Tag: Work

Monday, June 28th, 2010

Pattern Changes

Starting next Monday I’ll be working full time as the store’s Payroll Clerk. It’ll be kind of nice to get an increase in hours, and two days off every week, but it will mean my work days are considerably longer than they have been recently. It’s going to take me a while to get used to going to bed a little earlier and getting up before 6am most days. I’d much rather get an earlier start than have my whole afternoon sucked away by work though. I’d hoped to be able to work half-days on Sunday, but right now that won’t be possible. Maybe when summer is over and the temp workers start leaving..? Well, it will be easier to take the occasional vacation day on non-critical Sundays, so that helps.

Anyway, it will be soooo nice to have Saturdays off. I’ll be able to see my friend Mara during the day for a change! And I might get to do things with my brother too! And, since I work in retail, having Saturdays off is sort of a big deal – that’s the busiest day of the week, and I don’t have to be there! I can’t remember the last time I regularly had a weekend day off. It was probably a couple of months after I moved up to the Cities in 2000, when I got my first ‘real’ job. Crazy!

Of course, me being me, whenever I have to make a change in my schedule I consider trying to sneak other changes in, hoping I won’t notice them so much. For example, since I’m changing my bedtime anyway, why not make it even earlier so I can read every night? Or, why not start doing sit-ups and eating breakfast each morning? Or packing a lunch instead of spending money at work? Most of my little fantasies of change just get lost in the reality of life, and that’s ok. I can always think about it again next time I make a pattern change.

Tags: , , ,

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Research Topic

I’m about half way through my Information Literacy course and it’s just about time to choose a research topic for my big project. I always hate having to choose a topic to study. It’s difficult to decide on something that I want to learn about in depth. I am curious about a lot of things, but I’m not necessarily excited to spend a lot of time on one thing. Maybe I’ve just become too used to the vague awarenesses that I collect. Is that a feature of our generation? Or is it a feature of my personality? If I feel I know how to acquire additional information on a topic, I often won’t. I could do it in the future if I wanted to, so there’s no need to do it now, right?

So yeah, I have to actually pick something and delve deep for once. I’m contemplating doing something on minimum wage laws. It’s a very contentious issue though slightly less so now, since there was an increase not long ago. I do have to wonder, in this economy, how much pain has the new minimum wage caused? Is it partly to blame for the job losses and underemployed worker levels? Combined with the poor lending climate, can small businesses really afford to keep their staff level steady? If a full time person quits or retires, are they more likely to only hire a part time replacement?

One problem I see with the minimum wage law is that is makes certain wages sound like less. Before the increase went into effect $8.50/hr didn’t sound too terrible as an entry level retail wage. It was several dollars above the minimum! Now, it’s not even $2 above the minimum. I know, it sounds like a silly argument in the grand scheme, but perception and ‘consumer confidence’ has a real effect on the way people operate. There are also a lot of arguments about how higher minimums price low skill workers out of the workforce. If a business is forced to pay $7.25/hr for a worker, they will probably look for a person they feel is worth that investment. Thus the increased minimum sometimes hurts the exact people it is most intended to help.

It does seem like it might be an interesting subject. We shall see.

Tags: , , ,

Saturday, December 5th, 2009

Shop Shop Shop

It’s possible that my favorite type of shopping is gift buying. I particularly enjoy getting stuff for Jon. I’ve been known to go a little overboard in years past. I’m tempted to do the same this year, of course, but I’m trying to be more realistic about my finances. I’ve picked up a few things for him so far, but I made sure to get gift receipts too, just in case I’m way off about what he wants, heh.

I’m also participating in a ‘Secret Santa’ exchange at work and am struggling with what to buy. My first idea didn’t work out because it was out of stock. I haven’t come up with a good enough second idea yet. But there’s still time! Oh yes! Maybe I’ll have time to pull off idea number one if I can just wait a week or so! I’ll have to do some more snooping about the person on Facebook and get a backup plan ready, just in case. *smirk*

The other thing I need to do is go Birthday shopping for my Mom! She’ll be 57 in ten days! Whoo! I haven’t decided what to get for her, but she’s not too hard to shop for. She generally likes practical things. And every-day jewelry. I’m not too worried.

I think the best thing I’ve purchased so far is the present for the in-laws’ fetus! Our future niece or nephew will be getting a very cute little gift. Hopefully it will be put to use once the tater tot is born!

Tags: , , ,

Friday, November 27th, 2009

Almost there!

I’ve almost made it to the end of NaBloPoMo! I can’t give up now, right? But I can’t think of a cohesive topic to write about today. Boo!

I think that means it’s a good day for a random bullet list!

  • I wish I liked more kinds of tea. I can sometimes drink flavored green teas, and fruity white teas are ok, but I don’t enjoy black tea very often. The only way I can drink black tea is cold, mixed with lots of lemonade Arnold Palmer style, or in the form of chai.
  • I’m so excited that it’s Christmas season finally! I’m gonna have to break out the Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas DVD pretty soon!
  • I’ve basically adopted the Nintendo DS that Jon is borrowing (or recently purchased?) from his friend. I got Professor Layton and the Curious Village from GameFly and have been playing the heck out of it. It’s a really fun puzzle solving game!
  • I was told today that I’m too humble. I don’t see it. Maybe I just have high expectations of other people..? I rarely assume I can do something better than someone else, but that’s not really humble, it’s just reasonable.
  • I wore my contacts to work today! No one really noticed because I also dyed my hair dark brown and people were busy noticing that! Of course, most of my coworkers have seen me in contacts at one point or other, it’s just been 9 months or so since they last witnessed my green eyes in their full glory!

Tags: ,

  • mara: Ahh I dont know how to let go of things like that ...
  • Kayla Elizabeth: Doesn't it feel great to get rid of excess clothin...
  • Carla: I have the same problem with my pants. That's why...
  • Taversia: Hang in there, pretty lady. <3 =] It's ...
  • Psych Babbler: Wow! Sounds great...totally makes it worth living ...

Powered by WordPress

Blossom Theme by RoseCityGardens.com