The year hasn't started out so well for me. Actually the battle with my health has been fought for quite some time.
I had swine flu in the June of last year. Then I was strung my two wasps whilst on holiday in August. In November I fought an upper respiratory infection which left me battling an wicked ear infection and felt like someone was picking sticks in my ear. I seemed to rally in time for Christmas and then came the damp wet grey cold holiday in Spain for the New Year and that just tipped me over the edge.
I was powerless against the pneumonia which left me bound to the house and completely helpless. I had no energy. My temperature soared to over 102 for 12 days solid. I ate nothing for 3 days when my husband finally force fed me toast. A work colleague visited me and I still have no recollection of his visit. I couldn't sleep due to the excessive coughing. I couldn't breath. It felt like a herd of elephants were sitting on my chest.
I took all the drugs and had a reaction to the third course of antibiotics which left me in a worse state than I had been in when I started taking them. I followed all the doctor's orders and still I didn't get better.
I became depressed when nothing seemed to help and I didn't' get better for weeks and weeks. After nearly 5 weeks I began to recover. I returned to work but couldn't manage more than 2 hours. Even during those few hours my brain felt like mush. People would speak to me but I couldn't' for the life of me make sense of what they were saying. And when I did make sense of it I certainly couldn't do any critical analytical thinking about what they were saying. I would come home before midday and collapse into bed.
After a few weeks of this I stated to feel my mojo return. I was making sense of things. I could sustain my attention for more than 10 minutes.
And then I went on a training course and sat in some of the worse chairs ever for 8 hours 3 days in a row with only a few breaks.
I ignored the pain for weeks hoping it would just go away. Finally after 2 weeks, the pain won and seized in the middle of dinner out with my daughter. I made it home through tears with my daughter completely terrified. My husband wasn't home. The doctor couldn't come to the house until after hours. I couldn't sit. I couldn't stand. I couldn't lie down. I couldn't move.
The hospital gave me some serious pain killers and sent me into gagaland which is beautiful place to go. I spent 2 days in a complete fog.
I now have a physiotherapist and am working on the back pain. I don't need the pain killers more than once/day (usually at the end of the day). I have no cough, no cold, no infection. I am not taking any antibiotics.
Health is a funny old thing. You take it for granted when you've got it. And when you don't there is little you can do about it. In the depths of the pneumonia and at the height of the back pain I felt completely powerless. It scared the living daylights out of me.
I know I run at mach 10 with my hair on fire. I have a high stress job. I work full time and have 2 children under the age of 9. I do not have a nanny or an au pair. The only help I have at home is a cleaner who visits for 4 hours once/week (which to be fair is more than some have). My husband is sometimes more of another child than a help (aren't they all?). I do the school run every day. I help with Rainbows. I am a member of the school parent group.
I don't take enough time for myself but I don't know a mother who works outside the home who does. When we are not with our children we feel guilty for working. And when we are with our children we feel guilty for not working.
Now that I am better long may it continue. But I gotta take care of myself. I'm just not sure when I might be able to fit that in........
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Monday, 29 March 2010
Monday, 3 November 2008
Libraries
In an attempt to do my bit for climate change and fiscal responsibility I was wondering around the local library for the latest book group selection. This is a big departure from my previously ingrained habits.
I love a book store. One of my favourite places in the world is Tattered Cover Bookstore in Denver, Colorado. But I tell you, I don't need a fancy book store to lose time. Any old WH Smith or even the book aisle in the local supermarket can distract me for a good 30 minutes.
Not only is this not good from a time management perspective, this can be a bit rough on the bank balance as well. Books are expensive. Lots of books can bankrupt a person.
And I don't have a big enough house to have a library. I passed on what I could but inevitably I ended up with stacks of books destined for the recycle bin. Not good.
So, hi ho hi ho, off to the library we go. We live in a smallish village and I was surprised to learn that we had our very own library just down the road from our home. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect but suffice to say my expectations were relatively low.
How wrong I was! The children applied for and successfully procured their very own library cards. Both picked out books to enjoy during the school holidays and I found the book I was looking for as well as one I didn't know I wanted to read (that's one of the reasons I go to book stores)!
The librarian was so helpful and despite a very small room the library had an extensive selection of books, especially the children's area. When I was about 10 years old, I declared I wanted to be a librarian when I grew up. I am now considering a career change. I won't need as much money since I will be saving all that money borrowing books rather buying them!
I love a book store. One of my favourite places in the world is Tattered Cover Bookstore in Denver, Colorado. But I tell you, I don't need a fancy book store to lose time. Any old WH Smith or even the book aisle in the local supermarket can distract me for a good 30 minutes.
Not only is this not good from a time management perspective, this can be a bit rough on the bank balance as well. Books are expensive. Lots of books can bankrupt a person.
And I don't have a big enough house to have a library. I passed on what I could but inevitably I ended up with stacks of books destined for the recycle bin. Not good.
So, hi ho hi ho, off to the library we go. We live in a smallish village and I was surprised to learn that we had our very own library just down the road from our home. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect but suffice to say my expectations were relatively low.
How wrong I was! The children applied for and successfully procured their very own library cards. Both picked out books to enjoy during the school holidays and I found the book I was looking for as well as one I didn't know I wanted to read (that's one of the reasons I go to book stores)!
The librarian was so helpful and despite a very small room the library had an extensive selection of books, especially the children's area. When I was about 10 years old, I declared I wanted to be a librarian when I grew up. I am now considering a career change. I won't need as much money since I will be saving all that money borrowing books rather buying them!
Friday, 29 February 2008
Day Out
I spent the day with a central heating engineer this week. One of the business units that the company I work for owns offers customer a service which repairs and services broken central heating units (ie boilers). In the UK most central heating is done with hot water radiators although few are forced air.
One way of keeping in touch with the business and ultimately our customers is to go and spend a day with one of the engineers and find out what their day is like.
