Firsts

The last couple of weeks have been the usual spring madness. Work is crazy busy and the sun is shinning and I find myself obsessing about how I hate my clothes and how my house is messy, how I am going to get everything ready on-time for the summer and what color my staff shirts should be this year but none of this is new for me, especially not for April. What's getting me really are all the "Firsts" I have to cope with at the moment.

I am not very good at change, and I thought I was done with all that change business for this year. I started dating Randy, Roomdog went home, I moved house, learned to drive, that's a lot for me! But the change continues. Randy has a new job and is moving to Connecticut. I am very happy for him and think it is a great move but it definitely means more firsts for me.

Once I learned where Connecticut was and practiced spelling it a few times, I realized that I am going to have to drive over a bridge (total fear of mine) to go see him. I thought that if I just passed the test I could get away with driving to Quick Check and Stop and Shop and would work my way up to the Mall and people would get off my back about not having a license but I think I am really going to have to drive...like on the highway. Then I realized that I really am going to live alone for the first time ever.

At work I can look after 400 children and 200 staff, work 20 hour days for weeks in a row, solve crises, break-up fights and talk people into doing just about anything. I can cope with a bus full of kids arriving without warning, natural disasters and no power but don’t ask me to change the font I have been using on my computer for the last seven years. I am slowly realizing that I like the normal things to stay the same. I like the same brands in the cupboard, the same sandwich for lunch and the house to look like it always did. I liked the way it was. I guess life is not really like that and I am going to have to do things for the first time even if I don’t want to.

Tell you what really got me last night though. After six tears of living in the woods, a tic had the audacity to bite me… for the first time.

I'm a driving girl, yes I'm a driving girl!!!!

The State of New Jersey has finally given me a driving licence!!! My boss was very helpful today and did not bring up any stressful topics all the way to Lodi. I managed not to mangle any cones and (despite needing a taxi to the sidewalk when I parallel parked) passed my road test. I know most of the world manages to reach this milestone at 17 but I am happy to say that finally at 33 I am a driving girl. (There is a song here, sing along if you know it.)

With very little in the way of good news at work today I returned to the office triumphant looking for people to share my good fortune with and to lift their spirits. My other boss;
"Good, but you know you are too late to get this into the insurance company today."
Yeah awesome thanks.
The secretary, " Well you know Stella's daughter, crashed the car the very day she passed."
Encouraging.
The Book keeper, " Now you will have a car payment and insurance too, do you even know how much gas costs?"
I was reminded of that SNL sketch " Along comes Debbie Downer" which made me laugh and skipped off to Randy's car to go on an errand I have been meaning to do all week, and now I can!!! I laughed at myself behind the wheel all the way down Macopin Road and managed not crash or even worry too much about the cost of the gas I was burning. No more trips to the supermarket for you Randy and Roomdog, I will pick you up from the airport girl, know why? Cause I'm a driving girl.

Roomdog's New Roomdog

Roomdog has a new roomdog. Well she has a new "house mate" and I feel that it is my duty to provide her with an orientation to living with roomdog. (Roomdog helped Randy out before she left and gave him some useful tips, if I was smart enough do put a link in here to an old post about this, I would) As I will not be in Ireland for a while I thought the following might be useful to you, Lou, just a few tips to get you started.

• Roomdog likes to clean. please do not feel guilty about this, she doesn't mind your mess, she just likes to clean. Don't try to stop her. On particularly manic days she can be found vacuuming walls and searching for imaginary fluff, it's kind of a hobby. I did also find her combing the fringes on a rug one day.


• She is not allowed red wine.


• Room dog is a smashing wee cook, she will whip you up a tasty wee dinner in no time made to specification. Enjoy.


• She hates surprises.


• Room dog is a food snob so please keep your tins of beans or packets of noodles hidden at the back of the cupboard.


• She needs eight hours of sleep but will deny it.


• Roomdog's favorite leisure activities include shopping of any kind, TV and gossip magazines but will tell you she likes to read plays and go for walks.


• She is a little obsessed with laundry.


• Roomdog does not like to carry any stuff with her but will expect stuff like tissues, pain killers and sweaters to be available. This is where you come in.


• She likes funny stories, it's the facial expressions that make her laugh.


• Roomdog would give you her last dollar/pound/euro. She is very generous.


• She likes wee cups of tea and chats and she smokes like a train. She is crazy smart and will give you good non-judgemental advice. She works hard and has mad skills.


• Roomdogs birthday is February 2nd and she likes it celebrated.
  

Hope you have as much fun as I did.

Wish you were here.

Randy is in Cancun, which is apparently in Mexico and not in Vietnam as my mum thought. ("Oh hen what's he going there for?" Took a while to get to the bottom of that one.) He is sitting by a pool, sunning himself and sipping on his all inclusive cocktails, doing young people things and having fun. Not that I am jealous mind you. Oh no I would much rather stay in New Jersey where it snowed last night and rained all day today. I would much rather be at work for the 15Th day in a row. I am not completely bored or anything. It's Randy who is missing out on what has been an eventful few days. Just to catch you up because I know the phone calls cost a fortune Randy here are my stories for the week.

On Wednesday I slammed some doors for a while at work then came home and did more work. I wondered why I wanted chicken soup so badly, made it, ate it then realised I was sick and had a fever. Awesome. Cracked a tooth on some chocolate I shouldn't have been eating anyway and went to bed to sleep not at all.

Thursday's made me take a lot of Advil. I would tell the work stories but I doubt you would believe them and Roomdog and I are saving them up for a book one day. I called Roomdog who made me feel better, went home and took some more Advil and more work.

