In the Be Careful for What You Wish For file is this week. After three months of wondering wth my job share partner does with her time, I'm finding out. She "resigned" on Friday.
In my excitement to not be working with someone who is condescending and inept, I somehow missed the whole I Will Be Working More memo. After waxing poetic about loving working in the afternoons, I am working in the mornings. After telling Kevin I wasn't worried about spending $300 on fixing one of the heaters in the truck and justifying it with "It won't be frosty when I leave for work", I suddenly need that heater. (although we haven't had a frost yet, which is weird)
It was fun anticipating and then doing the redecorating and organization of the desk. Partner used sticky notes for many things. There were five of them just on the monitor. (two of which were passwords, because security) They were the very first thing I took care of. The second thing was all the papers on the bulletin boards, a lot of which were outdated. Even though the office provided a set of speakers and a lamp, she had two more. Unnecessary clutter and paperwork, my favorites!
Partner worked there for about a year and a half. It's like she sat down at the desk and that was it. She added sticky notes and papers to the bulletin board and...yeah, that seems to be it. One of the desk drawers was full of empty file hangers and folders. So, if you opened it, it kind of looked like there was stuff going on, but not at all if you looked closely.
While I do enjoy the personal vindication of being right about her, I'm not enjoying as much the cleaning of the mess. Just today, four days later, I'm starting to be able to breathe again. I feel like I've opened every drawer and looked through every file. I can safely say that if I find any more surprises (like two packs of sticky notes and two boxes of pens tucked in the back of an unused drawer, after I had cleaned out everything) I'm going to go full internet meme style desk flip.
The one scary part of this new situation is that I need to learn insurance billing. The process is convoluted and can require three websites to complete. Three. Websites. Oh, and bonus: two have to be run in Internet Explorer. Sigh. I'm going to have to use my OCD powers for good. Right now there are 115 kids and there will be 130 by December. I am praying to every from of god there is that this doesn't turn into some kind of goat rodeo.
So, yeah, after all my talk of working part time, I'm now going to be working 35 hours. After stating that I didn't want a high responsibility job, insurance billing. I need to make better choices.
22 October 2015
05 October 2015
A Lot of Important Thoughts From a Simple Music CD
In order to make room for the newly inherited and organized photo albums, I had to clean out a cupboard that we rarely use. It's a cute little cupboard/built-in but it is out of the way to store anything that is frequently useful. It is in the hallway, next to the office and common folk bathroom. It is perfect to store DVD's, games, and CD's though. As always, it didn't occur to me to take a photo beforehand so you'll have to trust me. But this is what it looks like on the outside:
The top section was filled with movies. DVD's, VHS tapes, and box sets. I had even gone as far as to have a section for Christmas movies and books. (I have issues, I know. Totally aware) The bottom section was filled with CD's. I had them stored in miniature apple crates in our old house and somehow they fit perfectly into this cupboard.
I've talked before about what to do with the hundreds of CD's we have. Most of the music Kevin wants is loaded onto a SD card in his phone, which is fantastic until the SD card goes away as they sometimes do. I need to look into online storage for him but it is a lot of data to upload.
I have some music on my phone from CD's but mostly I use Amazon Prime Music or Sirius. What is on my phone is the Go-To Music, the can't live without stuff. U2, 54/40, Barenaked Ladies (Could I be more Canadian?)
It boils down to an anxiety thing. I don't want to let the CD's go because What-If. Yet, there are so many of them. Although I do listen to them occasionally. One would think that with Sirius radio and a billion stations to listen to, I wouldn't get trapped in Radio Hell but I still do. Radio Hell is when there simply isn't good music playing, or more accurately perhaps, music you're in the mood to hear. In that case, I have a lone Jack Johnson CD in the truck. It used to be Bon Jovi, so clearly I've grown.
Here is what I finally did, or am in the process of doing. I started going through the boxes and taking out CD's that I know I will probably never listen to again. CD's that were bought on a whim, gifts, or just musical tastes have changed. That act culled a few but not as many as I had hoped. Then I gave it a few days and went through them again. I may have taken a few more out but not many.