I enjoy this. When I used to work for The AA (a roadside recovery service in the UK) I went out with a roadside engineer for the day and had a blast. I also learned a lot about our business. I'd never been out with an engineer and decided it was time.
I had a really interesting day. Gavin, the engineer picked me up at my home and we went to the post office depot to pick up the parts that he had ordered the day before for the jobs he had scheduled for that day. Then we went into people's homes. And glimpsed a slice of life.
One lady was older than god. She had lived in her home for 37 years. Her husband and her had bought the home for their retirement. It was on a horrible housing estate but her home was immaculate. Her husband was no longer of this world but she told me about her 3 sons and her 7 grandsons and her 4 great grandsons and 1 great grand daughter. I told her I bet that grand daughter was spoilt. She just giggled.
One lady had been without heat or hot water for over a week. She was lovely and made us a cup of tea. We fixed her problem in under 30 minutes. Wish we had been there a week ago.
One retired couple had just returned home from picking up their 2 year old grand daughter at their son and daughter-in-law's home. They were off to the hospital to have a baby. Whilst we fixed their central heating (which had flames coming out of it at one point) the phone call came announcing that they were the proud grandparents of a little baby girl. Mum and baby were doing great and as soon as we finished they were off to the hospital to visit the newest addition to their family.
Gavin was very professional and competent. He's a talented engineer who conscientiously does his job and takes pride in his profession. The customers loved him. I learned a lot from him.
Now my job is to make his day easier and help him to make our customers happier.
One way of keeping in touch with the business and ultimately our customers is to go and spend a day with one of the engineers and find out what their day is like.
I enjoy this. When I used to work for The AA (a roadside recovery service in the UK) I went out with a roadside engineer for the day and had a blast. I also learned a lot about our business. I'd never been out with an engineer and decided it was time.
I had a really interesting day. Gavin, the engineer picked me up at my home and we went to the post office depot to pick up the parts that he had ordered the day before for the jobs he had scheduled for that day. Then we went into people's homes. And glimpsed a slice of life.
One lady was older than god. She had lived in her home for 37 years. Her husband and her had bought the home for their retirement. It was on a horrible housing estate but her home was immaculate. Her husband was no longer of this world but she told me about her 3 sons and her 7 grandsons and her 4 great grandsons and 1 great grand daughter. I told her I bet that grand daughter was spoilt. She just giggled.
One lady had been without heat or hot water for over a week. She was lovely and made us a cup of tea. We fixed her problem in under 30 minutes. Wish we had been there a week ago.
One retired couple had just returned home from picking up their 2 year old grand daughter at their son and daughter-in-law's home. They were off to the hospital to have a baby. Whilst we fixed their central heating (which had flames coming out of it at one point) the phone call came announcing that they were the proud grandparents of a little baby girl. Mum and baby were doing great and as soon as we finished they were off to the hospital to visit the newest addition to their family.
Gavin was very professional and competent. He's a talented engineer who conscientiously does his job and takes pride in his profession. The customers loved him. I learned a lot from him.
Now my job is to make his day easier and help him to make our customers happier.
Tuesday, 22 January 2008
Bad Day
Editors Note: Thanks to Emma for helping me through a bad patch. Random acts of kindness are so appreciated!
Friday, 18 January 2008
Not Exactly
Yesterday was a big quarterly event at work.
The management team that I work in sponsored the first event of the year with the intent of congratulating everyone on a job well done last year, setting our what we want to achieve this year and just having a bit of fun and getting to know each other.
The day went brilliantly. My colleagues are some of the best and the brightest and my team is the best in our company (I would say that, wouldn't I?).
I agreed to present FISH. Not the smelly kind. The inspirational kind.
If you don't know what I'm talking about click here.
I love the FISH! Philosophy. It goes hand in hand with my high energy, playful nature. But this isn't every one's style and it would be fair to say some of my more conservative, less American colleagues were cynical and suspicious!
I was nervous and scared to death. Please refer to the before or after posts for one of my previous speaking engagements. I am not naturally at ease in front of an audience. Fortunately, no one notices that I am shaking in my mind and I can act well enough to convince them this is a piece of cake.
I got right into it. At the end the audience was enthused and excited and engaged.
AHA! Mission Accomplished! I just wanted them to hear what I had to say and take it on board.
It's pretty simple. FISH has 4 Principles.
1. Play
2. Be There
3. Make Their Day (no firearms required)
4. Choose Your Attitude
That's it.
But the impact these very simple messages made was fabulous. Everyone took it on board whole heartedly. I was thrilled to bits. I thought success would look like 4 or 5 people thinking that yeah, this might be workable. But loads of people came up and said that it really had an impact on their way of thinking.
What I hadn't anticipated was a co worker taking it to heart so much that she has decided that she just can't do this job any more. She ain't having fun. She ain't enjoying it.
So today she decided that she needs to go and do something else. Some might think this is a failure. I don't think so.
You gotta do what you are passionate about. You might not love every minute of it but you gotta have passion, enthusiasm, drive. You gotta have enough to want to get out of bed every day and decide to do your very best, have a great day, and infect everyone around you with your buzz. Otherwise, why bother getting out of bed?
This colleague realised she just couldn't quite muster it. I applaud her courage to recognise this and to take the steps which will give her the opportunity to do something where she can find that enthusiasm. Hopefully, she's going to go on and find something that really lights her fire.
OK, so not exactly the result I was expecting but a good result nonetheless.
Now everyone else get fishing!
The management team that I work in sponsored the first event of the year with the intent of congratulating everyone on a job well done last year, setting our what we want to achieve this year and just having a bit of fun and getting to know each other.
The day went brilliantly. My colleagues are some of the best and the brightest and my team is the best in our company (I would say that, wouldn't I?).
I agreed to present FISH. Not the smelly kind. The inspirational kind.
If you don't know what I'm talking about click here.