Friday, Funday! I know all of the emergency service numbers for every possible crisis one could have and am ready to move onto HR standards, which will be featured heavily in the above book and I am sure will be funny one day.

Saturday I start at 8am woohoo!

So you can keep your foam parties and boat rides, conversations and dinners out my friend, I am having a party all of my own right here.

(but I do miss you just a wee bit)

Back to Bootcamp

I wrote this wee poem for my friend Katie who asked how my driving test went on Monday:

There was a young lady from Kirkie,
Who's driving was a little bit quirky,
She ran over the cone
and was promptly sent home,
She'll try it next week at 1.30.

Katie sent this back to me:

Boo boo to the DMV
Up there in Nuevo JersEY
They should have just known
That a car ain't a cone
And let that wee slip up just be.

I am considering giving all bad news in verse from now on...cross your fingers for next time.

Closer to the garbage can soldier!

With my road test just days away, yesterday I had to enroll in Sgt. Randy's Driving School Boot Camp. Randy (my boyfriend and usually a very laid back guy) takes it seriously if he says he will do something, which in this case is teach me to drive. For the last three months I have gotten away with driving now and then to local places and navigating the pot holes on camp but it was time to bite the bullet and learn to parallel park.

My boss has been kind enough to lend me a company car in which to take my test, a totally sweet Audi which I have never driven before and I am under some pressure to pass. In my wisdom I have told everyone I have spoken to in the last three months when it is. (Monday 2pm in case I didn't mention) So it was off to the basketball courts with two garbage cans for cars and two planks of wood to represent the kerb. I made it on my first try but as my eyes were closed didn't feel that was enough and Sgt Randy stepped in. After the first thirty times, I drove to another spot and told Randy I would just park there instead but there was to be no nonsense and I think I got a few extra parking push ups for my smart mouth. I did also accidentally put the window up one time during vital instruction and drive off another time in the middle of a critique and may have had another "couple of laps" added there. Sgt. Randy was strict. I tired easily. Trying to get to of any more practice I told it it was clearly a hit or miss whether I was going to get this right on the test and tried the usual methods of persuasion. Pulling up closer in the car I say...

"You know, I think we should just go and watch some West Wing."

Randy loves West Wing and I had bought him Season four on DVD and he had not had time to watch it yet.

"Yeah as soon as you park that car a couple of more times properly we can do that"

Next time I tried.

"I'm feeling like maybe we should go take a wee 'nap', what do you think?"

This has never failed me in getting what I want but he replied,

"Get back in the car soldier and this time pull up closer to the garbage can like you were told!"

Eventually after not being able to learn this as I imagine normal people do I turned it all into a timed move as if it were dance choreography and it was with this that I had success. I don't know how other people do these things but this is how I drive and remember things. I guess all of those Saturdays practicing the time step and Thursday evenings pirouetting were not a waste of time. Give it a try. Pull up and reverse one two, to the left one two and the right one two and straighten forward one and back one.

Feeling much more confident after a few more successful maneuvers round the garbage cans I pulled round for what Randy promised was the last time. I looked at the clock and realised that we had been out there for several hours then at Randy who was shivering in the wind. I guess it would have been much easier for him to give into me and be comfortable at home on his day off but he kept me going. My big brother Jim told me the last time I was home that if Randy could teach me to drive without us falling out then he was a keeper. He's right. So today I am writing my victory speech for when I finally pass my driving test Monday or not. I'd like thank Jim for his good advice, (It was followed by never get a Dalmatian Puppy but that is a whole other story) Roomdog for being impressed with the written test victory, My parents for paying for the dancing lessons, and Sgt. Randy, for the hours spent driving and explaining, being patient and making me do it. Season five of West Wing is on it's way to you.

A Wummin's Work

I try never to mention my job in my blog as it seems to be the only area of my life work has yet to consume. I live on-site and every conversation I have is about my job. I work with Randy and socialize with work people, read books for work and put in hours that would put Dickens to shame. Today I realised that it has been two weeks since I have written anything and can feel the temperature change today with my windows and doors wide open which can only mean the start of my "busy" season. I am off today but had 19 work phone calls by 8.30am and solved four separate crisis events by noon. So I started to think about what has been going on since my last post. I have been to Europe (mostly for work but also for a little spoiling by my mum) all over the ti-state area (for work) and to the annual conference (to learn things for work.) I could write for days about the negative things about work but I did read somewhere recently that if you don't like what you do and refuse to change it then the only sensible thing to do is practice loving it each day. In that spirit here are some of the highlights of the past two weeks.

• Realising that after not seeing some kids for a year I can pick up exactly where I left off and relate to them immediately. Also that I get to have them back again in the summer.
• Meeting up with some old (work) friends in Europe who have such great memories of this place and also seeing that there is life after.
• Being motivated to work harder by the other people in my profession at the conference. They might be all Birkenstocks and backpacks but they can also be inspiring.
• Hearing Lisa Loeb sing Stay live at the conference...strange connection I know but totally awesome all the same.
• Michael Brandwein's new book Training Terrific Staff Volume two. Yes Roomdog I am in possession of a copy and it is genius as usual.

An old Scot's saying goes "A Wummin's work is never done" which really means that women do everything and keep it all together. This afternoon I dedicate to getting the house work and laundry in order so that maybe, just maybe I will have some time to chill and this "wummin's work" will be done for a while. I also read that if you are what you do, then who are you when you don't . I'm still working on the answer to that one but when I do the answer just might be in my blog which I will try to keep a work free zone.