Wednesday night B came home and told me he had heard from his boss at his former job. She wanted him to call her. In a nutshell, they reorganized the department (which spreads across 4 local hospitals/clinics), fired everyone, and made everyone re-apply. After round 1 they had an open position running the clinic at a hospital only a few miles from us. Although some other internal people were applying for the position, she specifically recruited B. The catch - the job closed Thursday (the next day) so he had to apply right away. He decided to do it.
I decided to take a bath shortly after that call. While I was reading a book and relaxing, B was messing around on the internet and I heard him let out a hearty laugh. I cried. It wasn't until that moment that I realized it had been weeks since I'd heard him laugh. S.A.D., being miserable at your job, and family stressors are no joke. Just the mere thought of being out of his job lifted his spirits and allowed him to laugh.
Thursday morning the boss set up a lunch interview with B - and she came to him! Thursday at 5pm she left him a message to call her, and at 5:15 he called her back and was offered the position. He asked for the evening to talk it over with me, even though it was a no-brainer. It's a rare hospital nursing job (9-5:30, days only, and no weekends), and it's back working with patients. Needless to say he accepted early Friday morning. It's now been 3 days and I feel like the fog has been lifted.
I took Friday off to help move my grandma. While it was sad, the overwhelming stench of urine and hearing my mom whisper "she wet the bed again last night" made me realize we were getting her out of a bad situation. My uncle and cousin came to help, and as a team we helped move her to her new place. She may only have a small bedroom and en suite bath to herself, but the house is beautiful. It smelled lovely, the sun was shining, and her new caregivers are so nice. Day 1 they were so patient with her and they were already working with her on some physical therapy for her back. We're all hoping this is a better place for her.
Today (Monday), I had a meeting with my supervisor to go over the results of my 360 review. Although I wasn't worried, it's always nervewracking. We're rated on 16 items on a 1-5 scale, plus there is a section for comments. I suggest 2 people to review me, my supervisor picks 2, and she rates me too. Overall, I got a 4.5 out of 5, which is virtually unheard of (high). She said she was really proud of me, and then proceeded to tell me that one reviewer had actually suggested I be a member of our Leadership Development Team, and yet another suggested I be promoted!! She thought this was a good idea, but she wanted to talk to me about what the promotion would mean. I was SO flattered that one of my reviewers would say I deserve a promotion, and even more flattered that my supervisor agreed. I'm talking with a few people that have made the transition from my current role to the potential new one to see if I'm interested in it, and I'm supposed to get back to her.
So to sum up my past week:
Wednesday: B gets possible job opportunity
Thursday: B gets interviewed and gets job
Friday: B accepts job and we move my grandma into a lovely new place
Monday: High praise from my boss and the offer of a promotion
YES! Insert heavy sigh of relief (and jumping up and down with excitement) here! Finally things are moving in the right direction, and I couldn't be happier.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
I'd like a break
Yeesh, someday soon I hope to have something happy to write about! In the meantime, this is certainly a low time in my life. What was supposed to be a happy event on Saturday (my cousin's wedding) quickly turned scary. In the middle of her reception, there is a lot of activity going on at the table my parents are sitting at. My mom is in a panic, and my dad is extremely pale. His eyes are closed and my mom tells me he's very dizzy, having trouble seeing, and he can't stand up.
My mom is about to lose it, and she tells me to call 911 (which my uncle has already done). Before I know it, a zillion EMTs, paramedics, and hotel staff are surrounding my dad. I've never been more grateful to have a husband for a nurse. He was calm, did some basic assessments, and made me feel much better about everything.
After a trip to the ER and a CT scan, they decided it was vertigo and "near fainting" and they sent him home. A much better diagnosis then the stroke they were worried about, but still very stressful.
Sunday was spent packing up my grandma. About a year ago my mom and uncles moved her from her huge house into assisted living. A few months ago she was diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer's Disease, and in the last month she has deteriorated rapidly. She's blind from macular degeneration (sp?), and she's no longer able to find the bathroom on her own. She is easily confused, and her care facility has been doing a very poor job of caring for her. She pays a whopping $5,500 a month to basically be neglected, so my mom found a great new place for her. The new home is run by a mother/daughter pair, and they have 3 people maximum. Right now there is only 1 other person.
Thankfully she is happy to be moving, but packing her up is so sad. She is confused about a lot of things, and she can no longer do the things she loves (sewing and quilting) because her brain can no longer process how to sew. She wouldn't even answer the phone while we were there because she "couldn't find it" even though it was right next to her.
On top of those things, I'm dealing with a potential job offer in Denver (to move or not to move?), a husband in the throws of S.A.D. and a job that makes him miserable, and my own job stress. I'm trying to be supportive of my mom who is dealing with both my dad and her mom, but I'm trying to maintain my own sanity in the process. It remains to be seen if I'll be successful! I'm looking forward to 3 week of 4-day workweeks. This Friday will be spent moving my grandma, but the next two Fridays will hopefully be relaxing and spent with a good book.
My mom is about to lose it, and she tells me to call 911 (which my uncle has already done). Before I know it, a zillion EMTs, paramedics, and hotel staff are surrounding my dad. I've never been more grateful to have a husband for a nurse. He was calm, did some basic assessments, and made me feel much better about everything.
After a trip to the ER and a CT scan, they decided it was vertigo and "near fainting" and they sent him home. A much better diagnosis then the stroke they were worried about, but still very stressful.