I love the FISH! Philosophy. It goes hand in hand with my high energy, playful nature. But this isn't every one's style and it would be fair to say some of my more conservative, less American colleagues were cynical and suspicious!
I was nervous and scared to death. Please refer to the before or after posts for one of my previous speaking engagements. I am not naturally at ease in front of an audience. Fortunately, no one notices that I am shaking in my mind and I can act well enough to convince them this is a piece of cake.
I got right into it. At the end the audience was enthused and excited and engaged.
AHA! Mission Accomplished! I just wanted them to hear what I had to say and take it on board.
It's pretty simple. FISH has 4 Principles.
1. Play
2. Be There
3. Make Their Day (no firearms required)
4. Choose Your Attitude
That's it.
But the impact these very simple messages made was fabulous. Everyone took it on board whole heartedly. I was thrilled to bits. I thought success would look like 4 or 5 people thinking that yeah, this might be workable. But loads of people came up and said that it really had an impact on their way of thinking.
What I hadn't anticipated was a co worker taking it to heart so much that she has decided that she just can't do this job any more. She ain't having fun. She ain't enjoying it.
So today she decided that she needs to go and do something else. Some might think this is a failure. I don't think so.
You gotta do what you are passionate about. You might not love every minute of it but you gotta have passion, enthusiasm, drive. You gotta have enough to want to get out of bed every day and decide to do your very best, have a great day, and infect everyone around you with your buzz. Otherwise, why bother getting out of bed?
This colleague realised she just couldn't quite muster it. I applaud her courage to recognise this and to take the steps which will give her the opportunity to do something where she can find that enthusiasm. Hopefully, she's going to go on and find something that really lights her fire.
OK, so not exactly the result I was expecting but a good result nonetheless.
Now everyone else get fishing!
Up Up Up
OK, so I've got my new attitude on. I've taken my vitamins and I've had a clementine for breakfast. Much more to eat and I get sick to my stomach this early in the morning.
I've got to take the children to school this morning as Marc has got some early meetings in London. I've got a busy day at the office.
Feel the energy coursing through my veins.
I am woman. Hear me roar!
Phew, I need some more coffee!
I've got to take the children to school this morning as Marc has got some early meetings in London. I've got a busy day at the office.
Feel the energy coursing through my veins.
I am woman. Hear me roar!
Phew, I need some more coffee!
Thursday, 17 January 2008
Exhausted
Some days you just run out of fuel. I am out of fuel.
I gave an emotionally exhausting presentation at work today and I want to crawl into bed and sleep for the next few days. My feet are killing me from the higher than normal high heels I thought would look great for the presentation. I need a massage.
I am certain I will regain my boundless enthusiasm for life tomorrow morning but right now I want to crawl under a duvet and crawl up with a good book and a hot cuppa tea until I fall sound asleep.
Grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner then Sebastian off to swimming lessons whilst Abigail and I have a girlie night in.
I gave an emotionally exhausting presentation at work today and I want to crawl into bed and sleep for the next few days. My feet are killing me from the higher than normal high heels I thought would look great for the presentation. I need a massage.
I am certain I will regain my boundless enthusiasm for life tomorrow morning but right now I want to crawl under a duvet and crawl up with a good book and a hot cuppa tea until I fall sound asleep.
Grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner then Sebastian off to swimming lessons whilst Abigail and I have a girlie night in.
Thursday, 3 January 2008
Office Prayer
I return to work tomorrow after 3 weeks off. Please bow your heads and think of me as I head off into the stress bowl of work.
Lord grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change
The courage to change the things I cannot accept,
And the wisdom
To hide the bodies of those people
I had to kill today because they pissed me off.
And also,
Help me to be careful
Of the toes I step on today as they
May be connected to the ass
That I might have to kiss tomorrow.
Lord grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change
The courage to change the things I cannot accept,
And the wisdom
To hide the bodies of those people
I had to kill today because they pissed me off.
And also,
Help me to be careful
Of the toes I step on today as they
May be connected to the ass
That I might have to kiss tomorrow.
Thursday, 22 November 2007
Spade a Spade
I've never been known to mince my words. And whilst everyone else is busy not talking about the elephant in the room, I am renowned the world over for speaking up loudly and clearly with "What about the elephant?"
This has gotten me into trouble on numerous occasions and more often than not has endeared me to others. I've had numerous managers tell me I shouldn't speak so freely and openly. It never stopped me. I've known acquaintances who have not become friends because they couldn't deal with my forthrightness.
At the end of day, a spade is a spade. I call it as I see it. People can count on me to give them my honest assessment.
Yesterday, I found out that the team I manage at work returned some of the highest scores in employee engagement in all of IS across our entire organisation. We scored first or second highest in all categories. I was thrilled to bits.
Employee Engagement measures an individual's satisfaction with their work and their manager, commitment to the organisation and general happiness with the work and their prospects for the future.
I'm not sure how much of our high scores has to do with me. I try to encourage an open and transparent environment. We have passionate debates and disagreements. We are all so different and every person brings different strengths to the team making us a powerful force to be reckoned with.
I trust them to continually strive to do their best and they trust me to have their backs. I make sure that we have as much fun as possible under what can be described as stressful, stifling and conflicting pressures. I hope they feel I take the heat for them. I stand up for them (even to senior management higher up the food chain than me).
I'd like to say thanks to my team for being the amazing team that they are. They give me their best and inspire me to do my best for them. They are all individual heroes who work together to create a superhero team and make an astonishing contribution to the value of our organisation.
I'm proud to work with them. I hope they are happy to work with me!
This has gotten me into trouble on numerous occasions and more often than not has endeared me to others. I've had numerous managers tell me I shouldn't speak so freely and openly. It never stopped me. I've known acquaintances who have not become friends because they couldn't deal with my forthrightness.
At the end of day, a spade is a spade. I call it as I see it. People can count on me to give them my honest assessment.
