Honesty Is The Best Policy

Dear Co-worker,

I want to thank you for taking a sickie today and leaving the rest of us in the lurch. Not that we were entirely run off our feet or anything like that, but rather its the manner in which your sickie has been taken that has got my goat.
I want you to repeat after me: Honesty is the best policy.
And try this one: Mental health days are nothing to be ashamed of.
Methinks the better idea - rather than chuckie a sly sickie whenever you feel a bit stressed, which you plan on doing on a fortnightly basis from now - is to be honest from the start. That way you wont be getting anyones nose out of joint, and neither will you look like a big, fat, dirty, sneaking liar when you get busted.
Busily yours,
Me

This may be the look i will give him from my desk tomorrow...

Let me explain - one of my co-workers has decided that from now on he wants to take weekly/fortnightly sick leave days. His counsellor has recommended it, and is willing to write him a doctors certificate for every mental health day he takes. This has really got my back up - not because i dont believe in mental health days ( as a person who has lived through depression and still struggles with depressive episodes, i very much appreciate a day off in the name of keeping sane ) - but rather its the way he's chosen to go about having these sick days thats got me all cranky. He is, for lack of a better term, lying about them, and expecting us to do the same ( and just accept that thats what he's doing ). Instead of going to our regional manager and saying " Hey , here's the situation, i'm stressed and a health professional has recommended time off " and organising a functional way of taking some time off, this co-worker is just going to ring in sick from time to time, and expect one of us to say he has a stomach ache/migraine/diarrhea. And when our managment very quickly get suspicious of all these random sickies - not only will he have to tell them the truth anyway, but then he'll look a selfish little whinger who's only looking out for himself.

Part of his stress has to do with the fact that we are very short-staffed around here - but rather than do things honestly, admit that he's having a problem, and hopefully have some alternative arrangments made... well, he's just leaving us in the lurch. Leaving us more short-staffed than we already are. Doing the same thing to us which is stressing him so badly. I'm all for looking after yourself but i'll be frank - what he's doing is rude. And disrespectful. ( Especially in light of the fact that another staff member was told by her doctor to take time off and she declined because she didnt want to leave this guy in the position he has left her ). This guy doesnt have a good work ethic at the best of times, so this whole " I'll just have sickies whenever i want, the rest of you be damned " attitude has only served to further raise my hackles...

What do you think? Should employees be upfront about their need for "mental health days " ( as advised by a medical professional ) or is it ok to just chuck a sickie and expect the rest of your office to shoulder the load?

Polly Dolly - Workin' 9 To 5

So i'm a bit late to this weeks Polly Dolly ( i was off adventuring with Mick - more about that later ) but this week the lovely Dani from Danimezza wants to know what Polly wears when she's...

At my office we ( unfortunately ) have to wear a uniform - navy trousers, black pin stripe shirt and black closed-toe shoes. Yes, black and navy together... whoever designed our uniform apparently knows little about fashion rules. But Polly here is wearing what i would love to be able to wear to work. The beautiful print skirt would be the centrepiece, paired with a basic black knit top and basic black tights. Then i'd add mininal accessories in a bright colour to liven up the black, but keep the outfit looking professional ( cue a chunky beaded necklace and some cute flats ).I'm also a fan of wearing my hair in a relaxed low bun for work ( a la Natalie Portman ) and the Jason Wu glasses are a must for a girl with poor eyesight. A tote big enough to carry not only my wallet and phone and everyday essentials, but my cute little Netbook too. Finish off with a light tinted moisturiser and dont forget my water bottle ( i dont drink coffee *gasp!* so i have a bottle of water on my desk all day ) and Polly is ready to head to the office?
What would your Polly wear to her 9 -5 ?

A Working Mother's Value

Image from here

Does being a working mother make me a less valeable employee? I know it doesnt make me a worse mother because as far as thats concerned i think i'm doing a pretty excellent job thus far ( despite occasional bouts of mother guilt ). I also know, in my heart of hearts, that i'm good at what i do and valued by my workmates - so why then do i feel like the old brown dog that people only keep around because they cant be bothered taking it out bush to put it out of its misery?


