This Year’s Non-Christmas

Posted on December 22, 2016 by cordeliasmom2012

Sure, I’ve been trying to get into the spirit of the holidays. I did go out and get the gifts and the cards, and I did make plans for attending and/or hosting events like Christmas Eve for the whole family at my youngest daughter’s house and Christmas dinner for my husband, mother-in-law and middle daughter at our house.

I even had hubby buy the special Christmas breakfast ingredients, despite the fact that it will probably be just hubby and me for breakfast.

But my heart just isn’t in it this year. I’m so very tired. The new job is sucking the life out of me, and I’m feeling trapped because there are so few other opportunities in this area for people my age – and I still have a few years before I can retire.

(Note: Like my writing? Like my photos? How about a combination of the two? Hire me now! See the “Want Me?” page.)

I couldn’t even bring myself to put up the tree or any of the decorations this year. It just didn’t seem worth it.

And now I’m sick again. Hey, folks, don’t get all worried – it’s just another sinus thing going on, but with my suppressed immunity due to the Remicade treatments, I’m having a hard time overcoming the virus. I’ve been fighting it for more than a week.

Today, I got up, got dressed for work, ate a little breakfast, took Cody out – and then realized I wasn’t going anywhere. Absolutely not. No way. No how. Driving would be dangerous and incredibly stupid.

And so, I called off from my new job – for the first time ever – and went back to bed.

Today will be a day for sleeping or watching movies while under the bedcovers, drinking hot lemon tea, munching crackers, and hugging the dog. Tomorrow I will drag myself back into the office somehow. Fortunately it’s the last work day before Christmas and it will be a short, hopefully not too stressful, day – normal work morning, but then the office holiday lunch from noon to 2, and the office closes at 3. The office will be closed on Monday for Christmas.

Hopefully, I can make it through tomorrow. Then I have a whole 3 days before I have to face the office grief again.

Maybe a weekend with my family is all that I need. Family makes everything better, doesn’t it?

Merry Christmas, everyone. I may or may not post between now and Christmas. My post on Christmas Day will be a re-blog – and it’s going to be one that will make many of you laugh and cry at the same time. Be sure to check it out.

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I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com

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Images by Cordelia’s Mom

Posted in Holidays, Relationships, That's Life | Tagged Christmas, illness, office, stress, work, working | 49 Comments

It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like ….

Posted on December 14, 2016 by cordeliasmom2012

HOME SWEET HOME, WINTER VERSION

… something I’ve already had enough of — WINTER!

I know many of my readers think that Buffalo, New York is the Snow Capital of the World.

But we really don’t get any more snow than, say, Syracuse (right, Mark Bialczak?). Unfortunately, the storms we do get tend to make the national news. Fortunately, today was just a normal Buffalo, New York winter day – but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.

I was busily cranking out the work, dealing with clients, getting ready for the next day-from-hell. I vaguely recall hearing someone in the office say that the County Clerk’s Office had closed earlier in the afternoon, and vaguely recall thinking, “Well, at least I don’t work downtown any more.” There is a window outside my little closet work area, but I was too busy to look. Every once in awhile, I’d hear someone comment about the snow coming down – swirling, sideways, what fun we’ll having going home tonight.

I figured by the time we all left at 5:15 pm, pretty much everyone else would have already gone home, so maybe traffic wouldn’t be too bad – and maybe the plows would have gone through by then.

Imagine my surprise when at about 4:00 pm, word came around that the OFFICE IS CLOSING! Several people made a special point to make sure I was aware of it – ’cause, you know, I’m just so dedicated. Even The Boss made sure to tell me to shut down the computer and leave already (I was trying to get that one last email out to firm up details for a closing scheduled for the next day). It only occurred to me later that The Boss wanted everyone else to leave so that she could – she didn’t want anyone stuck behind. Gotta give her credit for that.

Well, you don’t have to tell me more than twice to drop my work and leave.

NOT SO BAD, I CAN DO THIS!