Yesterday, I found out that the team I manage at work returned some of the highest scores in employee engagement in all of IS across our entire organisation. We scored first or second highest in all categories. I was thrilled to bits.
Employee Engagement measures an individual's satisfaction with their work and their manager, commitment to the organisation and general happiness with the work and their prospects for the future.
I'm not sure how much of our high scores has to do with me. I try to encourage an open and transparent environment. We have passionate debates and disagreements. We are all so different and every person brings different strengths to the team making us a powerful force to be reckoned with.
I trust them to continually strive to do their best and they trust me to have their backs. I make sure that we have as much fun as possible under what can be described as stressful, stifling and conflicting pressures. I hope they feel I take the heat for them. I stand up for them (even to senior management higher up the food chain than me).
I'd like to say thanks to my team for being the amazing team that they are. They give me their best and inspire me to do my best for them. They are all individual heroes who work together to create a superhero team and make an astonishing contribution to the value of our organisation.
I'm proud to work with them. I hope they are happy to work with me!
Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Hind's Head
Remember The Fat Duck?
Last night my new boss took his new direct reports out for a bite to eat. We ate at the pub that is run by the same chef that runs The Fat Duck. The two restaurants are even next door to each other.
I so wanted to be super impressed with the food given that it is much more affordable. But it was just ok. The side dishes of vegetables were fabulous but my shepherd pie was just good. I've had loads of shepherd's pie at loads of pubs and I wouldn't say this was the best I've ever had.
The Eton Mess I had for desert was to die for though! Dessert is always my favourite part of a meal anyway.
The best part though was that we got to know our leader a bit more. He got to know us a bit more. And that was the whole point. Mission Accomplished.
Last night my new boss took his new direct reports out for a bite to eat. We ate at the pub that is run by the same chef that runs The Fat Duck. The two restaurants are even next door to each other.
I so wanted to be super impressed with the food given that it is much more affordable. But it was just ok. The side dishes of vegetables were fabulous but my shepherd pie was just good. I've had loads of shepherd's pie at loads of pubs and I wouldn't say this was the best I've ever had.
The Eton Mess I had for desert was to die for though! Dessert is always my favourite part of a meal anyway.
The best part though was that we got to know our leader a bit more. He got to know us a bit more. And that was the whole point. Mission Accomplished.
Wednesday, 14 November 2007
New Boss
I've got a new boss. It is the 4th new boss I've had in the space of 14 months but who's counting?
The top dog's first day was last week when I was in France. Bad luck, bad planning, bad karma - whatever!
The first day I was in France I got an email asking for a meeting with him the next day. I emailed back stating this wasn't possible and why, despite already telling him this on several previous occasions. We scheduled a get together for the day I returned.
I knew I would not be on my best form. I knew I would be cranky, tired, grumpy and generally not my usual charming self. I was worried.
I think it is so stressful to have a new boss. You've got to figure out who they are, how much or how little information they want/need. You've got to figure out if you trust them and if they trust you. You've got to figure out if you would follow them off a cliff or if they would throw themselves in front of a speeding train to protect you and your decisions.
So you dance. You build a relationship in a sometimes hostile environment. You try to assess what others think. You try to be not quick to judge but fast enough to not make any mistakes. You try to make sure he doesn't look like a fool to his boss which after all is what we're all trying to do.
You want to be noticed but for all the right reasons.
This is stressful.....and exhausting. I've been in the office at my normal silly o'clock every morning. Tonight I even stayed well past my witching hour of 3 pm to attend one of his meetings.
Marc helped my out by doing the school run which in itself is a bit of a nightmare this week. Sebastian is preparing for his first ballet recital which is scheduled for Thursday evening. He is the first and only boy to ever perform in a St George's School ballet recital. He has a duet with Amy which he has been practising since summer term last school year.
Tonight was a rehearsal from 5-6. So Marc had to pick Seb up at 3:40, pick up Abigail, take them home, change Seb's clothes into his ballet kit, supervise homework completion, feed the children and deliver Seb back to school before 5. I then picked up Seb at 6 and went home to clean since once again my cleaner didn't turn up - second week in a row and I am having a meltdown. Dinner will be grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup for Marc and I!
Children now in bath tub then off to bed. I think I will follow shortly.....ah, just a few more emails! Gotta impress the new boss!
The top dog's first day was last week when I was in France. Bad luck, bad planning, bad karma - whatever!
The first day I was in France I got an email asking for a meeting with him the next day. I emailed back stating this wasn't possible and why, despite already telling him this on several previous occasions. We scheduled a get together for the day I returned.
I knew I would not be on my best form. I knew I would be cranky, tired, grumpy and generally not my usual charming self. I was worried.
I think it is so stressful to have a new boss. You've got to figure out who they are, how much or how little information they want/need. You've got to figure out if you trust them and if they trust you. You've got to figure out if you would follow them off a cliff or if they would throw themselves in front of a speeding train to protect you and your decisions.
So you dance. You build a relationship in a sometimes hostile environment. You try to assess what others think. You try to be not quick to judge but fast enough to not make any mistakes. You try to make sure he doesn't look like a fool to his boss which after all is what we're all trying to do.
You want to be noticed but for all the right reasons.
This is stressful.....and exhausting. I've been in the office at my normal silly o'clock every morning. Tonight I even stayed well past my witching hour of 3 pm to attend one of his meetings.
Marc helped my out by doing the school run which in itself is a bit of a nightmare this week. Sebastian is preparing for his first ballet recital which is scheduled for Thursday evening. He is the first and only boy to ever perform in a St George's School ballet recital. He has a duet with Amy which he has been practising since summer term last school year.
Tonight was a rehearsal from 5-6. So Marc had to pick Seb up at 3:40, pick up Abigail, take them home, change Seb's clothes into his ballet kit, supervise homework completion, feed the children and deliver Seb back to school before 5. I then picked up Seb at 6 and went home to clean since once again my cleaner didn't turn up - second week in a row and I am having a meltdown. Dinner will be grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup for Marc and I!
