Moving forward

The loan has been processed and the money put in the bank.

The tiny hot tub has been paid off.

The concrete contractor will get a call tomorrow to finalize the work, that will then take place during the second week of October.

By the end of October, we will have a new driveway, new front steps, and a patio out back, with a hot tub on it.

SO excited.  Dave's program through work was the way to go.

In other news, I've been made a project manager at work for the transition to a new server for submitting electronic insurance claims, and they also process our print services by processing the paper statements sent to patients.

I've already run into the brick wall that is our own VP, who never answers my emails.

I have decided to just pretend she isn't a factor, and move forward with what needs to be done next.

I am hoping that's what they expect me to do.  Since she won't communicate with me, I have to guess.

Finally had new employee orientation the other day.  Better late then never.

Found out some stuff I needed to know, and some lucrative benefits of the job....including the little detail that I don't get 2 weeks' vacation after 6 months...I get 14 days.  That's almost THREE weeks off.

Plus the 11 holidays, plus 2 floaters, and 8 hours of sick time accrued every month.  It's--like--working for a real company again!

Also found out that they offer a similar program to what Dave has at his job, where, once there's money in the retirement (and they have an actual pension that's fully vested once you qualify!), you can take out a loan against it and pay the interest back to yourself.

Not that we will need that again, but it's nice to know it's available.

The desks have finally been built, and I was THE LAST PERSON to be given a workstation.  What the fuck ever.  Oh, and mine is incomplete (with no cabinets), and is damaged, too.  It's also the smallest one in the office.

Lovely.

The missing cabinet has been ordered, and the damaged part is supposed to be replaced eventually...but....like I said, what the fuck ever.

The cubes are MINISCULE, and mine IS actually THE SMALLEST ONE.

No. Really.  It's visibly smaller, and MEASURABLY smaller. My keyboard actually hangs off the edge of the space it has.

Everyone else has space for their keyboard on their desk, with room so spare between their monitors and their keyboards. I don't.

 (this, after the aforementioned VP had a raging yell fest at us about our desks, saying they are ALL THE SAME and NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO COMPLAIN ABOUT ANYTHING because SHE'S SICK OF US.  Yeah, she's charming.)

And my personal space, you know, where my body has to go....there isn't even room for me to turn around.  I have exactly 30 inches by 42 inches for myself and my chair.  I have a cardboard box under my desk for my purse and files.

And we are not allowed to have ANY personal items on our desks, either.  That was part of the happy rage fest. They are discussing that we will be allowed ONE picture, as long as the frame has been approved.

There is no keyboard tray yet, but when that comes, I will have about 8 inches of desk top space that I will be able to use because the keyboard won't be there anymore.  That will help.

Fortunately (?), my chair is broken, so it raises up higher then everyone else's.  I guess that's a plus.  I can sit up really high, to ease my arm pain, but then my feet dangle.

So.  It's really hard to not feel singled out.  Seriously. Because Jeeeeez!!!!! This whole thing is sucking REALLY HARD.

But, I DO like the actual job itself.  For what it's worth.  And effing beeotch raging boss lady is rarely there, so that's a good thing.

And we have been promised that keyboard trays WILL be an option .... eventually.

Given the fact that it took about 6 weeks longer to get our desks than it was supposed to, I know better than to hold my breath.

My teeny cube is tucked into the very back corner of a room without windows, too.  Blah.  I will learn to like that, though, I think.  No one can sneak up behind me.  I can see what's going on in the whole room because of where I am situated, and everyone's back is to me.  SO I can make faces at them, and flip them off and they will never know!  HAH!!

It's actually good feng shui!

Hopefully, the utter chaos that has been this experience so far will be over with very, very soon.

And I will have a hot tub to come home to!!  That will help my body heal from this physical stress.  YAY!

Whirlwind--photos from Colorado

We went for this--Furthur at Red Rocks 9/20/13

but...we also saw..... (remember, click on an image to enlarge it)

No, this is not photoshopped,

I saw this when I was little, visiting the Colorado Railroad Museum with my family

way back in 1966.

"Driving that train...."

When I was 4, and learning my letters, this was M for Mountain.

Red Rocks Park, Morrison, CO

To the north of M for Mountain

More rocks

Sorry the pictures are in sort of a random order.  I caught a cold or something due to getting SOOO tired from the trip, and I'm not really thinking clearly or caring too much right now!  HAH!

11 hours in the car Thursday, Friday exploring Golden, CO and waiting.  Friday night, the show at Red Rocks.  11 hours in the car Saturday.  Errands, laundry, and getting Dave ready for business travel on Sunday.

Monday I wake up with a sort throat and fever.  Yay.

Oh well.  It was worth it.

The full moon was Thursday night, but it was still pretty full, and very bright, Friday night.  Such a magical night it was!

Funniest moment: I was in line for one of the two "family" rest rooms that are at the top of the theater.  I had been in line long enough to hear an entire conversation about the over use of ritilin and how, as a culture, we're drugging our children out of being children....when the reason for the long delay became apparent.

The door opened, and 8 people came out.  There was one toilet and one sink inside.

I guess it was a perfect example of the "family reunion" kind of atmosphere one can experience at such events.

There were also a group of about 4 people dressed as dancing bears.

I had dreamed of seeing the Dead at Red Rocks for years and years....but never had the money or time to travel.  Now I live a day away....and even though it wasn't the DEAD, per se, it was close, and it was just what I needed.

stuff

So, the furniture installation at work continues to be delayed.

They started building the cubes on Thursday and found that they didn't have all of the parts.  SO, our boss's promise that we would be IN OUR NEW DESKS ON 9/12 was not to be.

Sigh.