Sunday was spent packing up my grandma. About a year ago my mom and uncles moved her from her huge house into assisted living. A few months ago she was diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer's Disease, and in the last month she has deteriorated rapidly. She's blind from macular degeneration (sp?), and she's no longer able to find the bathroom on her own. She is easily confused, and her care facility has been doing a very poor job of caring for her. She pays a whopping $5,500 a month to basically be neglected, so my mom found a great new place for her. The new home is run by a mother/daughter pair, and they have 3 people maximum. Right now there is only 1 other person.
Thankfully she is happy to be moving, but packing her up is so sad. She is confused about a lot of things, and she can no longer do the things she loves (sewing and quilting) because her brain can no longer process how to sew. She wouldn't even answer the phone while we were there because she "couldn't find it" even though it was right next to her.
On top of those things, I'm dealing with a potential job offer in Denver (to move or not to move?), a husband in the throws of S.A.D. and a job that makes him miserable, and my own job stress. I'm trying to be supportive of my mom who is dealing with both my dad and her mom, but I'm trying to maintain my own sanity in the process. It remains to be seen if I'll be successful! I'm looking forward to 3 week of 4-day workweeks. This Friday will be spent moving my grandma, but the next two Fridays will hopefully be relaxing and spent with a good book.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Work traveling
As I write this, I’m sitting on a plane bound for Denver, then on home to Portland. Of course, the seat in front of me is reclined so far that I can’t even open my laptop fully, but I’m lucky to have one of 3 open seats next to me. I think the 6’4” guy in the aisle seat is even more grateful for the open seat so he can sprawl a bit more. I just finished watching Eat, Pray, Love, which (minus the 30 minutes I fell asleep during), was just as bad as I had heard it was.
I’ve been in DC for work for the past week. I don’t travel for work frequently – just enough for people to think it’s a huge perk. Let’s face it though, I really don’t enjoy traveling for work. I don’t like being alone, in a city I don’t know anything about. I don’t like jet lag, coupled with the expectation that I’m going to be awake enough for meetings that would be boring were I not jet lagged and sleep deprived. Now that I’m married, I loathe sleeping alone. B is a natural furnace, so although we sleep in 65-68 degrees at night, I have to crank up the heat to 76 and wear a long sleeved shirt, yoga pants, and socks to stay warm enough when I’m alone. I miss my kitties. I miss my routines. I miss my husband (even though he’s sick, so being apart has probably helped spare my immune system). I constantly find myself thinking that it would be so much fun if I had my traveling buddy with me. Exploring restaurants on your own isn’t nearly as much fun. I love my boss, but she’s not super chatty, so going out with her can be awkward.
While I generally don’t like traveling, there are certainly some perks. On this trip I got to have dinner with 2 high school friends. It was fantastic to catch up with them, and we’ve made plans to get together when they come home for Christmas (they are sisters). I also found time to squeeze in lunch with a colleague from my old work. Although I was sad to hear that she is still unhappy at her job, it was really nice to catch up with her and give her some support. If I find myself in DC again soon, I might try and actually meet some bloggers in person as well. It’s definitely a perk that work pays for all of my food, and luckily the hotel this time had lots of places close by. One night a group of us had yummy vegan Chinese food, and last night we got Persian take-out. So while overall I’d rather be home, this was a work trip that had a nice amount of fun in it. I also felt very accomplished that I was able to navigate the DC metro system quite well. If only every town signed everything so well.
In about 5 hours I’ll be home, snuggling up to my love and likely getting mauled by the cats. I can’t wait. In the words of Dorothy, “there’s no place like home.”
I’ve been in DC for work for the past week. I don’t travel for work frequently – just enough for people to think it’s a huge perk. Let’s face it though, I really don’t enjoy traveling for work. I don’t like being alone, in a city I don’t know anything about. I don’t like jet lag, coupled with the expectation that I’m going to be awake enough for meetings that would be boring were I not jet lagged and sleep deprived. Now that I’m married, I loathe sleeping alone. B is a natural furnace, so although we sleep in 65-68 degrees at night, I have to crank up the heat to 76 and wear a long sleeved shirt, yoga pants, and socks to stay warm enough when I’m alone. I miss my kitties. I miss my routines. I miss my husband (even though he’s sick, so being apart has probably helped spare my immune system). I constantly find myself thinking that it would be so much fun if I had my traveling buddy with me. Exploring restaurants on your own isn’t nearly as much fun. I love my boss, but she’s not super chatty, so going out with her can be awkward.
While I generally don’t like traveling, there are certainly some perks. On this trip I got to have dinner with 2 high school friends. It was fantastic to catch up with them, and we’ve made plans to get together when they come home for Christmas (they are sisters). I also found time to squeeze in lunch with a colleague from my old work. Although I was sad to hear that she is still unhappy at her job, it was really nice to catch up with her and give her some support. If I find myself in DC again soon, I might try and actually meet some bloggers in person as well. It’s definitely a perk that work pays for all of my food, and luckily the hotel this time had lots of places close by. One night a group of us had yummy vegan Chinese food, and last night we got Persian take-out. So while overall I’d rather be home, this was a work trip that had a nice amount of fun in it. I also felt very accomplished that I was able to navigate the DC metro system quite well. If only every town signed everything so well.
In about 5 hours I’ll be home, snuggling up to my love and likely getting mauled by the cats. I can’t wait. In the words of Dorothy, “there’s no place like home.”
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