Forgive me for that admittedly harsh analogy, but in the last week i've been made to feel quite worthless in my job. Not by the people i work WITH - the small team i work with in our local branch are like a second family to me and though, like all families, we have our disagreements or niggling annoying habits, we support each other in our work and the roles we play within the team. No, its the people i work FOR who are doing my head in, the upper echelon management who for some reason have decided that running a great company into the ground by getting all their staff offside is the best way to go forward. Without going into too much detail, my hours and days of work have been changed, without any consulation with me personally or with anyone in my branch - its been a " this is happening, and you WILL do it " kind of attitude. To be quite frank, i havent appreciated it. Its made me feel like they only keep me around because they legally cant get rid of me; that they really would prefer it if they didnt have to put up with a young mother who's toddler has been sick a bit lately, or who's availability of daycare is a priority when trying to organise anything work-related. Like i was more valuable, and thus better appreciated, by them when i was a full-time working DINK, even though the only thing that has changed is my working hours, not the quality of the work i do.

Quite frankly i want to tell them to take their job and shove it as far up their arses as they can wedge it, but i dont.... my family needs the money, and in any case i'm hoping to fall pregnant at the end of this year and could really use the paid maternity leave they'll have to give me when i have another baby. I also dont want to burden my team-mates with anymore work than they already have on their already over-flowing plates ( management are also really lax at keeping a full rotation of staff, because people keep leaving the company, fed up with their shoddy treatment ... ).

So, until the next baby dream becomes a reality i'll just have to keep my head down, bum up and try not to run my mouth too much at our upcoming conference when management asks my opinion on branch morale.....

Human Tears

It is amazing how the sight of someone crying can completely humanise that person, can change them from robot to real in a second. I say this because today, during what was a somewhat intense staff meeting, i saw my formerly dragon-lady boss cry. She cried those embarrassing tears that come when you're trying to keep your shit together and everything just overwhelms you, and rather than make me want to roll my eyes it made me feel bad for her. And, strangely enough, bad that i'd previously thought so little of her. That i'd thought that she was unfeeling and only concerned with the company line, when now it seems she's stuck between a rock and hard place and is as just as frusturated and demoralised as the rest of us. It was nice to see she's not a Stepford-boss after all, and instead is just another employee trying to keep calm and carry on.


I guess sometimes it takes a glimpse of these hidden insecurities to change our opinon of someone, even if that someone wants us to think of them in an entirely different light. I may not think of her entirely differently, but least now i know their is a real woman behind the company robot....

And Its All Gonna Come To A Head...

So... remember how i said i was beginning to have serious issues with the attitude of one of my co-workers? And how it wasnt just me having these issues, but everyone else in the office? Yea, well, today we get word ( whilst said worker has gone away for a conference ) that once he gets back we're all going to have a big meeting about how his attitude effects us and effects the efficiency of the office. Its all going to come out in the open and - although it wont be pretty - i'm glad about it.

Clearly if 4 people in the office all have the same problem with one particular person...well... that person IS the problem. No? Thing is, despit being a fully grown adult male, this guy will do one of three things when we get around to telling him how we feel:
a) he'll burst into tears
b) he'll call in sick for the next two or three days or
c) he'll give us all the cold shoulder for a week.
And therein lies part of the problem - aside from being lazy, he acts so much like a child - chucking little tantrums, spending his time reading chain emails, being all sooky and defensive when someone does criticse him - that at times its like working in the office with a 5 yr old. Its exhausting, both because the rest of us pick up the slack of the work he doesnt do, and we have to walk on eggshells to make sure he doesnt have a wobbly.

Watch out towards the end of next week for an update on how it all went - fingers crossed i get to work in a professional, civil, tantrum-free office by the end of the month!

Oh Yea, Its Gonna Happen...

So you now how my conceptual goal for the new year was  To honestly speak my mind, instead of hoarding emotional crap until i explode in a sudden, and fierce, inferno of rage/jealousy/melancholy ? Oh yea, i am totally going to be working on that and i feel that te very first instance of this "speaking my mind " will be happening in the near future. Probably next week. See one of my co-workers is just really getting on my nerves, even though we are only 2 days into the working year, and i'm afraid that i'm just going to have to tell him. And it just wont be pretty.

