beenie

It's official

Less than 100 days will pass between today and The Big 3-0. I can't wait!

Seriously - I'm looking forward to it. My husband has repeatedly told me that his 30s have - so far - been the best years of his life.

Best. Analogy. EVER.

As seen on one of my favorite message boards...

New jobs and moving are like riding a roller coaster for the first time. You're nervous as hell while waiting in line. Once you're committed (strapped in) you wonder if you made the right decision. When you're done you wonder why you didn't do it sooner...

...unless of course you really didn't like it, then you just throw up!

Happy Birthday!

You know who you are. I hope it's wonderful. :)

Straight But Not Narrow

I stole this from Kate, who stole it from Lemony, who found it here, where it was posted in honor of Pride Month.

It is a beautiful photo taken by Kelly Stern, who said that "it may not be an award-winning photo..."

It should be.

Memememememe

SP'd from Erica

5 things in my fridge:

• Skim milk
• Lunch meat
• Mushrooms
• Bagged salad
• Crack

5 things in my closet:

• Boxes
• Shirts
• Pants
• Bridesmaid gowns
• Clothes that no longer fit (I gave most of it to Goodwill, but there were a few things I couldn't part with)

5 things in my purse:

• The best wallet/checkbook ever
• Small jar of Vaseline
• cell phone (I need a new one)
• bottle of perfumed lotion in the scent I've worn since high school
• ID badge/key card for the door at work

5 things in my car:

• Garbage bag that hangs from the rear passenger seat
• Empty cup from yesterday's smoothie
• CD holder that wraps around the sun visor
• Garage door opener
• The flowered bead on a black cord that has hung from every rear-view mirror in every car I've ever had. "It's a night..."

5 people I want to torture with this meme:
Meh.

Another work update

I got the schedule I wanted.

I did not get the position in the other department.

Feeling like crap, I took a sick day today, and the woman who would have been my direct supervisor in the other department actually called me at home to let me know. I told her I had anticipated it, because there was at least one question I could have answered much better than I did. However, it turned out that she had a candidate with a lot of experience in doing the type of job I applied for, and that made a very big difference (as it should have).

It may be just as well anyway, because the schedule I got within my own department is one that I'm very excited about - it's within half an hour of DH's schedule, we still have a day off together, and I - gasp - have two days off in a row! Working in a 24/7 call center, that kind of schedule doesn't come easily, so it makes me very happy - I've been totally burnt out for a while now, and I know a lot of it comes from not being able to totally unwind on my days off, because I know I just have to go back to work the next day anyway. Had I been offered the job in the other department, the schedule would have been - at best - 2.5 hours apart from DH's schedule and would very likely have included split days off again.

All in all, I think this will be A Good Thing.

There is a job available at another company - the same type of company, but not one in direct competition with my company - that is much the same as the one for which I was just turned down, but while it offers two days off in a row, the schedule is quite different than DH's and would involve a daily commute to a location Mapquest tells me is a 132-mile round-trip commute. Looking back on my days as a commuter, when I "only" had a 110-mile round trip commute, I think I'll stay put for now. I know I would enjoy the position, which is why I applied for the same job within my current company - but gas prices and aging vehicle constraints aside, I don't think I could handle that commute again.

Not to mention the fact that I adore my current supervisor, and while I'm not happy about having to switch supervisors in October, the guy who will be my new supervisor is super-nice as well.

No matter what kind of a job you have, no matter the company you work for, I can't tell you how much of a difference it makes to have a direct supervisor you like and respect. I've had a couple of jobs where I came to have little respect for my direct supervisor over time, and it's very deflating (just for the record, none of the bad ones were named Jen or Chey).

On a semi-related note... I can't tell you how impressed I am with the woman who would have been my supervisor had I gotten the job in the other department. She made it a point to call me to let me know someone else had been offered the position and told me exactly why. That has never happened to me before, and I truly appreciate it. So few employers realize how valuable that information can be.