Free At Last!
Wednesday was my last day at my former job. I am nearly speechless with relief that it is over. The vendor company for whom I contracted to work there was good to me, and my co-workers were wonderful, but what little management there was at That Place, was awful. Managers screamed at each other, knifed each other in the back (metaphorically), picked fights over imaginary turf, and generally behaved in a manner that was unprofessional beyond belief. I will not name the place, but those of you who know where I have been working for the past 18 months can fill in the blanks. The day before I left, my 'manager' forbade his direct reports to speak to anyone else in the unit, especially those who reported to a certain other manager, without his permission. They were to do NOTHING without his permission. It doesn't help that this person, whose first language is not English, is far more concerned with *appearing* to be in charge than with actually getting any work done. I am SO OUT OF THERE!
End of Rant.
I start work on Monday at Safeway Stores in Walnut Creek, working with an old friend and colleague who called me a month ago about a full-time (i.e. not contract) position on her team. I'll still be doing Mainframe Storage Management, but in a far less stressful environment. They also want me to limber up my rusty performance analysis skills, which I have not used in over 5 years. They are also paying me more money, and I won't have to cross the Bay (thus saving close to $1000/year in bridge tolls). Wheee!
In other news, dog_father and I went to the Bob Seger concert at the Oakland Arena in February. I won the tickets on a KFOG radio contest -- the very first time I think I have ever won anything. The concert was thisclose to Sold Out, and when that entire audience was singing the lyrics to "Give Me That Old-time Rock'n'Roll" the whole building shook. Bob Seger has not lost a note, nor an ounce of energy, in 30 years. Awesome, man!
dog_father and I also ran away from home over a Saturday night and went to the East Brother Light Station B&B. It's on a tiny rock in San Pablo Bay, just north of the Richmond Bridge, and it's purely lovely. They have five rooms, four in the Victorian lighthouse itself and one in the Fog Signal building. They picked us up in a little aluminum outboard skiff at 4 PM, served champagne and hors d'ouerves followed by a 4-course dinner with wine, and breakfast in the morning before taking us back to shore at 11 AM. It's gorgeous and peaceful beyond belief, and completely isolated. If you are interested, here is their website: http://www.ebls.org/ Check out the history section!
We are also taking a Beginning Taiko Drumming class on Tuesday nights, courtesy of the fabulous Alameda Parks & Recreation department. I like it even more than I thought I would -- I can take out my frustrations on these glorious drums that shake your bones with their amazing deep tones, and the songs we are learning are beautiful. So far we have learned a very old piece called "Matsuri" and are working on "Earthquake" (can't remember the Japanese name, but it's very intense). And it's a great upper-body workout!
I made firehair28 promise to post at least once a month, and have not been setting much of an example. I'll try to be better...
End of Rant.
I start work on Monday at Safeway Stores in Walnut Creek, working with an old friend and colleague who called me a month ago about a full-time (i.e. not contract) position on her team. I'll still be doing Mainframe Storage Management, but in a far less stressful environment. They also want me to limber up my rusty performance analysis skills, which I have not used in over 5 years. They are also paying me more money, and I won't have to cross the Bay (thus saving close to $1000/year in bridge tolls). Wheee!
In other news, dog_father and I went to the Bob Seger concert at the Oakland Arena in February. I won the tickets on a KFOG radio contest -- the very first time I think I have ever won anything. The concert was thisclose to Sold Out, and when that entire audience was singing the lyrics to "Give Me That Old-time Rock'n'Roll" the whole building shook. Bob Seger has not lost a note, nor an ounce of energy, in 30 years. Awesome, man!
dog_father and I also ran away from home over a Saturday night and went to the East Brother Light Station B&B. It's on a tiny rock in San Pablo Bay, just north of the Richmond Bridge, and it's purely lovely. They have five rooms, four in the Victorian lighthouse itself and one in the Fog Signal building. They picked us up in a little aluminum outboard skiff at 4 PM, served champagne and hors d'ouerves followed by a 4-course dinner with wine, and breakfast in the morning before taking us back to shore at 11 AM. It's gorgeous and peaceful beyond belief, and completely isolated. If you are interested, here is their website: http://www.ebls.org/ Check out the history section!
We are also taking a Beginning Taiko Drumming class on Tuesday nights, courtesy of the fabulous Alameda Parks & Recreation department. I like it even more than I thought I would -- I can take out my frustrations on these glorious drums that shake your bones with their amazing deep tones, and the songs we are learning are beautiful. So far we have learned a very old piece called "Matsuri" and are working on "Earthquake" (can't remember the Japanese name, but it's very intense). And it's a great upper-body workout!
I made firehair28 promise to post at least once a month, and have not been setting much of an example. I'll try to be better...