Scheduling Shenanigans

The 4 days of training hours weren’t half as bad as my hours this past week. Training ran from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. which suited my not loving mornings and got me home in time to see the family but not quite early enough to eat with them.

In case you didn’t know having dinner with my man and child is a huge thing for me. At one point Dash’s work schedule was so bad he was seeing his other daughter Miska (who lives 4 hours away and he only gets to visit her every other weekend) more than he was seeing us. There were many a long uncomfortable conversation about fixing this – which we did but it took almost a year. So when it affects us we are very careful to make sure everyone is in agreement that the sacrifice is worth it and that ALL of us are willing to contribute to whatever cause it is I am working for.

This week however I did not get home before 11 p.m. During the training the company did not bother to ask for our availability and so I was aware that the schedule was going to be nasty. I talked it over with the family and it was decided, if this was what the company required then we would all pitch in to help around the house and with our time (i.e. not seeing each other as much as we’d have liked) but only because we knew that it would end on December 20th. It was stressful when I first saw it (yeah I cried). I made effort after effort all week to tell the higher ups that I had limitations and when the schedule was posted it was almost a slap in the face because the hours I got were in direct opposition to what I had asked for.

Tuesday our Team Leader (TL – Richie) handed out a sheet asking for our availability (poor guy was bombarded by people with the exact same problem) to his credit he did listen to his team and was making the effort to make us happy and until yesterday I was afraid it was going to be wasted effort – because as hard as he pushed for it, it was still out of his hands because Ama (HR – Director) was the one making the schedule. I have to say I am pleased because all my requests but one were given within a half hour time differential. The one still outstanding is a minor glitch I think can be remedied in another week. It means the family has to make a concession for it but at least it is workable and we don’t always get everything we want.

I got my first pay check yesterday. I deposited it this morning as well as glancing over the new bills coming in and the news letters from school. Not to much to worry about for damage control which is good so I intend to spend the rest of this afternoon doing what I want to do because the rest of the weekend is going to be loud fun with the fam.

Inbound

Okay so it works out that my big 2 month secret doesn’t need to be a secret that long. That Friday (which by now is a week ago) I half-assed sent out 3 resumes because our Christmas was in jeopardy of being non-existent. An hour later I received a phone call for an interview the following Monday.

Monday morning I awoke Bug for school and headed off for the shower (this is something I usually save for the evenings as it relaxes me). I dressed in my everyday clothes (I had 3 hours before I needed to leave for the interview), styled my hair and put my outfit on the bathroom door as Bug was leaving for school. I then decided to go out on the back sun porch for my morning smoke.

And here’s where things get interesting. A couple of weeks ago when Binner moved out we changed the locks. The new door knobs even when locked will turn from the inside. Yep that’s right I locked myself out wearing jeans and a t-shirt. I hurried to the school to see if Bug had her keys, she did not. From the office I called Dash to ask him if he thought I should take the bus/cab to him to pick-up his keys with only 2 hours to go before the interview. It would have been nearly impossible for me to make it on time so he decided to come home let me in so I could change my clothes and then he dropped me off.

I was hired for an Inbound Call Center Agent whose contract runs out on Dec.20th. The pay rate is $10 an hour and there is a bonus if we fulfill that contract $1 for every hour worked. The training was 4 arduous days long and yesterday was my first day on the phone. There have been some issues with scheduling but I guess I’ll have to do the best I can.

So the reason I was going to keep this all a secret is because I seem to have only a 2 month attention span with the jobs I take and was afraid if I got excited that it would happen again and disappoint myself. Seeing as how the contract is only 9 weeks long it won’t be me who tires first. At any rate since I spend all day in front of a computer screen I may not update more than once a week – I just can’t take looking at this bloody screen after an 8 hour day. I’ve also found it’s very tiring. Still trying to figure that one out.

Jinx Me Not

Ah! Is the weekend really almost over? I’m happy and sad about that. For a couple of reason but those are later. Let us begin with…

Thursday (I know not technically part of the weekend but that’s where the fun begins) – My daughter reminds me at bedtime that not only is she having a sleep over the next day but our friend Biz is visiting with his 2 kids for the weekend and us with little more than PB&J in the cupboards. So arrangements had to be made on the fly for me to have the truck on …

Friday so I can go grocery shopping. Since we only have the one vehicle and I shop like the world is coming to an end when I go. I can not be one of those people who shops via bus. How anyone does that really is beyond me.

• So I drop Dash at work.
• Do the shopping.
• Race home to prepare lunch for Bug.
• Open the mail and find out that the cable/internet bill is 4 days past cutoff.
• I borrow money on my overdraft to cover it.

Mind you this latter is of particular importance because as of September I should have been saving for the x-mas fund but we spent ½ of it on weather proofing the house ‘cause the landlord is a cheap bastard and the other ½ getting a $238 TV we salvaged fixed for half the price. So I had to use Octobers’ x-mas money to pay bills and I can see the trend building (I saw it building because I redid the budget to see what was going to happen) so I decide for the second day last week to half-ass look for a job (Tuesday I put out 3 e-mail résumé’s) another 3 e-mail résumé’s on Friday. I of course was shall we say quite a bit more than mildly depressed. Christmas is my favorite holiday and no not for the commercialism but because it is the one time of year I can give to my family freely. I love watching their faces light up, that’s my gift. I also love decorating the tree.

