(look at me - two posts in two days! I guess I'm tired of having posts float around in just my head - usually when I am driving, or taking a shower - so I'm going to try and get them out there.)
So yesterday was the work vent. The issues remain, obviously, and I continue to job search being careful to only apply for positions where on-call rotations are not listed in the posting. I have applied for probably a half-dozen or so jobs over the past year. Zero call backs. I will keep chugging along and see what happens. Fingers crossed. The sitter said to me that I need to find a rich man to marry so I can stay home with the boys. If only it were that easy!
Which leads me to today's topic - I went on A DATE. This is the first date I have been on since before the boys were born. It was a few weeks ago and it was with an old flame. I've talked about him here before and allowed him to break my heart more than once over the years. This time though? No heartbreak.
He initiated and persisted on taking me to dinner even when my schedule didn't really allow it and I had to change our plans a few times. We met at the restaurant (my idea) and I admit I got a few butterflies when I saw him in the parking lot but from there, it went down hill. After our initial updates (both of us have new jobs since we saw each other last, I have a new house, family stuff, etc), he carried on throughout the entire dinner talking about an ex who cheated on him and just moved out of his house. I had thought all this time that he was just a non-committal workaholic when in fact, the non-committal part was about me. Duh. I think I knew (no, I know I knew) this deep down but this time it hit me like a ton of bricks.
He met the ex online and she has three school-aged children from two prior marriages. She was still married when they met two and half years ago (a few months after our last date and we have been in touch during that time). He moved her into his house, remodeled his basement to make room for another bedroom, they talked marriage(!), went to counseling (are you kidding me), and apparently in April when he refused to get a joint checking account with her, she moved out when he wasn't home and into the house of another guy. And her Facebook status now says "engaged" according to a friend of his (he is not on FB). But she was still calling him/loved him/wanted him back. He left his cell phone in his truck during dinner so she wouldn't interrupt us. You know, because him talking about her the whole time was so much better.
I sat there in disbelief as he spoke (flagging down our waitress to bring me more wine) and when I finally had a chance to talk - about something else - he got up to LEAVE. We were done eating and he had paid the check but I literally said to him, "Did you just get up to leave while I'm talking?" He said, "Oh, I'm sorry", but basically kept on going. So, this time, (no, really - THIS time) I'm done. I have new priorities and those two little people I can't wait to see when I get home have changed my attitude. He's not worth it. He said he wanted to take me out again. I didn't answer him at dinner but sent him a text when I got home and told him I wasn't interested. Then I deleted all his messages and emails. The end.
Even though this date was a bust, I'm not throwing in the towel on dating altogether. Hopefully, I won't have to wait another three years for date number two but I'm also not actively looking (as if I had time). If something presents itself, I'm open to it. I'm just glad this time I didn't get sucked back in. And, hey, at least the food was good.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
Work Vent
I'm having a really hard time with my job. (I almost typed that I hate my job but the only thing I really hate is the word hate so I don't want to misuse it.) There are some petty dislikes I could live with if it weren't for one big one that I can't get past: the schedule. Not only is there an on-call rotation (more on that below) but there is another rotation in the mix that could cause me to have to go into the office off-off hours (3 AM - 11 AM for example) and it's the sort of thing that is planned last minute - as in the day before. Yeah. That really doesn't work for a one-parent family. Not to mention they never told me about this second rotation during my lenghty interview process.
At my last job I was always on-call. They outfitted me with a laptop and cell phone and paid for my high-speed Internet access at home (I really miss those perks), but the on-call at the old company was nothing like the new company. At the new company, it's fix it right now, immediately and hey, we screw up a lot so you will have A LOT of work to do when you are on call. No plans away from home that entire week as you need to respond within fifteen minutes. Which sucks big time because I'd really like to enroll the twins in a Saturday morning toddler soccer program this fall and I can't. I will be on-call once during the session. At the last job, if it was off-hours, I usually had until the the start of the next day or all weekend for weekend issues. I rarely had to go into the office to fix something on the weekend and I was the only one on-call for my department.
I have never had a problem finding a job. In my twenties I quit a job and moved to a new town before I had a new one. And I had a new one within three weeks. When I decided to leave my last job, the one I have now was found very early in my search and was the only one I interviewed for. Now I am a parent with more responsibilities. And the job market is not the same as it was twenty years ago. I can't just quit. I mean, I could and go to a placement agency but if I was to find something, it probably wouldn't pay the mortgage and the sitters and the grocery bill all totaled up. As it is now, I am barely squeaking by and have to transfer money from my savings account to cover my monthly bills - a lot.
I really like the new company's core values, community involvement, diversity and they are very family friendly. If I could get into another department where there is no after-hours work involved, I think I could be very happy there. Unfortunatly, you need to be with the company a long time first and there are only two other departments that don't require after hours work.
I think about this all the time. And I dread going to work. Even after maternity leave and spending almost four months with my babies, I didn't dread my last job like I do this one. I've been looking for a new job. A lot. I even met with a placement agency. Unfortunately, I know a little about a lot of things but not a lot about just one thing - which is what they look for. Argh.
At my last job I was always on-call. They outfitted me with a laptop and cell phone and paid for my high-speed Internet access at home (I really miss those perks), but the on-call at the old company was nothing like the new company. At the new company, it's fix it right now, immediately and hey, we screw up a lot so you will have A LOT of work to do when you are on call. No plans away from home that entire week as you need to respond within fifteen minutes. Which sucks big time because I'd really like to enroll the twins in a Saturday morning toddler soccer program this fall and I can't. I will be on-call once during the session. At the last job, if it was off-hours, I usually had until the the start of the next day or all weekend for weekend issues. I rarely had to go into the office to fix something on the weekend and I was the only one on-call for my department.
I have never had a problem finding a job. In my twenties I quit a job and moved to a new town before I had a new one. And I had a new one within three weeks. When I decided to leave my last job, the one I have now was found very early in my search and was the only one I interviewed for. Now I am a parent with more responsibilities. And the job market is not the same as it was twenty years ago. I can't just quit. I mean, I could and go to a placement agency but if I was to find something, it probably wouldn't pay the mortgage and the sitters and the grocery bill all totaled up. As it is now, I am barely squeaking by and have to transfer money from my savings account to cover my monthly bills - a lot.
I really like the new company's core values, community involvement, diversity and they are very family friendly. If I could get into another department where there is no after-hours work involved, I think I could be very happy there. Unfortunatly, you need to be with the company a long time first and there are only two other departments that don't require after hours work.
I think about this all the time. And I dread going to work. Even after maternity leave and spending almost four months with my babies, I didn't dread my last job like I do this one. I've been looking for a new job. A lot. I even met with a placement agency. Unfortunately, I know a little about a lot of things but not a lot about just one thing - which is what they look for. Argh.
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