This guy is lazy, obnoxious, and overly opinionated ( though he very rarely has any fact or anything resembling real information/experience to back these opinions up ). He wheedles his way out of work as often as he can, spends hours of the work day pottering around doing pretty much nothing, and even when he's at his desk its under extreme duress and all he does is complain. If i were unfortunate enough to have have to sit beside him i think i would have leaned over and whacked him by now. As it stands, my desk is across the office and i can choose to ignore him, most of the time. But when he skulks into the lunch room while i'm trying to read and enjoy my lunch break, and complains that he's so exhausted ( despite being childless, in his 20's and still living with his parents, so no real exhausting responsibilities ), that he hates this place and its draining him and blah blah blah... well, that just gets on my goat.

If its so bloody unbearable, then QUIT. YOU ARE MAKING THE OFFICE A MISERY FOR THE REST OF US. If my mother has the balls, at the age of 48, to admit that she dislikes her workplace and its atmosphere enough to quit and find another job - which she did ( she started her new job today... ) - then maybe he should grow a pair and do the same.

Too harsh? My resolution doesnt really include being unnecessarily mean, but believe me, this little diatribe will have been a long time coming and will be on behalf of the entire office. Tune in next week to see if it comes to fruition...

Bah Bloody Humbug!

In a show of very un-Christmas-ey spirit, a co-worker of mine made another co-worker cry today. How? He admonished her very loudly, in front of the rest of us and full view of any customers that might come in, for a simple mistake she had made. And it was a very simple mistake, one that could be very easily fixed and was not a big deal at all ( and that he made himself moments later because he was too busy fuming at her to pay any attention what he was doing ). Needless to say, the rest of us in the office were quietly appalled and, after we encouraged her to go for a walk ( disguised as needing someone to go to the bank... ) we told him so. How very rude he'd been, and how over the top his reaction was and, seeing as the girl in question is still in training, its not something he'll reallly needed to jump on her for. It was a simple mistake. We all make them, even though the rest of us have been here for years. The whole display was just uncalled for.


And why has this got so much on goat? Well, aside from its being Christmas, i just really have no time for people who treat people in that way unjustifiedly. Sure, if she'd done something that was going to burn the building down or coast as millions of dollars then yea, maybe jump up and down and throw a tantrum at her. But something that cost nothing, destroyed nothing, and took one 30 second phone call to fix? There was just no need. And the worst part is that we had an ex-manager who spoke like that all the time, only her little tirades were always directed at HIM..... so i guess the proverbial( managerial) apple doesnt fall far from the tree. All those years of him getting roused on and saying how much he hated it and the first chance he gets to be in the training role and he does exactly the same thing. I had to pull him up on it - tell him he'd become the monster, so to speak - and you know what he did? He spent the next 40ish minutes hiding in the kitchen, upset, while the rest of us got on with it and did our work. How.Bloody.Frusturating.

Luckily, today was my last work day of the year so yippee for me! No more part-time office politics just sweet, sweet family time and a chance to relax for a while. But i tell you what - if i hadnt already given this guy a Christmas card, he would totally be off my Christmas list! Bah humbug to him!

Here Comes The Rain Again...

So i may have mentioned previously that i live in a rural town by the name of Dubbo ( yes, Dubbo - its a funny word. Have a laugh ... ). And those of you living in Australia, and especially in New South Wales, may have heard that Dubbo is currently experiencing a liiiiiiiiiiitle bit of a flood problem. Farmers in the middle of harvest have lost almost all the crops they still had in the ground, people in low-lying areas close to the river have had either there land or the homes water-logged and, most inconveniently ( read: sarcasm ), people living on the west side of town now only have one bridge to use to get home instead of two because the lower-lying bridge has gone under water. Fear not though - I and my family are safe. And not only safe, but happy.... because its looking likely that i wont have to work on Monday! Hooray! See the shopping centre where i work has had its carpark completely flooded, and because all the electricity, sewage and gas controls are in the underground carpark, all the stores need to shut down until the controls can be used again. Woo! Wana see some evidence?

The carpark of the shopping centre where i work - totally underwater!

Some rescue workers cruising their boat up the street where i usually drive...

My dad, hard at work. He might need a snorkel soon!

*Note* - all pics courtesy of the awesome Speaking OneThousandWords Photography. Look her up on Facebook!

A Little Ray Of Sunshine

Well - my blog has been a whole sack of sad lately hasnt it? My apologies for that people, and i hope that it hasnt driven too many of you away. I think we all ( usually ) blog about what we know, and what we're going through at the time, and the last month or so has just been a steaming pile of wah, wah, wah for me.