Children now in bath tub then off to bed. I think I will follow shortly.....ah, just a few more emails! Gotta impress the new boss!
Monday, 12 November 2007
Sleeplessness
I don't sleep much to begin with so when I miss a night's snoozing I get extra grumpy.
Friday I went into the office expecting some colleagues to have sent me 2 pieces of finished work. One I never received and I couldn't reach him on the phone. The other sent me something but it wasn't what I wanted. Both items were needed for a meeting I have tomorrow.
Last night I sat up most of the night tossing and turning agonising over these 2 missing/inaccurate items. I would read to take my mind off of it and as soon as I got sleepy I would turn out the light and lay my head down. within 5 minutes I had to turn the lights back on and return to my reading because my head started spinning with all the things I needed to do on Monday morning.
I hate that!
This morning I was up at 5 am and out the door by 6:30. I was in the office before 7 am. I spoke to both colleagues this morning before 8:30 and we had completed both items by midday. I had absolutely no reason to stress out last night. But I didn't know that then.
I'll sleep like a log tonight. I hope.
Friday I went into the office expecting some colleagues to have sent me 2 pieces of finished work. One I never received and I couldn't reach him on the phone. The other sent me something but it wasn't what I wanted. Both items were needed for a meeting I have tomorrow.
Last night I sat up most of the night tossing and turning agonising over these 2 missing/inaccurate items. I would read to take my mind off of it and as soon as I got sleepy I would turn out the light and lay my head down. within 5 minutes I had to turn the lights back on and return to my reading because my head started spinning with all the things I needed to do on Monday morning.
I hate that!
This morning I was up at 5 am and out the door by 6:30. I was in the office before 7 am. I spoke to both colleagues this morning before 8:30 and we had completed both items by midday. I had absolutely no reason to stress out last night. But I didn't know that then.
I'll sleep like a log tonight. I hope.
Tuesday, 6 November 2007
Laugh til you Cry
I have found that the best stress relief is laughter. Not polite giggles. Not the mild haha chuckle you hear when they just don't get it. I mean laughing so hard tears are running down your face, snot is blowing out of your nose, your face turns red, and your belly begins to ache when you are doubled over.
You can keep your meditation. You can keep your kickboxing. You can keep your chanting.
I find that having a proper laugh can relieve all my stress.
Last week, I was in a meeting with the managers who work for me. Some of them attended the meeting via teleconference. The meeting ended and I needed to speak to a couple of colleagues about one of the subjects discussed.
Helen* grabbed Kate and we reconvened in the conference room. We were all women in the room and Helen asked if we had seen a programme on television the night before about how to "spice" up your marriage. We started chatting about the content of the programme. Then we heard a voice over the speaker phone from one of my male managers asking us if we needed them to stay on the line for this.
WE nearly died. We disconnected the teleconference immediately and burst into laughter so hard we all had mascara running down our faces from our tears. We still can't look each other in the eye without bursting into fits of giggles.
Last night, the group of colleagues at the conference sat down at a bar on the beach after dinner. Deb** recalled a story about a trip to Belfast for Christmas with her husband and small children that was a mere catalog of catastrophes. She was laughing so hard she struggled to speak. Everyone around the table could relate to the story and was laughing as hard if not harder than she was. Deb is very professional in the office and it was nice to see this side of her. It strengthened our working relationship and relieved some of the stress that comes with travelling with work colleagues.
Today, I am missing home. I miss my children. I miss my husband. But having a laugh last night made it a wee bit easier.
* Names have been changed to protect the identity of the jokers!
** Not her real name either!
You can keep your meditation. You can keep your kickboxing. You can keep your chanting.
I find that having a proper laugh can relieve all my stress.
Last week, I was in a meeting with the managers who work for me. Some of them attended the meeting via teleconference. The meeting ended and I needed to speak to a couple of colleagues about one of the subjects discussed.
Helen* grabbed Kate and we reconvened in the conference room. We were all women in the room and Helen asked if we had seen a programme on television the night before about how to "spice" up your marriage. We started chatting about the content of the programme. Then we heard a voice over the speaker phone from one of my male managers asking us if we needed them to stay on the line for this.
WE nearly died. We disconnected the teleconference immediately and burst into laughter so hard we all had mascara running down our faces from our tears. We still can't look each other in the eye without bursting into fits of giggles.
Last night, the group of colleagues at the conference sat down at a bar on the beach after dinner. Deb** recalled a story about a trip to Belfast for Christmas with her husband and small children that was a mere catalog of catastrophes. She was laughing so hard she struggled to speak. Everyone around the table could relate to the story and was laughing as hard if not harder than she was. Deb is very professional in the office and it was nice to see this side of her. It strengthened our working relationship and relieved some of the stress that comes with travelling with work colleagues.
Today, I am missing home. I miss my children. I miss my husband. But having a laugh last night made it a wee bit easier.
* Names have been changed to protect the identity of the jokers!
** Not her real name either!
Friday, 15 June 2007
A Very Late Christmas Party
Last Christmas my boss promised to have a Christmas drinks party for his direct reports. It got postponed until January 2007 since every one's diaries were rather full during the holiday season. In May we were still waiting. A colleague, James, and I decided this just wasn't good enough and took the proverbial bull by the horns and scheduled the party and told our boss he was paying. This worked. And last night we had our Christmas drinks party.
11 of us were scheduled to meet up at The Orange Tree pub in Richmond at 6:30 pm. James and I were meant to take the train from Windsor to Richmond but when I spoke to him he informed that he would be catching the 18:23 train. I'm not entirely sure in what world James thinks a 18:23 train will get him to Richmond by 18:30 but I didn't want to leave my colleague, Carol, waiting alone at the pub so Marc agreed to drive me the alleged 25 minute journey so I could be sure to get there by the time Carol's cab was due to arrive.
