In Which I Speak of Work and Dogs
Friday, Jan. 04, 2008
I would never recommend starting a new job and buying a house at the same time. I think each of these things is stressful enough on their own, but to combine them is downright awful.
I started my new job on the 17th of December and while I have only just started not have not really gotten involved with any major projects, just the issue of being new and learning office culture/politics and meeting all new people is a huge thing for me. Plus my new job has more regular hours than my old job. Now I am working 8 � 5 Monday to Friday whereas with my old job I was working from 9 � 4:30 Monday to Thursday and 9 � Noon on Fridays. Fridays are the biggest adjustment for me. I didn't really realize how much I did in the couple of extra hours on Friday afternoons (like laundry) that I am now adding to the weekend schedule.
I am really enjoying my new job (10 times better than the old one) but am getting frustrated that I still don't really "know" a lot of the stuff that I will be doing on a regular basis. There really isn't one specific person training me so I'm just kind of learning stuff as it comes along and I find that frustrating. I hate to not know what is going on and having to ask a million questions just to do what ends up being a simple task. I know that it will come in time and everyone says that it takes at least six months and sometimes at least a year to be comfortable in a position so I'm trying to be patient with myself and with others (and hopefully they will continue to be patient with me. It's hard though.
On the house front the stove we bought on Wednesday night is still not at the house. We were supposed to be able to rent a truck and dolly to pick the stove ourselves last night, but when I called to make sure everything was ready for us, it wasn't. Apparently the store's truck had broken down and no one had called and told me. They then said I could just pay the $60 delivery fee, which wasn't going to happen. R.H. and I were renting the truck and picking up the stove ourselves for the ($19 rental fee) so that we didn't have to pay $60. I finally got the customer service person to "talk" to a manager and was able to get them to deliver the stove on Saturday for $25, which is just slightly more than the truck rental fee and this way R.H. and I don't have to do any of the moving. I was pretty proud of my negotiating skills, though they probably weren't that impressive. However they were not able to specify if the delivery would take place in the morning or in the afternoon so we'll be at the house all day waiting. Not that we are lacking in things to do at the house�cleaning anyone�?
One of the other things I am excited about is now that I have a house I am going to be able to get a dog. Of course I can't actually get the dog until I move in (April-ish)�but now is the time to plan. I'm having a hard time deciding what kind of dog to get. I really like Pembroke Welsh Corgi's, as I've been doing some research and then seem like a great breed of dog. But I'm also not sure that I want a purebred when there are tons of animals in shelters that need to be adopted. So then I start to look at shelters and realize that for the price it takes to adopt a dog from a shelter (sometimes as much as $650) and all the hoops to jump through: vet reference (not a big deal), personal references (why?), and a home visit I could just get a puppy from a breeder. I guess I understand that they want to find really good homes for their animals but the initial process, applications, interviews seem a bit over the top. I suppose I just figure that I am going to be a good dog owner and don't understand why I need to go through and inquisition to save a dog from being put to sleep or spending more time in a small pen when I have a big house and back yard and lots of love to give.
So much to think about.
I have decided though that I don't want a puppy-puppy. I'd like a dog that is a little older, probably still under a year, but with some housebreaking experience under his belt. Oh and it will be a he. And he will not be a ginormous dog but not a teeny tiny kind either (he has to be bigger than the cats). He will be a nice medium sized boy who loves to cuddle and play. He's out there somewhere�I just need to find him.
Now, off to search shelter websites and newspaper classifieds�
Happy Weekend!
castalia at 9:03 P.M.