Too Tired

Well, a week ago, I began working as a seasonal employee.  We're told that it may last until Christmas, but more than likely, we'll be done by around Thanksgiving.  I am having some trouble adjusting to the different hours -- 4:15 pm to 12:45 am, and now (tonight) adding an extra hour ('til 1:45am) to keep from being behind schedule.  (Saturdays, 12:15-6:15 pm.)  I am not all that happy with being just One of the "collective" at work...  We all go on our breaks together, all come back and work diligently, we all go to lunch break as a group and leave as a group.  There is really not much of any place for any independent actions.  We have our task and we're all working to meet the goals that have been set for us.

I keep telling myself that I am doing this for the money and it's just temporary.  Having to live off of my savings for most of this year and having no income, I need to be replenishing my bank account rather than depleting it. 

Finding enough time to get enough sleep is still a challenge for me.

Disappointment

Today, I had an interview at 9:00 am and I managed to get there on time after only 4-5 hours of sleep.  Well, when I arrived, I was told that they had changed their mind and weren't hiring anyone -- they were going to use the personnel that they already had instead of adding a new employee.  Imagine my disappointment when I heard this.  For a week, I have been hoping that this job would be the one for me.

Well, I need to go back to bed so I can get a nap before going to a seasonal job this afternoon.

I'm feeling very dejected and depressed. 

 

New Job

Finally, I begin working at a new job today.  After many, many months of looking and calling and going to interviews and mailing out copies of my resume, I can begin to feel productive again.  Hopefully, our local economy is getting better because it seems that there are more new job listings coming out every few days.  This certainly wasn't the case a year ago.

When I was first laid off, I spent (wasted) a lot of time wallowing in depression and self-doubt.  I am from a family with a good work ethic that strongly believes in pulling yourself up by your bootstraps and getting your act together.  "... but with God, all things are possible." ~Matthew 19:26

I am admitting that I couldn't have gotten through the last year if it hadn't been for all of the continuing and faithful prayers for me by family and friends.  I feel stronger and a bit wiser now after having gone through this trial.  There may be a few more bumps in the road ahead, but I'm not going this alone.   

I Hate Waiting

I don't know about you, but I have been doing a lot of waiting.  I think that I am a pretty patient person, but lately, it seems like I am always having to wait for something important to be determined.  As a job-seeker, I have many applications and copies of my resume out for consideration for many job openings that I have been interested in. 
Right now,
I am waiting for a answer about a new health insurance policy that is being underwritten.  I started the application process three weeks ago and didn't know it would go on for this long.
I am also waiting for the vet to call and say that they have a prescription ready to be picked up.
I am waiting to get a call for a start date and schedule beginning a new job that I have accepted as of last Wednesday.  (They were waiting on results from a drug test as far as I know.)
I am waiting to hear about results from an interview last Friday for an even better job offering better hours and better salary than the one that I accepted, but haven't yet started.
I am waiting for a favorable decision to an appeal of 3-4 months of unemployment compensation that I haven't been paid for and which I feel that I am due benefits.
I am waiting for the mailman to come by and can pick up my outgoing mail.  (He used to always get here before noon each day, but now I never can predict his appearance.)  I have to keep my inside door locked until the mail is pushed through the mail slot.  Then, I can open my door to let some light come into the foyer from outside. 
Lastly, I am waiting for a call from my doctor's office about rescheduling an appointment that I canceled because of the health insurance not being in force yet.
It's not too much to ask that I get some answers today.
  

TGIF?!?

I woke this morning confused about what day it was.  Since Monday was a holiday, my days have been all mixed up.

After deciding that today was Friday, I made myself presentable and went to a really good job interview at 9:45.  It was with a staffing agency for a job with a local health care provider and I believe that things look very favorable for me at this point.  I was the first person to respond to the ad and, as far as I know, no one else has applied for it.  This job opening comes on the heels of an offer that I have just about committed myself to this week.  (I haven't heard the results of a drug screening done Wednesday afternoon.)  However, the newer one pays better and has better hours and has more potential.  On my way out of the interview, I got a voice mail message on my cell phone for another interview with another company.  After job-hunting for 15 months with little or no response, this is a bit overwhelming for me.

*************************************************************************************

My Siamese cat had a seizure early this morning and it freaked me out.  I have seen this happen to him two other times in the last year and a half.  He acts as if he's having a stroke and seems helpless and disoriented.  I held him for a few minutes and stroked him reassuringly, but he wanted to be let down.
After I returned home this afternoon, he has seemed quieter than usual and he didn't come to the door and greet me.  I've done some research on the internet and I called the vet and asked them and it seems that it isn't that uncommon.  One thing I read was that an "episode" like this is usually preceded by a period of increased activity.  And, come to think of it, he's been running around like a banshee for the past couple of days.       

What a Wednesday!

Boy, I got a lot done today.  I'll admit that I've gotten really lazy since losing my job a year ago.