We left the house just before 6 pm. The traffic was gridlocked all the way there and I was the second to last to arrive followed by Carol whose cab was stuck in similar traffic! Even James arrived long before I did at 7:15.
It was meant to be a gorgeous summer evening but of course the weather wouldn't cooperate and we were dodged with rain the entire evening. Luckily, it did stop each time we moved pubs. We enjoyed a few drinks at a pub on the river Thames and had dinner at Strada. the food was OK but I wouldn't recommend it to a friend and I doubt I'd go back.
We had loads of fun chatting and getting to know each other a little better. We all tend to work hard and in dispersed office locations. We really only get together as a team for one 1/2 hour meeting weekly. These tend to be all business. Short and sweet. So it was nice to chat with colleagues outside that serious setting and have a laugh.
I work with a good group of people. They are very clever and passionate about their work. They make me better than I would be without them.
I arrived home far too late to be called sensible!
11 of us were scheduled to meet up at The Orange Tree pub in Richmond at 6:30 pm. James and I were meant to take the train from Windsor to Richmond but when I spoke to him he informed that he would be catching the 18:23 train. I'm not entirely sure in what world James thinks a 18:23 train will get him to Richmond by 18:30 but I didn't want to leave my colleague, Carol, waiting alone at the pub so Marc agreed to drive me the alleged 25 minute journey so I could be sure to get there by the time Carol's cab was due to arrive.
We left the house just before 6 pm. The traffic was gridlocked all the way there and I was the second to last to arrive followed by Carol whose cab was stuck in similar traffic! Even James arrived long before I did at 7:15.
It was meant to be a gorgeous summer evening but of course the weather wouldn't cooperate and we were dodged with rain the entire evening. Luckily, it did stop each time we moved pubs. We enjoyed a few drinks at a pub on the river Thames and had dinner at Strada. the food was OK but I wouldn't recommend it to a friend and I doubt I'd go back.
We had loads of fun chatting and getting to know each other a little better. We all tend to work hard and in dispersed office locations. We really only get together as a team for one 1/2 hour meeting weekly. These tend to be all business. Short and sweet. So it was nice to chat with colleagues outside that serious setting and have a laugh.
I work with a good group of people. They are very clever and passionate about their work. They make me better than I would be without them.
I arrived home far too late to be called sensible!
Tuesday, 8 May 2007
A Typical Day
I saw a post by this woman named Penelope Trunk (not her real name) on a blog called the Brazen Careerist. She talked about the separation (or lack thereof) of her work and home lives. And how they bleed together. and how that just shouldn't happen. But it does.
A typical day for me consists of the following schedule:
6:00 am Awaken - Usually 1 or both of the children have climbed into bed with us and I allocate appropriate kisses to get them through the day. Sometimes, I've already woken and have been sitting in bed for the last hour or so reading.
7:00 am Get out the door - There is a whole bunch that happens in this hour but again this will be the subject of another post. Leaving the house is a time for enormous guilt. I inspect my daughter's hair which, despite my husbands best attempts he just can't fix as well as I can. More often than not he has failed to even run a brush through it. Seb is ok because he puts on the same school uniform every day. Abigail on the other hand is lucky to have a matching outfit. I play the "Husband is colour blind" card often even though it is not true. I
7:30 am Arrive at the office - I am lucky in that both of the 2 offices that I work out of are less than 8 miles away.
During the day I have complete hours of clarity of purpose. I am focused on my job. I lurch from meeting to meeting struggling to find time go to the ladies' room. There is the horrible odd occasion when you recognise the number ringing your mobile as the childminder or the school. this is the time you forget whomever is standing in front of or meeting with you and answer the blooming telephone. There is nothing like the feeling when you realise that you've missed calls from the school only to listen to the voicemail left an hour ago stating that they'd like to take your son to the hospital and could you call them right back. But for the most part, I am focused. I have no bottoms to wipe. No juice to get. No tears to dry (well, not many). I have pictures of my children on my desk and they are a source of great pride.
3:00 pm Do school run - This time of the day creeps up on me suddenly and unexpected every single day. I am usually mad rushing around trying to shut my computer down and shove everything into my briefcase. If my morning went as planned then my car is usually parked close by. If not, I have to walk to the car which can be quite a journey, particularly if I've worked in Windsor that day. during the drive to school I am kicking myself about all the things I've left undone at the office that needed to get done yesterday. I drive like a crazy Katrina mad woman because somebody needed to chat with me quickly as I walked out of office not realising that this timetable is a well oiled machine and 1 hiccup is going to derail the entire evening.
3:30 Pick up Sebastian at school - Small school now big school with all the parking implications. We pick up our children in 10 minute increments which mean you have to be able to time your arrival fairly precisely or you get yelled at by the parking monitor. Now mind you might think this man can't affect your life. You would be wrong to think this. This man can single handed destroy your life. If you cross him even just a bit he won't let you park for weeks. you have to make it up to him or you will get the most undesirable parking arrangements. Trust me. Don't piss this guy off.
3:45 Get home for Abigail to be dropped off - Jacqui, the child minder, has her own school runs to do for her children who are at 3 different schools so she drops Abigail off for me. She is usually waiting for me at the back gate to hand over Abigail.
4:00 Do Homework - Sebastian usually has reading and spelling homework. He's getting better at doing it by himself but whenever he moves up a level in reading he needs some help.
5:00 Start dinner - Hopefully, I've got something planned and remembered to take what I need out of the freezer. If not, this time gets very frantic. Feed dog. Feed cat. Feed fish. Marc feeds the pets in the morning so usually I only have to do the "night time" feeds. I usually move laundry round and try to fit in a load.
6:00 Serve up dinner - This is a best case scenario, followed by loading up dishwasher. Wait for children to finish. Abigail takes her time with her meal. Sebastian is a food hoover.