But fear not! Not everything in my life is dreary - we're on the downhill slide towards Christmas ( which is almost always a highlight ) and, 2 days after that, my little Flynn will be celebrating his 1st birthday! I know i'm not the first mother to say this but holy bloody boojesus - how did we get here so quick?! I could swear it was only a few months ago that i was wearing XXL polo shirts to work and had slowly lost sight of my ankles but no, here we are, a mere 41 days off me having a " one year old ". Good bloody gravy.

Also, i'm into week #4 of being back at work and i have to admit it aint half bad. I was so NOT looking forward to going back, i was so sure i was absolutely going to hate it and i was going to have to haul myself off to work 3 mornings a week smiling through clenched teeth but... i'm kind of, sort of, maybe enjoying it a little. I feel like i've gained a little of "me" back ( even if it is " work me " and not " Sunday-afternoon-naps-on-the-lounge " me ). I dont have an adorable little monster attached to me all day long, and nor am i chained to the dirty washing pile... i'm back in a familiar environment, doing familiar things, but i'm doing them on my own. Achieving a little something again that doesnt have anything to do with crawling, teething or learning to sleep through. Granted, its not like i'm going to be volunteering to do extra shifts anytime soon, but at least i'm coming to work with a smile on my face and leaving ( on time! Thank you " i have to get Flynn from daycare " excuse... ) each day not dreading having to go back.

And there we be. In the 41 days til Flynny's birthday i plan on getting a little crafty by making him his own Santa sack; making/organising " Save the Date " cards for my wedding next November; and co-planning with my Dad this years Christmas menu. Anyone for Christmas icecream pudding ?

Hi Ho, Hi Ho....

... its off to work i go! Oh yes, tomorrow will be my first day back at work after 11 months of maternity leave. I am about 10% looking forward to it and 90% not wanting it to happen.
I dont want to leave my Flynny.
I dont want to miss his first steps ( seriously, i reckon he's a month away from walking.. )
I dont want him to get upset because i'm not there with him.
I dont want to go back to work and have to re-learn all the crap i've forgotten since i left ( i think i'm going to have to read the manual that I wrote for my co-workers last year! )
I dont want to have to deal with the state manager that i just cannot stand.
I dont want to deal with rude and obnoxious customers when i could be spending quality time with my son.

But, most of all, i dont want to be broke....and thats why i'm going back to work. 3 days, 9am-5am, is the minimum amount of work i can do to get paid enough to cover our bills and, combined with Micks wages, leave us enough to live comfortably. Some weeks, maybe, not even comfortably - just to make ends meet. So even though i'm not looking forward to it, even though i'll miss my little bubba and i might miss one of his huge milestones ( and i'll be incredibly upset and guilty if that does happen ... ) i recognise that i HAVE to go back to work, for the good of my family. Its that whole unselfish, sacrificing mother thing - despite what i really would like to do, i know that sucking it up and just getting in there and doing is going to be what benefits us most.
Lets just hope i can last more than a week before i get the shits with someone....

I'm No Mummy-Hater......

Ok - so i know we're supposed to have a mummy-sisterhood, and we shouldnt pass judgement on other mummies for what they do or dont do. But i'm gonna, right here, right now, because its been bugging me all week.

I know two lovely women who were both blessed with brand new bubbas this week just gone - one on April 1st and one on April 2nd. Their precious little bundles couldnt be more different - one a boy, almost 9lb, the other a girl, only 3 ounces over 5lb - and neither could the mummas, but they've both done something in the first few days of their babies lives that has had me shaking my head and mumbling " Wha? ". Annoyance #1: the first woman had a baby that took straight to the boob. Her breastfeeding chart in hospital was full of rankings of 4 and 5's ( attached and feeding really well ). Within two days of going home however she had taken him off the breast and put him on to formula, saying that her breasts were too small for him to get milk out off. Which could be true, except the hospital chart would say otherwise, and those who know her best think she's decided to go onto formula because she's too lazy to get up in the night and breastfeed. What?!? That may or not be true, but it if it is i find it greatly annoying ( and i'd be a trifle disgusted in it ). My Flynn found it difficult to attach in the first week or so - in fact we stayed in hospital an extra day and a half just so i was confident that i'd be able to feed him something - and we still feed with the aid of a nipple shield. It hasnt been a nightmare, but nor has been an easy ride ( or entirely convenient ). But i do it because its the best thing for him, and i love him enough to be slightly inconvenienced and tired. And Lady#1 gives up within two days, on a bubba who was a natural to the boob, because she's too lazy? And not only that but straight onto the formula and feeding a 3 day old 60ml at each feed - without consulting a doctor, a midwife, and LAC, not even a chemist. I'm no expert, but that just doesnt seem right. And that lack of loving attention and wanting to do whats best just got up my nose.

