Browse Category: work

A New Life

logo_childrenshospital.gifYesterday I accepted a new job at Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland. I chose the per diem position so I could get a higher hourly rate and no benefits. With Jes’ job providing a pretty good health plan and two mortgages to pay, this was the best plan for now. I think eventually I’ll try to get a full-time benefited position but I think I’m ok with my decision for now. My position will be in out-patient since it’s the best match for my current skill set. It’s not my first choice but it’ll be the easiest transition. I’ve been working in the educational model for the past six years so it’ll take a little studying, reviewing, and shadowing to get me back into the medical model.

I considered working for SFUSD but when I spoke with their lead therapist, she didn’t sell the job very well. One of the biggest things that turned me off was the fact that I’d have to drive (and find parking) several times a day everyday in the city.  That doesn’t sound very pleasant.  With a job at Children’s, I can hop on the Muni outside my condo, transfer to BART, and take the employee shuttle to work…awesome.

So, in about a month, I’ll be saying “goodbye” to attorneys, IEPs, and school holidays and “hello” to picky eaters, heart rate monitors, and premies.  I know I’ll miss my little preschool and the friends I’ve made but this will be a good change for me and HUGE learning experience.   Here’s to a new professional life.  Cheers!

exhausted

May and June are always busy for me at work but I feel like it’s much worse this year.  Somehow 8 hours pass before I get a chance to sit down at my computer to answer emails.  I’m running from meeting to meeting during the day and going home to write report after report.  I’m simply exhausted.  On top of that, I tweaked my back during an assessment yesterday as I was trying to help a mother control her child.  *sigh*  So, today I managed to leave work early (around 4 pm) for the sake of my sanity.  I’ve been clocking 12-16 hour work days for the past two weeks and needed a break.  In fact, today was my last darkroom class and I surely made the most of it.  I arrived an hour early per the request of my instructor and made a final print of my OC Fair Photo Contest entry.  I also managed to print 3 other photos that I feel may be worthy of framing and hanging in my home.  It’s nice to have something to “escape” to when I’m mentally stretched to the limits.  Hopefully my photo will pass the first round of judging.  I’ll have to cross all my fingers and toes and hold my breath for that to happen.  Nighty night…off to bed now.

Stress Relief

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It’s busy season at work and it’s definitely reflected in what I’m watching on TV. A few weeks ago, I was flipping through channels on the TV and found myself waching a full episode of “The Bachelor”. Wha?! Yep, I was watching Andy Baldwin courting four women and actually rooting for Tessa. Sweet. I’ve also been watching “Dancing With the Stars” every Monday and I’ve been pulling for Apolo and Julianne. Boy oh boy…if TiVo tracks my preferred shows, my TiVo “Suggested Shows” folder is going to packed with reality TV for months. Anyway, what I’m getting at is that trashy TV is a great stress reliever. Last week when I was completely stressed out, I came home, turned on my TiVo and vegged out for three hours. I felt SOOOO much better afterwards and slept like a baby.

Oh by the way, Tessa won Andy’s heart and Apolo and Julianne won. Woot! May sweeps rock.

Working Weekend

Weekends are great for relaxing and resting up from a rough work week but they’re also very good for catching up on work too.  After leisurely waking at 11:00 am this morning, I made breakfast and then got to straight to work.  I sat in front of my computer from 1:00 pm to midnight writing reports and planning the rest of the school year.  After a day of work, I actually feel less stressed.  This past week was rough because I felt like I was drowning.  I often find myself paralyzed when I’m overwhelmed by too much work so this was just what I needed…an extra day to get things done.

I am a veggie.

I hope it’s Friday. It better be Friday. I’m lying in bed like brocolli and catching up on my TiVo programming right now and it’s awesome. So far I’ve watched the Season Finales of Ugly Betty and Grey’s Anatomy and I’m on Tuesday’s episode of Days of Our Lives. Ah…. This has been one wild and crazy week and it’s only going to get worse in the weeks to come. I need to learn how to clone myself. Anyone know if they’re doing that with humans yet?

Speaking of work, I’m in the middle of recruiting a friend of mine to come work with me. Dave just got back from two years in Guyana volunteering for the Peace Corps and 6 months of traveling Southeast Asia. Now he’s back home and looking for a job. So, he contacted me this week and came by this afternoon to check out my school and clinic. I also got to meet his girlfriend Lucy who’s really cool. They actually met in Guyana…aw, cute. After showing them around, I couldn’t help feeling a little embarrassed of how I live and where I work. I may have it rough at work sometimes but they made me feel like I had a wealth of support and equipment. They also talked about how life is so different here with all the driving and technology. They also commented on how such large sums of money are spent each day for such large amounts of food. After living in such rural conditions for so long I suppose their recent trip to Costco seemed really silly.

peace and quiet

My OT intern started on Wednesday and it’s been non-stop action at work. When I’m in “teaching mode” I seem to be talking quite a bit. It’s hard not to when someone is relying upon you to explain everything I’m doing and why. After going all school-year on my own and coming/going as I please, I now have a shadow attached to me all day long. It certainly takes some getting used to. Sometimes I feel like I need to “entertain” my student with something to do or see. With all the talking that I did on Wednesday, my throat was really raw yesterday morning. It was really hard for me to get warmed up and I ended up being really quiet all morning. I felt I needed to apologize to my student since it almost seemed like I was annoyed by her. I really wasn’t. It was just way too early to be teaching. In fact, when she arrived in the morning, I was in the middle of a very stressful phone call and simply not ready to be dealing with people. So when she asked me, “Is there anything you want me to do?” I so badly wanted to say, “No, just sit there quietly until I’m done with my paperwork.” But of course I didn’t. Instead, I said, “Go ahead and and observe Arlene’s treatment session for a bit while I’m finishing up.” Phew…that was close.

So it’s Friday now and my intern had to attend her graduation this morning so I have a day to catch up.  Ah…what a relief. It was weird to have time to gather my thoughts and get my reports done. I really do enjoy teaching but it definitely requires a little extra energy and organization on my part. It’ll get easier once we get into the rhythm of things. Unfortunately it’ll be another week or so before I can start putting her to work. It’ll be great!