7:00 Get ready for tomorrow - This includes tidying up the house ready for tomorrow, getting all the children's gear ready for the next day, eg ballet kit, judo kit, swimming gear, etc. Make sure school uniforms are clean and ironed.
7:30 Bath children - We have to put so much lotion on Abigail's eczema that she is like a greased pig. Brushing her long blond hair (which is going to be short soon if it doesn't get easier by the time school starts) is going to send me to an early grave! How did my mother convince me that brushing my hair was a good thing? Or did I turn her grey as well?
8:00 Children to bed - Story time, tucking in, singing lullabyes, kisses and cuddles, ridding the bedrooms of under bed/closet monsters are all mandatory activities and repeat performances may be requested for the next 1/2 hour.
8:30 Check Blackberry, voicemail, email, snail mail, blog traffic, read blogs, digg, technorati - Answer work email that can't wait til the next morning. If I've really got my act together, I plan dinner for the next night. Usually I talk to my sister on the phone once day for a half hour or so. Plan school mum activities, do birthday cards, wrap presents, clear out fridge, place grocery order online, go through post. This is a very productive hour!
9:30 Collapse on sofa - Check news and make sure world has not descended into madness. Watch some recorded television, knit, quilt, sew name tags on school clothes.
11:00 Go to bed - Read.
Midnight - Sleep, unless I'm so stressed out I can't sleep.....then I phone my sister who is always amazed that I am still awake. Frankly, so am I.
Now you know how I get so much reading done!
A typical day for me consists of the following schedule:
6:00 am Awaken - Usually 1 or both of the children have climbed into bed with us and I allocate appropriate kisses to get them through the day. Sometimes, I've already woken and have been sitting in bed for the last hour or so reading.
7:00 am Get out the door - There is a whole bunch that happens in this hour but again this will be the subject of another post. Leaving the house is a time for enormous guilt. I inspect my daughter's hair which, despite my husbands best attempts he just can't fix as well as I can. More often than not he has failed to even run a brush through it. Seb is ok because he puts on the same school uniform every day. Abigail on the other hand is lucky to have a matching outfit. I play the "Husband is colour blind" card often even though it is not true. I
7:30 am Arrive at the office - I am lucky in that both of the 2 offices that I work out of are less than 8 miles away.
During the day I have complete hours of clarity of purpose. I am focused on my job. I lurch from meeting to meeting struggling to find time go to the ladies' room. There is the horrible odd occasion when you recognise the number ringing your mobile as the childminder or the school. this is the time you forget whomever is standing in front of or meeting with you and answer the blooming telephone. There is nothing like the feeling when you realise that you've missed calls from the school only to listen to the voicemail left an hour ago stating that they'd like to take your son to the hospital and could you call them right back. But for the most part, I am focused. I have no bottoms to wipe. No juice to get. No tears to dry (well, not many). I have pictures of my children on my desk and they are a source of great pride.
3:00 pm Do school run - This time of the day creeps up on me suddenly and unexpected every single day. I am usually mad rushing around trying to shut my computer down and shove everything into my briefcase. If my morning went as planned then my car is usually parked close by. If not, I have to walk to the car which can be quite a journey, particularly if I've worked in Windsor that day. during the drive to school I am kicking myself about all the things I've left undone at the office that needed to get done yesterday. I drive like a crazy Katrina mad woman because somebody needed to chat with me quickly as I walked out of office not realising that this timetable is a well oiled machine and 1 hiccup is going to derail the entire evening.
3:30 Pick up Sebastian at school - Small school now big school with all the parking implications. We pick up our children in 10 minute increments which mean you have to be able to time your arrival fairly precisely or you get yelled at by the parking monitor. Now mind you might think this man can't affect your life. You would be wrong to think this. This man can single handed destroy your life. If you cross him even just a bit he won't let you park for weeks. you have to make it up to him or you will get the most undesirable parking arrangements. Trust me. Don't piss this guy off.
3:45 Get home for Abigail to be dropped off - Jacqui, the child minder, has her own school runs to do for her children who are at 3 different schools so she drops Abigail off for me. She is usually waiting for me at the back gate to hand over Abigail.
4:00 Do Homework - Sebastian usually has reading and spelling homework. He's getting better at doing it by himself but whenever he moves up a level in reading he needs some help.
5:00 Start dinner - Hopefully, I've got something planned and remembered to take what I need out of the freezer. If not, this time gets very frantic. Feed dog. Feed cat. Feed fish. Marc feeds the pets in the morning so usually I only have to do the "night time" feeds. I usually move laundry round and try to fit in a load.
6:00 Serve up dinner - This is a best case scenario, followed by loading up dishwasher. Wait for children to finish. Abigail takes her time with her meal. Sebastian is a food hoover.
7:00 Get ready for tomorrow - This includes tidying up the house ready for tomorrow, getting all the children's gear ready for the next day, eg ballet kit, judo kit, swimming gear, etc. Make sure school uniforms are clean and ironed.
7:30 Bath children - We have to put so much lotion on Abigail's eczema that she is like a greased pig. Brushing her long blond hair (which is going to be short soon if it doesn't get easier by the time school starts) is going to send me to an early grave! How did my mother convince me that brushing my hair was a good thing? Or did I turn her grey as well?
8:00 Children to bed - Story time, tucking in, singing lullabyes, kisses and cuddles, ridding the bedrooms of under bed/closet monsters are all mandatory activities and repeat performances may be requested for the next 1/2 hour.
8:30 Check Blackberry, voicemail, email, snail mail, blog traffic, read blogs, digg, technorati - Answer work email that can't wait til the next morning. If I've really got my act together, I plan dinner for the next night. Usually I talk to my sister on the phone once day for a half hour or so. Plan school mum activities, do birthday cards, wrap presents, clear out fridge, place grocery order online, go through post. This is a very productive hour!
9:30 Collapse on sofa - Check news and make sure world has not descended into madness. Watch some recorded television, knit, quilt, sew name tags on school clothes.