Annoyance #2: i know there is HUUUUUUGE debate about SAHM vs working mums. Frankly i would love to not have to go back to work in October but i dont think our finances will allow for it. Working mums are awesome and i have no beef with them. However, i draw the line at returning to work before your baby is a week old. Especially when she is so tiny ( smaller than a Cabbage Patch doll, wearing 000 000 sized clothes ). And especially when you own the business so there is no narky old boss pressuring you to return. Surely someone els can do the spreadsheet for the wages, answer the phone and help a handful of clients for a week or two? She is taking the bubba to work with her ( and her 2 year old son ) but how she expects to get work done and be able to give appropriate attention to the kids is beyond me.

And so - rant over. I know i'm a first time mum and my son is only 3 and half months old so i'm by no means an expert .... but thats just how i feel. You can call me out for ignoring the sacred bonds of motherhood if you want, but we all have our opinions. Of course, its not my place to share these opinons with either of these ladies so i had to get it off my chest somewhere.....

DD minus 24: Dude, Its Raining

This is highly unusual. Like i said in my post of two days ago, it was 38 degrees celsius and only due to get hotter. Today, out of nowhere, i wake up to an overcast sky, steady rain and 28 degrees celsius. Ah, weather patterns - you never cease to amaze me.

So, with the arrival of a little rain, today has been a good dayto do, well - not much. I had to go out and buy a Secret Santa gift for one of my work colleagues ( my work Christmas party is tomorrow night, and i thought i'd better not leave it til the very last minute ). Only problem is that the guy i had to buy for is not exactly my favourite person in the office. And when you only work with 5 other people, being the " not favourite " is not exactly an enviable position. Anyhoo, so i gotta go out and buy a present for this guy and the only idea i can come up with is either going to tickle his funny bone or completely offend him.

See, my main problem with this guy is that he is a mooch. That is, in an office job where the hours are 9am to 5pm ( what a way to make a living... ) he sits at his desk and actually does some work from, maybe, 11am til 12:30pm, and then from 1:30pm til about 3pm. The rest of his working hours are spent " procrastinating ". You know, for lack of a better term. For instance, we open at 9am and it takes him roughly half an hour to count the cash in his till and organise the days paperwork. Then he volunteers to go and do our banking and walk to the post office to check our mail. This, admittedly, can sometimes take a while, especially if the queues at either place are long - however, a job that takes the rest of us maybe half an hour always seems to take him in the vicinity of 45 minutes to an hour.

So this gets him back around 10:15 am.ish... at which time he'll sit back down at his desk, answer a phone call or two, help a health fund member/customer if he isnt quick enough at hiding from them and then its 10:30am which is time for a coffee break. And, of course, this means he needs to leave the office again to buy his coffee and then his 10 minute morning tea break usually takes him 20 minutes. Which is how we arrive at his 11am start time.

I wont go into the details of his working day after his one hour lunch break ( dishes that need washing, garbage that needs to be taken to the bins, pottering around in my eyewear dispensary and generally annoying J and i ... ) but suffice to say his habit of wheedling his way out of actually work AND GETTING AWAY WITH IT has really given me the proverbial shits. I cant say that i'll miss having to put up with him while i'm away on maternity leave.

So, with that all explained, what did i manage to find and buy him for his Secret Santa gift ? A book entitled " The Lazy Persons Guide To Life ". I happen to find this quite funny, as does J and one of our other colleagues - giving a lazy person a humourous guide to being lazy ..... hilarious! The problem is not only is he a master procrastinator but he also has mood swings like a teenage girl on her period.... which is to say you cant predict them and they arent always pretty. So tomorrow night we find out if he sees the humour in my joke ( even though it is an actual dig at his laziness.... ) or whether he gets offended by the " lazy " tag.