It is strange how musical tastes change. Or maybe not taste per se but just plain tired of hearing a song or band. Especially now that I am at an age that popular music from my youth is being used in commercials and played in grocery stores. There were a few CD's that I used to love that I was all "Ugh, I'll be happy to never hear that again."
Then I went through again and took out the CD's that I can't live without. The aforementioned bands, Tom Petty, Glee soundtracks, anything from Eminem to Dixie Chicks. This leaves me with 60 CD's that I am keeping and need to find a home for. Still a lot.
Now Kevin is next. I'm going to have him do the same thing I did: take out the music he'll never listen to and then choose the stuff he can't live without if his phone gets lost or whatever. He is not looking forward to this at all. I can't blame him. It's taken me weeks to get this far. Then I will do a final cull and off to Goodwill they go.
I already had him go through the movies and he took out about ten DVD's and mocked my keeping any VHS tapes. It's not like there are a bunch of them and it's mostly racing stuff, some footage of him racing. I took out about only the same amount of DVD's so there will be no judging on either of our behalf.
At least with the DVD's, the format hasn't changed for a few years. It was VHS/Beta, then it was laser disc and then it was DVD's and Blueray. Now it's streaming video and DVR's and while I use that too, it's nice to have the movies in my physical possession. I think it's the same with these CD's. The formats will change probably but I have these for now.
One thought I had about the movies was "Will I watch these once I retire or in a home?" (I know, I went a little dark there in my considerations) Certainly the technology will have changed by then again but we're in the What-If category again. One would think that would prompt me to keep them more but I thought about it and actually became a little more ruthless.
This leaves one shelf that holds games. Monopoly, cribbage, an authentic 1970's Newlywed Game, and games that have just accumulated over time. We don't play them anymore but I just know that someday we will. The kids will be over, or we'll be retired with nothing else to do, or whatever. They live on the bottom shelf so it's not like it's valuable real estate being taken up. I have chosen to ignore that shelf entirely for now. Even though I still have to find a home to store the CD's we are keeping. We will come to that standoff eventually.
So...the point...hmmm...there are a few: stop keeping crap you don't use. Music is a reflection of our own history. What's important to others might not be to you. What was important then isn't necessarily going to be important forever. Plan ahead. Break a big task into littler tasks. (somewhere my mom is muttering "littler" is not a word)
The top section was filled with movies. DVD's, VHS tapes, and box sets. I had even gone as far as to have a section for Christmas movies and books. (I have issues, I know. Totally aware) The bottom section was filled with CD's. I had them stored in miniature apple crates in our old house and somehow they fit perfectly into this cupboard.
I've talked before about what to do with the hundreds of CD's we have. Most of the music Kevin wants is loaded onto a SD card in his phone, which is fantastic until the SD card goes away as they sometimes do. I need to look into online storage for him but it is a lot of data to upload.
I have some music on my phone from CD's but mostly I use Amazon Prime Music or Sirius. What is on my phone is the Go-To Music, the can't live without stuff. U2, 54/40, Barenaked Ladies (Could I be more Canadian?)
It boils down to an anxiety thing. I don't want to let the CD's go because What-If. Yet, there are so many of them. Although I do listen to them occasionally. One would think that with Sirius radio and a billion stations to listen to, I wouldn't get trapped in Radio Hell but I still do. Radio Hell is when there simply isn't good music playing, or more accurately perhaps, music you're in the mood to hear. In that case, I have a lone Jack Johnson CD in the truck. It used to be Bon Jovi, so clearly I've grown.
Here is what I finally did, or am in the process of doing. I started going through the boxes and taking out CD's that I know I will probably never listen to again. CD's that were bought on a whim, gifts, or just musical tastes have changed. That act culled a few but not as many as I had hoped. Then I gave it a few days and went through them again. I may have taken a few more out but not many.
It is strange how musical tastes change. Or maybe not taste per se but just plain tired of hearing a song or band. Especially now that I am at an age that popular music from my youth is being used in commercials and played in grocery stores. There were a few CD's that I used to love that I was all "Ugh, I'll be happy to never hear that again."