11:00 Go to bed - Read.
Midnight - Sleep, unless I'm so stressed out I can't sleep.....then I phone my sister who is always amazed that I am still awake. Frankly, so am I.
Now you know how I get so much reading done!
Wednesday, 25 April 2007
Morning Routine
I had a conversation with my boss one day. He informed me that he gets out of bed at 7 am, leaves the house by 7:10 am and arrives at the office by 7:30 am. I looked at him like he was an alien. His morning routine takes him 10 minutes. S**t, Shower & Shave. That's it.
I then reflected on my morning routine and realised this was so unfair from every possible angle. My morning routine is akin to a small scale military operation:
- Remove eye makeup if I failed to do so night before due to being too exhausted and just falling into bed
- Shower: wash hair, wash face, scrub face, wash body, pumice feet, pumice hands, pumice elbows
- Moisturise: Body, feet, hands, extra care given to dry patches, talc powder
- Makeup: Tone face, moisturise face & eyes, base makeup; concealer, blush, eye shadow, eye brows, eye liner, mascara, lipstick, remove mistakes and start again
- Hair: Detangler, comb, volumising mousse, blow dry, curl, up in the right places and down in the wrong places, hairspray, allow time for tears/tantrums/starting over if bad hair day
- Dress: don't get me started on the whole panty hose/tights rant, find shoes, change clothes at least once
- Finishing touches: Perfume, earrings, necklace, bracelet, scarf, shoes, socks
This really got me thinking about the cost of all this versus the cost for a man. I bet I spend over £100/month on all this and Oprah still accuses me of letting myself go on the days I don't have to go to work.
Friday, 5 January 2007
Unexplained Vomiting
Sebastian is on the road of recovery. His coughing has nearly stopped altogether. His temperature is back to normal. His earaches have abated. His nose is dripping but manageable.
Abigail is not so lucky. When we put her to bed she was very unhappy with Marc because he had put her in pajamas that were not her "Dora" pajamas. We explained that she could wear those tomorrow night but that didn't make her unhappy. She reluctantly went to bed unhappy with her lack of control over her pj situation. At around midnight, Abigail appeared at our bedside crying with a dark sticky substance all over her pjs and hair. We got her jammies off of her, got her teeth brushed and hair cleaned and went downstairs to her bedroom to discover carnage. Vomit was all over her blanket, sheet, dolly, and pillow. I got new jammies on her (the "Dora" pjs she wanted to wear in the first place) and Marc changed the sheets and put the blanket and dolly in the washing. Abigail was ever so slightly warmer than she should have been but I would be too if I had just vomited copious quantities. She was very upset with herself and kept saying sorry but was very happy with herself for managing to get her "Dora pajamas" put on her. Poor little girl. We tucked her back into bed after explaining that there was nothing to be upset about. And she went off to sleep. This morning she seems fine. I can't help but think it was all an elaborate ruse to get her "Dora pjs" on.
This morning, both Marc and I are decidedly worse for wear. It took me hours to get back to sleep because I kept listening for her to be sick again. Now my cough is increasing in its severity and frequency. I feel like I am getting a temperature. We need someone to come in and fumigate the house. I've tried opening windows and wiping all surfaces with a disinfectant. My father blames our dog. (OK, so that doesn't make any sense.....he just doesn't like dogs in the house.) Marc has been surprisingly resilient to it all. He has had no cough, no fever, no sick; just lack of sleep from taking care of the invalids in his family. Good man!
If you are bored with all this talk of illness........imagine how we feel! I feel like I am blogging about the weather! Of course, this will all be better once it is time to get back to school.
I managed a full day back at work in the office yesterday. I work with some really amazing people. I met with my team leads and and man who stood in for me whilst I was off on annual leave. No catastrophes whilst I was away. The team was ever so nice and said it was good to have me back. It was strange being off work for so long but after yesterday I feel like I am back in the swing.
Abigail is not so lucky. When we put her to bed she was very unhappy with Marc because he had put her in pajamas that were not her "Dora" pajamas. We explained that she could wear those tomorrow night but that didn't make her unhappy. She reluctantly went to bed unhappy with her lack of control over her pj situation. At around midnight, Abigail appeared at our bedside crying with a dark sticky substance all over her pjs and hair. We got her jammies off of her, got her teeth brushed and hair cleaned and went downstairs to her bedroom to discover carnage. Vomit was all over her blanket, sheet, dolly, and pillow. I got new jammies on her (the "Dora" pjs she wanted to wear in the first place) and Marc changed the sheets and put the blanket and dolly in the washing. Abigail was ever so slightly warmer than she should have been but I would be too if I had just vomited copious quantities. She was very upset with herself and kept saying sorry but was very happy with herself for managing to get her "Dora pajamas" put on her. Poor little girl. We tucked her back into bed after explaining that there was nothing to be upset about. And she went off to sleep. This morning she seems fine. I can't help but think it was all an elaborate ruse to get her "Dora pjs" on.
This morning, both Marc and I are decidedly worse for wear. It took me hours to get back to sleep because I kept listening for her to be sick again. Now my cough is increasing in its severity and frequency. I feel like I am getting a temperature. We need someone to come in and fumigate the house. I've tried opening windows and wiping all surfaces with a disinfectant. My father blames our dog. (OK, so that doesn't make any sense.....he just doesn't like dogs in the house.) Marc has been surprisingly resilient to it all. He has had no cough, no fever, no sick; just lack of sleep from taking care of the invalids in his family. Good man!
If you are bored with all this talk of illness........imagine how we feel! I feel like I am blogging about the weather! Of course, this will all be better once it is time to get back to school.
I managed a full day back at work in the office yesterday. I work with some really amazing people. I met with my team leads and and man who stood in for me whilst I was off on annual leave. No catastrophes whilst I was away. The team was ever so nice and said it was good to have me back. It was strange being off work for so long but after yesterday I feel like I am back in the swing.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)