Here's to a good laugh.... and a nice long break from his annoying, whining, woe-is-me, procrastinating ways.....

What Am I - A Ham Sandwich ?!?

Seriously - i'm about sick of my state manager, The Bell, pretending that i'm not here. That i dont exist. She must think that the more she ignores me, the sooner i'll go away.

And i will. On maternity leave. I just wont come back.

I know i'm raving a bit here, its just starting to become greatly annoying. I've never really liked The Bell anyway but the last few months of being given the cold shoulder is almost enough. Being that she's the state manager i had to inform her of my pregnancy and intention to take maternity leave. I did so when i was 10 weeks and she told me she would toss up a few ideas in regards to replacement staff and call me about the next week. That was 11 weeks ago and i havent heard dot from her since - unless of course i get in touch with her. She hasnt called me of her own volition at all. Consequently myself, J and the rest of our office colleagues are still in the dark about what will happen on my temporary leave.

I called The Bell again this past Friday, for probably the fourth time since our initial discussion, only to be told " Its arranged ". Literally - thats all she said. " Its arranged " and then she just kept on talking. She didnt elaborate on who was arranged, or what was arranged, or when it was arranged. Just arranged - and then she preceded to tell me i dont really need much time off before the baby arrives because all i do is sit down all day and besides she worked up until the Thursday and had her baby on the Friday. Good for you lady - seriously. It must make for a nice little story to tell about how brave you were and how hard you worked ( choke! ). I, on the other hand, would like a few weeks or a month to rest up, make it to all my doctors appointments without having to rush back to work, and to make all the last minute preparations for my little munchkin.

So - thats it. The Bell insists on telling me nothing but " its arranged ". Funnily enough our national sales manager ( remember, The Bell is only state manager ) has told J and myself that they will definately have someone or something in place and she will let us know when they've put it in place.

Which would suggest that The Bell is not only trying to ignore, but is also a liar aswell.

Because That's The Last Thing I Needed

Just wanted to let you all know that i havent died - although, if Mr Gil hadnt convinced me to go to the hospital, i might have.

Yea, yea, that sounds quite melodramatic, doesnt it ? Here's the story: Sunday morning i wake up with mild cramps on the lower right hand side of my abdomen which, by 12:30 lunchtime-ish, have become so excruciating that i'm in tears. Mr Gil keeps asking if want to go to the emergency room and i keep saying no - because i was convinced it was just bad " wind" pains that you get in pregnancy, and i would completely mortified if i presented to the ER and all i needed to do was fart. After another 20 minutes if finally decide i better get checked out. 8 and hlaf long hours of waiting later ( yes, 8 and half hours just sitting in a chair in the emergency room ), during which time i saw one doctor, one sonographer, two triage nurses and finally one surgical intern...... turns out i have appendicitis. Stupid appendix!

I had an appendectomy late Monday afternoon and was discharged from hospital yesterday ( Wednesday ) morning. I thought while i was having a brief respite from too much pain ( did i forget to mention that they sent me home without a prescription for painkillers? ) i'd blog a quick update. Let me tell you, this is not pleasant - pain at the wound site, killer back pain, and i've developed a cold, probably picked up off some ratty kid in the ER waiting room. I cant drive for a week which means i'm kind of under house arrest, and i've been given three weeks of work.

Now all i gotta do is make sure this wound heals properly in six months - before i'm due back t the same hospital and same ward to give birth!

Early Morning Blues

I hate getting up for work in the morning. I've been at the same job for 3 and half years, and i've been getting up at the same time for those 3 and half years, so you'd think i'd be used to it. And i am - i just dont like it.

Its not that i even mind the actual going to work part, its just the getting up bit that gets to me. I dont like the alarm the going off ( especially if i'm in the middle of a dream ) and then having to stretch and yawn and shut my eyes again and pretend that 30 more seconds of closed lidded-ness will be enough. Why cant i have a job that will let me start whenever ? That would let me sleep until my bodyclock wakes me and then i could go in ? Oh - because they dont exist! Unless you're a rich, pampered, party princess who counts shopping, buying pets to add your menagerie, and exposing your pantiless privates as " work ".

