Day for Night

Well... my news, anyway. :)

Work is going well on both job fronts. My house at the group home have been cut back (and my impetus) so I'll be working on getting back to my school work. I've got one more week of part-time training at UPS, then it's on to full time. This will be good for the bank account! Actually it will be good for my debtors. My bank account will still be starving. ;)

General life stuff is... alright. It's difficult being away from my sweetie, especially now that he's been brutally ill for the past three weeks and is showing no signs of getting better. Being away from a sick loved one is so difficult. You just want to be there to take care of them! I feel like all I can do from this distance is nag the poor man about going to the doctor and getting some rest.

I'm also wondering if I'm losing the group of friends I've had here in the East. I've been obsessing as to whether it was something I've done or not Thankfully, another friend of mine (who's separate from this group of friends) helped me put some things in perspective today, so I'm feeling more grounded about the whole thing. Either way, losing friends is sad, but sometimes it's for the best. I'm a very low-drama person. I figure life is dramatic enough on its own, so I try to keep it to a minimum when it comes to my friends. :D

I think that's it for tonight. I'm off to visit the parents and do some laundry tomorrow. Time for bed! G'night.

Labels: employment, general

Wow, I've been pretty much going non-stop for the past week and a half, so I've not even blogged in the past nine days. This will be just a brief update.

Work is going well at both the group home and UPS. I really like the guys I work with at the group home, but I've decided I really need to cut back on the hours there. Working a total of 60 hours a week between two jobs is not for me (like I didn't know that already). I'm sticking with UPS as they pay better and they have benefits, where at the group home there is nothing. I'm only designated as a part-time employee at the group home even though I'm working full-time hours. Not fun. So even though I like the guys, I need to cut back. More on the group home at a later date.

Off to bed for me!

Labels: employment, general

It's been a busy few days, and it's about to get busier.

On Friday, I went in for my Orientation at UPS. Not a bad string of events with UPS: get a call on Tuesday for an interview, have the first interview on Wednesday, have the second interview and the call-back saying I got the job on Thursday, then start work on Friday. I found out that UPS is an awfully conservative company. The dress code is business attire (not "business casual" as I'm used to, but "business"), meaning I have to somehow find money for new clothes. I also need to find some jewelry that hides my industrial and rook piercings. Yep, it's that conservative. But I need the $11.60/hr. so I don't have that much problem wearing the uniform. It's better than their brown courier uniforms, anyway. :)

Then I went for the last of my orientation at the group home. I start full time there tomorrow! I'm a little nervous as I'll be taking two of the men to the job centre by myself, so I'll see if I'm able to keep the tougher one in line and keep them both busy. Wish me luck!

My schedule will be rather busy over the next month. Monday to Friday will be 8:30am - 4pm at the group home, then 6pm - 10pm at UPS. I've never worked more than one full time job before, so a full time and a part time job will be quite the experience. Also, I'll be walking to and from these jobs. The group home is about 35 - 40 minutes from my house, and UPS has got to be over an hour away. So I'll be getting home after 11pm every night, and having to get up by 6:30am. It will be a tough schedule, but I'm hoping I can make up the sleep on the weekends.

Since today is Sunday, I'm going to get all those things done that I won't have time to do this week - clean my room, dye my hair, and sleep. ;) Too bad I don't have enough groceries for cooking up several meals in advance. Maybe I can squeeze grocery shopping in between the two jobs.

Anyway, enough inane chatter from me. I just wanted to let you all know why you might not be hearing from or seeing me a lot over the next month! Take care.

Labels: employment, general

I got the UPS job! Just a few hours after my interview, I got a call back saying I was successful! I have four hours of orientation tomorrow, then I start training on Monday evening. Now I just need to juggle both jobs, and finish my school papers, and I'll have my life figured all out. :D

Labels: employment

I started working at the group home yesterday. I was there for 4 hours (noon until 4pm) and spent the afternoon hanging out with two of the residents and the young woman who currently works with them. Actually, yesterday was her last day, so it was sort of a rushed transition for the guys - they at least get to see my face once before I start working with them alone.