It might not seem like much to you, but here's what I got done today:
1)   garbage can out to the street before 7:00 am.  (Stinky refrigerator leftovers were thrown out.)
2)   vacuumed carpet all over - swept kitchen - put away clean dishes 
3)   cleaned bathroom and toilet
4)   retrieved (6) empty garbage cans from street for myself and my elderly neighbors
5)   put away clean laundry after taking a shower
6)   had nice lunch with my sister at Chik-Fil-A
7)   went to job callback and signed papers to begin working soon (30-minute drive)
8)   did drug test at NowCare place (They made me feel like I was a criminal.)
9)   dropped off application and resume across town before they closed at 6:00 pm.
10) shopped at Office Max for school supplies and resume paper and inkjet printer ink
11) shopped at Target - looked for some bargains, but only got a few necessary items
12) drove 30 minutes home - stopping at Food Lion grocery store to get dinner
13) cooked dinner (heated up a Stoffer's meal in microwave) and ate with my son
14) watched a couple of TV show reruns to relax and unwind
15) signed and filled out a pile of papers sent home from school
16) logged in and added this little entry into my Blog
17) logged out and went to bed

First Day of School

For many students, today was the first day back in class this fall.  My son has a new school, new bus route and a new chance to do better this year than he did last year.  I could have made things a little less stressful, but I made the mistake of not going to the orientation last week and getting a floor plan or map so he'd know the layout of the unfamiliar school.  My Bad.

This morning when the clock radio came on at 6:12, things were a bit blurry as I got up to make sure that my son was able to meet the bus a couple of blocks away.  I remember that queasy feeling in the pit of your stomach on the first day -- so much unknown and so much dread of the day ahead.

As it turns out, things weren't so bad after all.  Around 3:00pm, my son came in the front door and walked past with a grin on his face instead of a scowl.  By the way, there's a nice guy (looks like he's an American Indian) that waits at the same bus stop.  He made me think of the character: Joseph Gribble, John Redcorn's illegitimate son from the TV show "King of the Hill". 
(I guess, that makes my son the character: Bobby Hill.)

Do you remember certain smells that bring back a rush of memories from childhood?
1) PBJ in wax paper conjures up memories of elementary school for me.
2) A certain vinyl or plastic smell will make me think of new school supplies.
3) Crayons, Elmers glue, chalk -- school
Whew!  I'm too tired to think of more.

Rain, rain, rain

As I sit here today, we're getting the benefits from rain associated with hurricane Earl skirting past the VA coastline.  I could hear the dripping on the outside of the windows and from the gutters even before I got out of bed this morning and it was such a pleasant sound.  We surely could have used this rainfall back in July.  I think that I got away with not having to cut my grass for a month because it was so dry outside.
And, of all the things this week that I recall being cancelled due to the impending storm, I thought that the most ridiculous thing was Amtrak suspending service to our region two days ago.

Here's why hurricanes are easier to deal with than other natural disasters:  We have the storms tracked and examined in excruciating detail for days and days before they get here.  In other parts of the country, the events of tornadoes, wild fires, earth quakes, flash floods, etc... come with little or no warning.   There's really no excuse for not being able to get out of the way of a hurricane these days.

************************************************************************************

I have been having some neck and shoulder pain this week and started taking the generic form of Aleve (Naproxen) about two days ago.  Almost at once, I started feeling like I had swollen ankles, so now, I've done some research on the side effects and find that fluid retention is listed.  Well, I guess I won't be taking anymore of that pain reliever.  Also, it didn't really seem to offer me much pain relief.

 

Small Beginnings

I had a very favorable interview today for a seasonal job that may last until Thanksgiving.  So, why is it that it didn't give me a sense of relief or make me feel any happier?  Even though I really need a full-time income again to try and recover from the financial losses that I've been through in the past year, I will look at this as a small "step of faith" that things are beginning to move in the right direction.

A dear friend of mine emailed me tonight with some words of encouragement.  He has been out of work longer than I have and, I believe, everyone should be so fortunate to have such a friend.  I have been able to rely on him as a ear to listen to my woes and as a shoulder to lean on and as a voice on the other end of the phone when I don't know who else to call.

September at last!

This summer seems like it will never end.  And, the older that I get, the more I hate the heat and humidity that come with the summer months.  When you get in your car and it just takes your breath away because it's so darned Hot inside.  When you open the front door in the morning and it feels like someone just threw a wet washcloth in your face.  Yes, I long for the cooler months that are coming... when you can put on a jacket when you go out, when you can turn off the A/C and save on the electric bill, when you can actually spend some time sitting out in the backyard listening to the birds.

The big News item today here in VA is the impending hurricane.  The current forecast has Earl right off of our coast by Friday at 8:00 am.  When I used to live in Va. Beach, the things that would fly off of the shelves of the stores in the wake of a hurricane were: bottled water, bread, beer, chips, batteries and potted meat.  Almost the same menu at Superbowl time, minus the water and batteries.  They used to tell us to tape up the insides of windows, like making a big "X" with duct tape.  This was probably just a campaign to try and sell more duct tape.  It doesn't offer any true protection and it's hard to get cleaned off if you let it stay on for too long.  The theory was, that if a tree came crashing through the window, the duct tape would minimize the shattering of the glass. 

Hopefully, we won't have any damage from this storm.