Once i'm actually up and out of bed, i'm fine. I'm alert and usually in a good mood. Like today for example: I'm up, I'm showered, i've eaten breakfast and am now watching a spot of morning TV before i head out the door. Its just that 3 - to 5 minutes period between the stupid alarm going off and actually having to pull back the covers that i really dont like. Its poo.

Yet, its just occurred to me, approximately 6 months from now, i'll have a brand new, wrinkly, bald, crying alarm and ACTUAL POO to wake up to. Way earlier than i'm waking up now. Ah, something to look forward to.....

Ladies and Gentleman of the Jury...

...Amy will NOT be needed for jury duty tomorrow. Which is kind of disappointing, because frankly i wanted to take the day off work and sit in on a court case. To see the inner workings of the Australian justice system, without being on the wrong side of the law.

Also, i really wanted to pretend i was part of an episode of " Law and Order ". Cue the famous " DUN DUN " noise....

But seriously, i think i would have found it interesting having to attend jury duty. I've been called up three times now, but i've never actually had to go. I've neve been to court period - i'm so not the criminal type - so it would have been a completely new experience. Of course, i know that it wouldnt have been a murder case or anything as exciting and " glamourous " as you see on tv, but it still would have been something different to the usual daily grind. Besides, even the mundane, everyday complaints can be entertaining - how else do you explain " Christina's Court " ? Plus, i would have got the day off work and been paid for it, which is always great.

I'm not sure how the judicial systems work elsewhere on the planet, but the way things go here in New South Wales i remain on the jury register for the rest of the year. I was called up in March but couldnt go because i was working interstate; i was called up for tomorrow but wasn't needed; who knows, i could be third time lucky sometime later this year ?

P.S Has anybody out there ever actually had to sit on a jury ?

Intergalactic Adventures.... Or Not So Much

No, I have not fallen off the place of the planet. I havent gone into deep out of space. Nor have I ( somewhat unfortunately ) been building a lovenest with Mr Gil for the past week or so. NO, I have simply been shunted off for work and havent had much at all to write home - or blog - about.

As i have previously mentioned, I am working away from home for a little while. I've been sent a long way from home too - interstate to a rural city called Mackay ( Dash, you may be the only person reading this who knows where i am ). I've already passed one week of work - five more sleeps and i'm on my way back to DubVegas. Mackay hasnt been treating me too badly i suppose - i've really only been at work or in my motel room, so there isnt too much that could be going wrong. I will admit to feeling a little out of place on the first day, but that feeling has since worn off. I'm not long back from dinner and drinks with two of my colleagues ( one of whom is also visiting from out of state ) down at the harbourside pub, which was quite nice.

What was also nice - ok, kind of awesome! - was roadtripping yesterday. My old national manager S lives up here, and she always said if i was ever in town i should give her a call and we'd go do something. Ever the diligent employee and friend i did just that - and she decided we'd trip up to Airlie Beach... on a Harley! Woo hoo! Ok, sure i didnt actually ride the Harley on my own ( i road bitch behind her husband ) but it was still great. The sun was shining, riding at 100km/hr into a head wind was blowing me around a bit, the scenery was pretty and i was riding a Harley Road King..... yep, quite a good way to spend a Saturday. Airlie Beach itself wasnt too impressive - we strolled around some markets ( i didnt buy anything ) and had a bit of lunch ( a prawn foccacia and iced tea ) but my skin is now nicely sun dappled ( yes, i know about skin cancer, cut me some slack ) and i can now boast about having taken a Harley ride. Sweet as bro.

Whats not as sweet as is how much i have found myself missing Mr Gil. We have been texting back and forth all day and talking every night before bed, and i honestly cant wait til Friday evening when he picks me up from the airport. It'll be nice to be able to speak with him face to face again, and pick up our fledgling relationship where it left off. Five more sleeps and counting...

Give It A Rest Already....

So here's the thing - is it wrong if i daydream about wringing my co-workers neck? Seriously ?

No, not J - i love J! Let me introduce you to Prematurely Old Dude - or POD. In my office their is myself and J, our male optometrist, and three staff on the health fund desk. POD is, due to the optom testing all day long, pretty much the only guy in a office full of women. He is only a few years older than me ( he;s 26 or 27 i think... ) but, as you may have guessed by the name, POD is not your average 20-something. POD is 20-something going on 83.... seriously, he carries on like a grumpy old man most of the time. Worse, sometimes he carries on like a grumpy old woman.