When I work the day shifts, I'll be working with two men over at a job centre for disabled people. They do a variety of jobs (none of them very exciting), but they get out of the house, get experience, and keep busy. One of the men is very sweet, soft spoken and funny. The other is loud, boisterous, and a horrible chauvinist. It's going to be quite the ride. ;) I enjoyed the day, actually, but I'm sure it will be different when I don't have a co-worker to talk to.

I like what I see of the group home so far. No one is coddled - the residents do their own dishes, heat up their own lunches, set and clean the table, and do their own laundry. They also do other chores in the house as they are able. We are there to deal with any health issues they have (mental health flair-ups, hygiene needs, coaching and teaching, etc). I already know I'm going to learn a whole lot!

Another great thing about yesterday is that I had an interview at UPS. Yes, I know you are very excited. ;) The great thing about this job is that it starts at $11.60 (almost unheard of in this region), and has great benefits. If I can get the UPS job, then I can actually afford to live and do the group home job. As with most group homes, they don't pay well and have no benefits. Anyway, the interview went so well that I was asked back for another interview today! I had the interview about an hour ago, and I think I impressed the second interviewer, too. :) As the next training class starts on Monday, she said I can expect to hear back (if I'm a successful candidate) sometime tomorrow. Yay! Please, pray, light a candle, cross your fingers, or do a little jig for me - whatever works for you. :)

That's it for me for now. I work at the group home tonight and tomorrow night at 4:30pm just for a few hours of orientation. Then I'll probably work a full shift next Monday taking the guys over to the job centre. Have a great day, all!

Labels: employment

I GOT A JOB!! And this one won't disappear in two days! :) I interviewed and got a job today working in a group home with adults with intellectual disabilities and mental health issues. Doesn't it sound like a blast? I'm sure you're all jealous. ;) But the crazy, budding social worker that I am, I think it's great! It's going to be amazing experience. And I start orientation tomorrow! I should be working regular shifts by next week.

Just before I went out the door to the interview, I got a call about an application I dropped off at UPS on Friday. They offered me an interview for tomorrow morning! They pay significantly better than the group home job, so I'm hoping I'll be able to work at both places. The shifts won't conflict as one is a day job and the other is all night shifts. We'll see how my body handles that! And with these two jobs I just might be able to pay my rent. :)

Wish me luck!

P.S. Now Jay can't make any Burger King jokes. Mind you, it was touch and go there for a bit. I did hand in an application for Tim Hortons. :P

Sometimes I actually find myself feeling afraid of sleep. I'll know I'm tired and that I should go to bed, but I get a bit of a panicky feeling when I think about actually turning in. I'm not sure why that is. I don't tend to have nightmares, and I usually love sleep. But sometimes this panicky feeling will keep me up hours beyond the time I should have gone to bed.

Like now, for instance.

Labels: general, wierdness

(don't worry, I'll soon stop with the entry titles containing the word "Day." :) )

So yesterday's resume extravaganza went quite well. I already have an interview at a group home scheduled for Tuesday at 1:30pm, and that was a result of dropping off a resume yesterday. I also stopped by the local chapter of the John Howard Society, UPS, a Dollarama store and two bars. We'll see what comes of out that.

While it rained yesterday night and evening, today's weather was wonderful! Sunny, not too hot, and a bit breezy. I had coffee with a friend early in the afternoon and went to a craft fair with a few of my roommates in the early evening. Now I'm back at home knitting up a storm and taking it easy. Next on my oh-so-exciting to-do list is "go to bed early." :) I actually want to get up at a decent hour tomorrow so as to get back on a proper sleep schedule.

That's been my exciting life! How's yours going?

(P.S. Oh, and I forgot to tell you about the huge amounts of laundry I got done last night. Somebody stop me! I'm a crazy woman! ;) )

Labels: employment, general