Anyhow an hour after that I got a surprise which I can not talk about for the next 2 months on the grounds that it may jinx me. I had to wait for Bug and her friend to get home from school to go pick up Dash which really sucks because Dash is finished work at 4pm Bug walks through the door from school at 3:45pm and we are stuck in rush hour traffic coming and going. We get home have dinner and then Biz drops off 2 more kids ages 3 and 5 to watch while he and Dash drive an hour coming and going to Barrie to drop off his niece at her Dad’s. By the time they get back we visit for an hour and then it’s off to bed for the yawning lot of us.

That will bring us to the slogged un-caffeinated Dash who was awakened by Bug’s friend’s father at 10:30. I really don’t understand parents who are up at the crack of dawn on a freakin’ Saturday. Haven’t these people heard of sleeping in? Especially since I asked her mom if she needed her home at any particular time and she said, no. Oh well that was one less mouth to feed. I made pancakes for 3 kids and 3 adults which put me in the kitchen into the afternoon. Cook then clean. We tried to take the youngins to the park but we got a mix of hail and rain so that forced us indoors again.

Sunday, hell is that today I guess for another couple of hours it is. Right so it was clean the house so I don’t have to worry about it this week because I may be otherwise occupied. I can’t say, really. I won’t find out until tomorrow anyway. Ah, look never could keep a secret so now I have to post before I ruin my future.

Simple Really

Our weekend with the in-laws to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving went very smoothly. Saturday morning Dash and I took a moment to enjoy a little delight then took the girls out to breakfast, after which Dash took his daughter Miska to a birthday play party at McDonald’s while Bug and I visited with Biz and an old friend Lisa. As dusk was settling in we went in search of the church (turned into a house on MLS). Which we found quite easily. It seems a little to close to the neighbors but still a consideration. That evening we had an impromptu dinner with family before Dash’s sis and brother-in-law scampered away for a party with friends.

Sunday was down right gorgeous so we spent the afternoon in the park while dinner was being prepared. I received many compliments on my homemade Dutch Apple Pie as well as the previous Christmas’ glazed Ham with petitions to prepare it again this year. Monday was misspent with Dash and I bickering followed by making-up the old fashioned way. Last night we rented Click . Overall not bad but I’m not fond of a movie changing its tone midway through. Today I’ve been posting my resume and cleaning up as we will be having a guest this evening. Later I’m hoping we’ll have time to watch X-men: The Last Stand . Pretty simple but that’s the way we like it.

Busy Bee

It’s definitely going to be a busy week. Yesterday I washed dishes and laundry until Bug got home from school whereupon Bug and I finished moving the remainder of her belongings downstairs while Dash fixed a chip in the trucks windshield as well as cleaning out the interior of said truck.

For dinner Bug cooked burritos while I washed still more dishes. After dinner Dash drilled a hole into the front room’s closet so that we could move the computer into that room freeing up the dining area for the huge heritage heirloom dining table we’ve had stored at Dash’s parents for about 3 years now.

By the time all of that was done it was 9 p.m. Dash retired to the bedroom to read himself sleepy as did Bug. I worked on moving our computer equipment into the new Office/Library. By myself it took until quarter of 1 a.m. to get things semi organized.

Today I’ve been to the bank, reworked the budget – a big YEAH ‘cause we’re on target – and have been putting plastic over the windows in preparation for the winter months. Tonight Dash has to put weather stripping up, drop off a TV for a repair estimate and stop by the grocery store while I cook dinner wash more dishes, laundry and I still have those 3 Terra Cotta projects to complete for the Monster Bash.

Not sure what will be happening tomorrow, probably moving the excess from room shifting to the garage, sweeping and Swifering. Thursday is Dash’s payday so that means I will be going to the bank and paying bills. Bug has a Cross Country Meet and then there’s the “Meet the Teacher” BBQ. I’d love being so warn out if it was helping me sleep better but it’s not. I still have hell-a insomnia!

Working Weekend

The house D and I currently rent is very poorly maintained. The basement foundation is cracked and so old it crumbles in some places to the touch. The furnace is a 1985 model. The windows are probably just about as old, the chalking is non existent or cracking and most of the windows have mold around them inside and out. The roof leaks in the bathroom and the back bedroom. The sun porch is literally falling off the house. This house is so old in fact its walls are made of slats not drywall and they are insulated with strips of newspaper.

When we call the landlord about problems he is quick to fix them, the problem is when he fixes them he puts the equivalent of a band aid on a cut that needs not merely stitching but staples. Trying to get this man to spend any kind of money is like pulling teeth from King Kong. My philosophy is if you put out the big bucks to have it fixed correctly then it will cost you less in the long run.

At any rate the point I am trying to get around to is that Dash and I had requested in order to stave off another high gas bill this winter, for him to chalk all the windows. After 2 weeks of waiting we decided to do it ourselves. We purchased plastic to cover all the windows, new weather stripping for the back door, four tubes of chalking and a chalking gun. Cost us about $50 and one afternoon of work.

Our other project is still under way. During the course of Binner’s stay we made every effort to make sure he was comfortable in his basement apartment. Moving chairs down there for him to use, keeping our eyes peeled for cast offs like the carpet D got from work as well as offering to help him fix it up. For the most part he feigned interest but didn’t really try to make it homey. Now that he is no longer with us we have moved Bug back down there.

And that my friend is how we spent our weekend.