I got a job working at a counseling center that serves people who are generally in rehab through the temp agency. I don't know if I want it forever, yet, but they're nice and it's doing service type stuff, so it's good for my heart.

Thanksgiving was really wonderful. Sarah came up and then after dinner, we drove to see Donna and Mel and family and had dessert and visited. It was fun. Genny and Lulu didn't want to part and were devising all sorts of ways to stay over at each other's houses.

Today, we woke up to about a foot of snow. It was so wonderful to just lounge in bed and watch the storm. I loved the curved icicles hanging from the eaves -- curved from the curl of wind. I remembered with a shudder that I used to eat those when I was a kid and was thinking about all the crap I must have ingested as a child. Gack.

We got the Halloween/harvesty stuff put away and Christmas decorations up. I miss putting up a real tree. We put up a small fake one because we'll be away, but damn. I miss the real thing. We had to limit our ornamentation to small ornaments that wouldn't break easily.

Genny was pretty cute today because she announced she was putting on her snow clothes and going outside. She then proceeded to put her boots on the wrong feet, claim that one glove was good enough because she could stick her hand in her pocket and then reached for a sweatshirt. Mommy gently suggested that her boots should go on the other feet, so that she could walk without falling down, found her a pair of matching gloves, and helped snap, strap, zip, and velcro her into her winter jacket with the butt protector (prevents snow from going up the coat). She had such a good time, that Mike was able to con her into going out to get the mail instead of him. He said he felt like a tyrant. I agreed. (Criminy, she's only 4, Mike!)

I wanted to get out of the house after two days tonight, so I went to the 7-11 and won $5 on the poker machines. I got 4 Aces and then skittered and slid my way back up the hill to the house on the big giant sheets of rutted ice we currently call roads here. The snow is still fluffy, so not really conducive to making snowmen or anything, either. I couldn't find the damned brushy thing for brushing all the snow off my van, so Ms. Brains that I am, I decided to use my coat and ended up pouring about half the snow on the windshield down my jumper.

Just shut up.

There's supposed to be more snow tonight and then the temps tomorrow night are supposed to drop into the single digits. We're going to go buy a heat lamp for the cat in the garage because it'll just get too damned cold otherwise, but we'll have to wait for the sun to come out and the roads to melt, even a little and take the all wheel drive van to get it.

I keep thinking of Lilo and Stitch. Stitch is the virtually indestructible alien who arrives in Hawaii thrashing lots of stuff, and when confronted by his creator who says he'll make him less fluffy next time, says, "But I like fluffy."

Winter is that kind of fluffy, funny, and virtually indestructible. But I like it. Come April, I'll be jonesing for crocuses and daffodils, but for now, I like fluffy.

I'm finally done with the job from hell.

I went through the books today and while things don't look great, they don't look as grim as they could. One thing I'm thinking about is taking Genny out of daycare to save the money there and spend time with her. I know all kinds of websites with teaching tools and I'm going to talk to LaDawn about getting a copy of the homeschool materials she uses, to work with Genny. I also think I'm going to see about setting up playdates or even taking her to LaDawn's a couple afternoons per week to play with other kids. With the holidays coming, it seems like an appropriate time, but we'll see if I get a temp job til we leave for Florida.

I'm back to sewing again, which is a sure sign that I'm happy and relaxed. I don't want to work again, unless I absolutely have to. We'll see what God brings.

I like working at home. I like being a homemaker. I never thought I'd say that in a million years, but I really do.

I've been shredded about not going on field trips with Russell. He got to go on a fossil dig and he had an absolute ball. I wanted to go sooooo bad. They're going to a play in December. I'd love to go to that with him, too.

I like the idea of earning money, but I miss my kids, my home, and my life.

I'm not even sure I want to return to grad school right now. It's such an exciting time for both children. I could take a few of the requisite classes needed for my teaching credential without officially going back to the big U for a couple years.

Genny's sooooo damned close to reading. I'd like to be there when she can do more than recite the letters that she sees -- when she can actually sound out the words.

I'd also really like to take morning walks with her and hang out with her.

I'm nearly dancing myself silly. They interviewed some pretty thing today, which would mean I could get the hell out of there sometime soon! Whee!

The issue, of course, is that we need to pay for Orlando.

Ugh.

This job is an amazingly bad fit, but Mike got word today that the raises have been cut by 40%. This may mean that we won't get the $5k bonus that we have gotten the past two years, which of course, means I'm stuck doing this hideous job I hate.

*sigh*

It wouldn't be so bad, if my boss wasn't so often a real pain in the ass. I think if there's anything I hate more is being patronized and this guy is undoubtedly the crowned Prince of Patronization -- like I'm too stooopid to know what I'm doing or something. As a result, I am very careful about what I reveal about what I'm feeling.

Apparently, he told the temp agency that he thought he was looking for someone more motivated in sales. I told the temp agency that at $12.50 an hour, what's to be motivated about? Hey, I sold another machine and made my boss a lot of money that I'll never see! Whee!

Yeesh!

As I told the temp agency, if he wants to motivate people, he really ought to compensate them in motivating ways. If I got a percentage of each sale, I think I'd be a LOT more motivated. Yeah, I live to hear my boss and the VP gloating about each sale made, knowing that I won't see anything but my $12.50 an hour.

I keep wondering, if the guy just thinks I'm going to be all excited about making him money. I'm more interested in making money for my family. That's why I'm working. DUH! The pictures on my desk are my HUSBAND and CHILDREN and are there to motivate me to tolerate his obnoxious behavior. If you want me to sell the hell out of stuff, then PAY me something more than shit wages.

What a dumbass!

Well, with any luck at all, and the creek not rising, tomorrow will be my last day at this awful job.

I'm trying to get caught up, but I may not and I'm at the point to where that is totally okay with me.

I basically told my boss yesterday that I was not willing to make sales calls because despite his assurances that he would be there that there are many times when he is unavailable and then, I'd be stuck selling. I told him that if that was a dealbreaker for him that he needed to contact the temp agency and get someone else to do this job.

I need to just get my substitution credential and teach.

My employer decided to take me off the bookkeeping. I kept messing it up last week, and then yesterday, just as I was getting it down, the boss's wife had me do something I knew was wrong, but she insisted was correct and now, today, I'm suddenly not doing bookkeeping, but am the Sales Administrative Assistant.

I fucking hate sales. I'm supposed to make calls to people who gave us their phone number when they called in for lit. I'd rather chew glass. I didn't tell my boss that, but that's what I think about it. I know damned well the temp agency can find me something better.

I want Mike's big fat bonus to come in, so I can quit this shitty rotten job and sew blankets, cook, and teach Genny to read. She's *THIS* close to it. She knows all the letters and their sounds, so we need to work on the connecting them together thing. I also would like to finish up my incompletes. Oh, PLEASE, God, let Mike get his big fat bonus again?

If it doesn't, I'll be stuck doing this til Christmas, at which time, I'm giving notice and quitting!

Office work blows.

I do not think I can adequately express my displeasure with the outcome of the elections.

It's disheartening that the Democratic party is so freaking wishy washy and so out of touch with the bulk of American citizenry.

I'll grant you -- I'm a left-wing liberal. I think abortion should be legal, gays should be able to have some kind of legally recognized partnership ability like everyone else, that war is bad no matter what, and that education is completely screwed with No Child Left Behind. However, the election results showed that people didn't feel like they had much of a choice.

I didn't feel like I had much of a choice. As much as I loathe Bush, I was not a hard core Kerry supporter. I saw a bumper that said it best,"Kerry sucks less."