Then I went through again and took out the CD's that I can't live without. The aforementioned bands, Tom Petty, Glee soundtracks, anything from Eminem to Dixie Chicks. This leaves me with 60 CD's that I am keeping and need to find a home for. Still a lot.
 |
| post-culling, waiting for their fate to be decided by Kevin |
I already had him go through the movies and he took out about ten DVD's and mocked my keeping any VHS tapes. It's not like there are a bunch of them and it's mostly racing stuff, some footage of him racing. I took out about only the same amount of DVD's so there will be no judging on either of our behalf.
At least with the DVD's, the format hasn't changed for a few years. It was VHS/Beta, then it was laser disc and then it was DVD's and Blueray. Now it's streaming video and DVR's and while I use that too, it's nice to have the movies in my physical possession. I think it's the same with these CD's. The formats will change probably but I have these for now.
One thought I had about the movies was "Will I watch these once I retire or in a home?" (I know, I went a little dark there in my considerations) Certainly the technology will have changed by then again but we're in the What-If category again. One would think that would prompt me to keep them more but I thought about it and actually became a little more ruthless.
This leaves one shelf that holds games. Monopoly, cribbage, an authentic 1970's Newlywed Game, and games that have just accumulated over time. We don't play them anymore but I just know that someday we will. The kids will be over, or we'll be retired with nothing else to do, or whatever. They live on the bottom shelf so it's not like it's valuable real estate being taken up. I have chosen to ignore that shelf entirely for now. Even though I still have to find a home to store the CD's we are keeping. We will come to that standoff eventually.
So...the point...hmmm...there are a few: stop keeping crap you don't use. Music is a reflection of our own history. What's important to others might not be to you. What was important then isn't necessarily going to be important forever. Plan ahead. Break a big task into littler tasks. (somewhere my mom is muttering "littler" is not a word)
01 October 2015
It is Only the Preseason
As you may have noticed, it's election preseason. I keep deep-breathing and reminding myself that it's only preseason. Like in football, it doesn't matter if games are lost or what happens because it has little reflection on the actual season. It is just an opportunity to shake out the rookies who won't make the cut. It's my futile hope that when the actual season begins, the nonsense will lessen.
But that is just on the national and media level. Now we have the social media level. There seems to be no preseason in social media. It can be just constant nonsense. Once something is posted on social media, it is forever. Even if it has been repeatedly debunked, it still makes the rounds.
We have what I call the Grandma Circle on our facebook. It consists of Kevin's mom, Kevin's aunt, Kevin's mom's best friend, and our neighbor. If one posts a meme, you can count that it will make the rounds within hours. Every once in a while, I will post a comment that says "Ooops, this is a fake" just to stem the tide or just because I can't take it anymore when something is false.
Someone posted a status update a little while ago that said something along the lines of "We aren't friends because we agree on politics. I didn't choose to friend you because of politics. I will hide or unfriend people who choose to spend their time on facebook spreading their views."
At first, I was all "Dude, Harsh" but I get it. I use the facebook to keep in touch with friends and cousins. I usually post memes about coffee and books and photos of the puppy. If we're somewhere interesting, I will "check-in" with a comment or something funny.
Gone are the days where I post an actual update. I'm not sure why. Some of the reason is that this year went sideways and I just didn't have much to say. I just don't think people don't want to hear that my leg hurts, or Kevin's mom is struggling, or Lucky the Dog died, or that I hated the "perfect on paper" job. I think people would rather see coffee memes and cute puppies. But that is just my opinion, my way of doing things.
Along that line, I don't usually post anything political either. I did when the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage because that personally affected members of my family and friends. That was the exception. Otherwise I do the passive activism thing of liking posts I agree with. Some of those show up in our news feeds now so I feel like that it a gentle way of supporting a cause or stating a belief without the bullsh*t "Share if you agree" tagline. I won't like anything that has the "share" part of it. I don't feel like I'm yelling in your face what my thought or belief is with a meme.
I just don't think it's respectful to the many kinds of people on my facebook. Like you, I have family, coworkers, friends, and far-away friends, many of whom are older and they don't want to see the eff word in their feed, my politics will likely not match theirs, (think: church ladies) and unfortunately, I was raised in a political environment that doesn't match my own beliefs. There are too many different people with different belief systems for me to feel easy about posting something like that.
One coping skill I use to cull out the nonsense on my feed is the hide option. If someone posts something from a source I don't support, I use the "Hide all from ....." button. This has alleviated some stress from my newsfeed for certain. By doing so, it often hides certain topics from my feed.