Today was one of those days - all he did was whinge and whine about EVERYTHING. Too many clients coming in: whinge. The phone keeps ringing and he doesnt have enough time to answer it: whine. God, i'm so hungry and its not even close to my lunchtime: whinge. Oh, i have to pick up my bike from the repair place and their going to charge me a fortune: whine. Seriously - blah, blah, freaking BLAH! I wasnt too impressed when i went to answer an incoming phone call and POD yelled across the office " Dont answer it - i've got it Amy! ". Firstly, thats not professional in front of clients, and secondly - dude, no need to yell at me. So it really got on my nerve when he had a go at me about throwing the recycling in the regular garbage. No, i'm not some kind of environment hater..... but if you put a few cans, some paper and go knows what else into a regular plastic bag and leave it tied up next to the garbage bin - what else am i supposed to do ? It looked like garbage, it was sitting next to the garbage.... therefore it is garbage!

And then, like the cranky old biddy he is, POD proceded to give me the silent treatment all afternoon. THANK FREAKING GOD.

Thats what i'd been hoping for all morning ....

Whats wrong with paper?

Ah.... the joys and wonders of modern technology.

I love how the big IT companies tell you that the computer will make your life so much easier - but isnt it a huge pain in the arse when they crash ? I'm writing this* ( on paper - how old school of me ) whilst at work, because the main program my colleagues and i need to function has thrown a full tantrum and is refusing to work properly. We're also supposed to be undergoing a server update and thats not co-operating either. And the best part ? We have two computer technicians here today who cant do any work either until the server has been fixed from our home office. Freaking fabulous! J and I have been able to do some work on other programs but everyone else has just had to sit around with their hands in their pockets all morning. I bet from the outside this looks like a really productive office....

Don't get me wrong - its not like i'd be without technology. God no. I get withdrawal symptoms if i dont check my email at least once a day. It just sucks that we've ( ok... I'VE ) become so reliant on it that we cant cope when it doesnt work. Or that we've become so reliant that we'll do anything, pay anything, to keep in the technological loop. Its bad enough that i'm willing to pay 25c per text message (Telstra, i'm talking to you ) because sending 60 text messages to one person in one evening so much better than actually calling them. However, people are spending small fortunes to buy a brand new, fandangled, MP3 playing, 6 megapixel picture taking mobile phone, and others ( ok, mainly men ) would give their right nut to be set up with the latest in mobile gaming. If eating two minute noodles and endless tins of baked beans for weeks on end is the only way you can afford a new Nintendo Wii complete with Guitar Hero - then thats not cool!

I have a laptop that i bought while it was on sale, a 4 year old mobile phone and Ipod Mini that i won in a work promotion, so i'm not exactly technology deficient....but sometimes i wish we could all just go " old school ", if only to make things less complicated!

* Yes, i wrote the post at work.... now i'm posting it from home, about 7 hrs later

Shiny, Happy People...

Uh...person. Meaning me. Yes, this is a feel-good, everything-is-going-great, you-cant-get-the-smile-off-my-face kind of post. I have just had a really good day, and again i'm not exactly sure why. Just lately, say in the last 6 or 7 weeks or so, I have found myself smiling, whistling, humming all the time and i have really been enjoying my job. I've come to realise that i love talking to people and i especially love advising people on the fashion aspects of getting glasses. Sure, Yogi and The Bell still get to me, but not to the point where i want throw the towel in anymore. Its a relatively new feeling - this shiny happiness. I like it!

I'm starting to become one of those incredibly chirpy people that i used to loathe. Is this a good or a bad thing ? Is it good that I'm consistently happy, and enjoying the conisistent happiness? Is it a bad thing that i used to really dislike people like that ? Either way, it doesnt matter - what matters is things are on the up and up.

Lets see: I've bought property and have a million and one ideas buzzing through my brain about how to decorate it; I'm loving my job at the moment and, i think consequently, have really brought my store up in the business side of things; I have the next week off work, during which time i will be attending a wedding, going shopping and spending a day at a water park; and i have a casual lunch date next Saturday.

Seriously, i know this post is sickly sweet and your all sitting back going " Oh God, what is she so happy about ? Seriously, all this sap makes me want to throw up ! " - but smile people, and embrace the happy....