They were supposed to DELIVER fully built cubes on the 12th (originally the 1st--which passed without furniture, and without an explanation to us), instead, they arrived with carts full of variously sized boxes and crates.

Parts. Not cubes.

Ultimately, they got 7 of the cubes built by the end of the day on Friday.  That's not even half.

They are not the cubes we were promised.  They are MUCH smaller, with no drawers or shelves.  Oh. Yay.

People were pretty disgruntled by the end of the day, when we could see what they were, and what they were NOT.

But whatever.  I just want this part over with.

We went to the State Fair yesterday.  Finally got Dave to take me!  It wasn't too hot out, and it only drizzled for a minute (there's a belief that it always rains during the fair, and during the Arts Festival in April.)

Had a really good corn dog, chocolate covered bacon on a stick (!), and a polish sausage with kraut.  Could have had a LOT more, but didn't want to push my luck!  Since we are so unaccustomed to unhealthy foods, we took it pretty easy.

No deep fried butter!  No really...deep fried butter on a stick.  What. The. Hell.  No funnel cakes, either.  *sad face*

Went into the sheep barn.  We'd missed the shearing, though.  It was just a bunch of naked sheep.   Never did see much of the livestock.  The fair grounds is so spread out...we burned up all of our available energy before we could see half of what was there.

Mostly, we just wandered around, going through the buildings where thousands of vendors were set up.

I had hoped to find a boot vendor and get a good deal, but there was nothing like that.  Lots of clothes and tzachki, but no cowboy boots...at the biggest cowboy gathering of the year.  Makes perfect sense. Whatever.

I've been wanting a pair of dingo style boots for a while...just gotta wait til the right sale comes along, I guess.

Or until I win that pair I saw on Facebook.  Hey, it could happen!  I've now won two trivia contests sponsored by the Berghoff in Chicago....maybe my contest luck is changing.

It's not like I NEED THEM, after all.  It's just a style that I like.  That, or ropers.  I like the flat heels.

Anyway,  we also went to the fair in particular to visit the booth of the hot tub vendor we were planning to use anyway.

They DID have the tub we want available at a "fair price," and so...we DID order it!  WHEEE!!!

It's a little one, and we got a really good deal that includes the insulated cover, a step, and delivery.  For about a thousand dollars LESS then we expected we'd have to pay.

Meantime,  the concrete work will be done at the beginning of October.  It's happening!

Dave filled out the paperwork, and his raise will kick in, and the loan payments will start being taken out of his checks at right about the same time.  We won't even feel a change.  It will be like he didn't get a raise.

But we'll have a new driveway that doesn't have a cavern in the middle of it.  We will have front steps that aren't different sizes.  We will have a patio.  And we will have our little hot tub.

Effectively increasing our quality of life vastly, as well as our property value.

Oh, and the pit bull mix that was in the yard behind us...the one who attacked our next door neighbor's dogs and inspired her to erect an 8 foot tall fence....  that dog has not been seen for weeks.

She finally got out of their yard for one last free for all, and stayed gone this time.

No idea what happened.  Everyone in the immediate neighborhood had the number to call if the dog was seen outside of its yard, so animal control might have gotten her at last.

Or she might have just kept going.  She loved to get out and run, and go after kids and dogs while she was at it....so maybe she's free now, running with the other packs of wild street dogs we have around here.

Anyway, I'm just glad she's gone. She was a menace.

(...and just as a side note, we haven't seen as many street dog packs in our block as we used to.  Maybe they've finally got them under control?? Who can say. Maybe we've just missed seeing them run.  When I saw them kill one of the wild kittens, that was enough for me.  Don't want to see any more.)

Labor

I am very grateful that this is my first paid holiday in several years that did not require me to use earned time off that was building up in my paid personal leave "bank."

The time off policy at my last job was so ...  stupid.

Anyway....this has been a nice labor day weekend, mostly.

It was insanely hot on Saturday when we took a road trip up to the northwest corner of the state. Not the panhandle, but the area just east of where it sticks off the side.

We went to Alabaster Caverns and toured the big cave, and then tried to do some hiking around to a couple of the other caves, but it was 104 degrees out, and it made me sick.  I almost went down, so we had to high tail it to a facility with air conditioning.

The good part of this experience is that I knew when to say when, and the best part is that I never got the usual migraine!!  Whoop!!

Yesterday, we did a couple of short errands, and had a glass of wine at our hang out. 

Today, Dave got his ear re-pierced (it had gotten infected and closed up part way), and he is now out washing my car.

Speaking of stupid things at my last job... someone at my last job keyed my car during my last week. 

I mean COME ON!  We are being OUTSOURCED!  Vandalize my car because I got a new job?  What the FUCK is that?

I just don't get it.

Anyway, I was hoping it was just a mark in the months' worth of dirt on my car, like from someone's briefcase or tote bag....but it's definitely a key mark.

This is the second time my car has been keyed since I moved down here.  Fortunately, we still have the paint pen we bought the last time.

In other news, the pain from the lack of ergonomics at work has really hit a crest.  It's constant, and really debilitating.  I can't sleep, I can't lift things, I can't stretch or dance, without pain.  It's amazing how much we use our arms!

The desks are SUPPOSED to come tomorrow, and be assembled over the course of the next two weeks. 
Being able to have a keyboard and mouse down just above my lap, where they belong, and monitors at the right level for my neck and eyes....these will be very, very good things.

THEN, I can get an appointment with my chiropractor, and have him help me try to put things back where they belong. 

We have hot dogs and beer for our holiday dinner.  What a treat!!  I hope everyone out there who has the day as a holiday, and who is celebrating in any way, no matter how small (hot dogs and beer!) or large, is having a great day!