that sometimes new ideas are just thrown aside because it's easy to and rules allow us to.
Ideas from me may not generate the answer to anything. But it can be the spark that leads someone to think of a great idea. And isn't that worth exploring?
I just think I'm extra sensitive to the negativity at the workplace and to the things I dislike about my environment. Don't get me wrong, it's really not that bad compared to some places I've worked. But gosh, being positive most of the time and being shot down almost all the time seems like a lot of wasted energy some days.
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