But there's always that one friend who posts stuff to "start a conversation" or "just to push buttons". This friend is about to get themselves hidden. The most recent one said something like "I know this will offend some so just keep scrolling if that's you." I was actually surprised at how disrespectful that felt. They consciously posted something knowing that it was offensive to some (and it was, and it was willfully ignorant, and narrow-minded) and just be all fine with it.
I guess I just don't understand it. It's not free speech, it's intentionally posting to upset someone. It is disrespecting others because they have the right to do so and social media provides that platform. I choose not to be that person and it, perhaps childishly, frustrates me that others don't think the same.
Back to the original point: it's the political preseason. (it's actually called the "silly season" but I like the football analogy) I can only hope that the nonsense settles down once the rookies are cut, and we can move forward with the best candidates, not just the best of the worst. I can only hope that people can maybe use some courtesy and continue to be friends.
Even if I have to hide them until 2017.
But that is just on the national and media level. Now we have the social media level. There seems to be no preseason in social media. It can be just constant nonsense. Once something is posted on social media, it is forever. Even if it has been repeatedly debunked, it still makes the rounds.
We have what I call the Grandma Circle on our facebook. It consists of Kevin's mom, Kevin's aunt, Kevin's mom's best friend, and our neighbor. If one posts a meme, you can count that it will make the rounds within hours. Every once in a while, I will post a comment that says "Ooops, this is a fake" just to stem the tide or just because I can't take it anymore when something is false.
Someone posted a status update a little while ago that said something along the lines of "We aren't friends because we agree on politics. I didn't choose to friend you because of politics. I will hide or unfriend people who choose to spend their time on facebook spreading their views."
At first, I was all "Dude, Harsh" but I get it. I use the facebook to keep in touch with friends and cousins. I usually post memes about coffee and books and photos of the puppy. If we're somewhere interesting, I will "check-in" with a comment or something funny.
Gone are the days where I post an actual update. I'm not sure why. Some of the reason is that this year went sideways and I just didn't have much to say. I just don't think people don't want to hear that my leg hurts, or Kevin's mom is struggling, or Lucky the Dog died, or that I hated the "perfect on paper" job. I think people would rather see coffee memes and cute puppies. But that is just my opinion, my way of doing things.
Along that line, I don't usually post anything political either. I did when the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage because that personally affected members of my family and friends. That was the exception. Otherwise I do the passive activism thing of liking posts I agree with. Some of those show up in our news feeds now so I feel like that it a gentle way of supporting a cause or stating a belief without the bullsh*t "Share if you agree" tagline. I won't like anything that has the "share" part of it. I don't feel like I'm yelling in your face what my thought or belief is with a meme.
I just don't think it's respectful to the many kinds of people on my facebook. Like you, I have family, coworkers, friends, and far-away friends, many of whom are older and they don't want to see the eff word in their feed, my politics will likely not match theirs, (think: church ladies) and unfortunately, I was raised in a political environment that doesn't match my own beliefs. There are too many different people with different belief systems for me to feel easy about posting something like that.
One coping skill I use to cull out the nonsense on my feed is the hide option. If someone posts something from a source I don't support, I use the "Hide all from ....." button. This has alleviated some stress from my newsfeed for certain. By doing so, it often hides certain topics from my feed.
But there's always that one friend who posts stuff to "start a conversation" or "just to push buttons". This friend is about to get themselves hidden. The most recent one said something like "I know this will offend some so just keep scrolling if that's you." I was actually surprised at how disrespectful that felt. They consciously posted something knowing that it was offensive to some (and it was, and it was willfully ignorant, and narrow-minded) and just be all fine with it.
I guess I just don't understand it. It's not free speech, it's intentionally posting to upset someone. It is disrespecting others because they have the right to do so and social media provides that platform. I choose not to be that person and it, perhaps childishly, frustrates me that others don't think the same.
Back to the original point: it's the political preseason. (it's actually called the "silly season" but I like the football analogy) I can only hope that the nonsense settles down once the rookies are cut, and we can move forward with the best candidates, not just the best of the worst. I can only hope that people can maybe use some courtesy and continue to be friends.
Even if I have to hide them until 2017.
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