The snow had only accumulated a few inches, so getting out of the lot was not difficult – although I did manage to slip while brushing off my car, grabbing onto the passenger side door and not realizing it – so that when I then began to drive, I got one of those warnings telling me a door was ajar. Had to pull off to the side and fix that – which of course, meant, I had to brush the car off again.

Anyway.

There was an accident just up the street, and cars were bumper to bumper and not moving. Fortunately, drivers were letting us out of our lot one by one – except, of course, for the jackass down the line who merely laid on his horn constantly. How does that help?

SLOW AND EASY – THEY PROBABLY CAN’T SEE ME, EITHER!

Visibility immediately went from not good to really not good. My normal 12-minute drive took nearly an hour, even using back streets. But at least most drivers were being considerate and taking it slow.

MAIN ROADS ARE ALWAYS JUST A WEE BIT BETTER

In fact, travel was slow enough that I could take all these ~~exceptional~~ photos. And aren’t you glad I did?

Finally, I reached my own street (which I nearly missed because I couldn’t see a darn thing). Home Sweet Home!

PS: Puppy Cody loves chasing snow balls, but I forgot to take the camera out with us. Bad me.

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I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com

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Images by Cordelia’s Mom

Posted in Road Trips & Cars, That's Life | Tagged driving, office, snow, visibility, winter, work | 32 Comments

Screams in the Night II: When the Doctor Is Right

Posted on December 7, 2016 by cordeliasmom2012

A few weeks back, I again began suffering those horrible leg cramps at night.

One memorable Saturday night, the cramps were so bad that I peed myself, and they recurred numerous times during the night, each episode lasting for 10-15 minutes. The cramps would start at my toes and cause the muscles to seize the entire length of both legs right up to the hips and abdomen.

These cramps had been getting worse over a number of weeks, and I became concerned. Especially since the next morning, I could still barely walk. Especially since during the worst episodes (like that Saturday night), the pain would cause my chest to tighten and leave me somewhat nauseous (of course, some of that might have been simply the stress of going through that hell).

So, when I woke up that Sunday morning still suffering the after-effects, I dragged myself to the nearest Urgent Care center. I considered going to the Emergency Room, but surely it didn’t qualify as a true emergency, right? I wasn’t bleeding or unconscious.

The Urgent Care doctor said going to the ER would not have been unreasonable, and he immediately sent me to the ER for a sonogram of my legs, after which I dragged myself back to Urgent Care to await the report. Yes, people, I drove myself. Brave, or stupid? Who knows.

Thankfully, I was not having a stroke, a heart attack, or undergoing some other life-threatening event. The doctor prescribed rest, elevating the legs, warm packs – and muscle relaxants.

The muscle relaxants worked beautifully. The pharmacist suggested taking just half a tablet the first time, which I did – and boy, talk about being knocked out! I only have a small supply, and I’m stretching that out by only taking half a pill when I really feel it necessary, usually on a Friday evening after running up and down stairs all week at the office.

But in the course of the conversation that Sunday morning, the Urgent Care doctor mentioned that many people have a glass of wine in the evening and that wine acts as a blood thinner and muscle relaxant.

A light bulb went off in my brain! I had stopped drinking wine when I started my new job because I was concerned the wine would cause me digestive problems which could become embarrassing in an office with bathroom rules. The leg cramps had started up again only a week or two after that.

Cause and effect? Maybe, maybe not.

In any event, a few weeks ago, I returned to my nightly glass of wine – and the Good Lord be praised, the leg cramps have ceased! Or at least, mostly.

What would I like for Christmas? Wanna guess?

Cheers!

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I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com

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Image by Cordelia’s Mom

Posted in Health, That's Life | Tagged Charlie Horse, doctors, drugs, leg cramps, medicine, wine | 38 Comments

MINDSET

Posted on December 3, 2016 by cordeliasmom2012

Hi, Ya’ll!

(I’ve been told that I ‘m too abrupt when sending emails and such because I tend to jump right in, and it has been suggested I always start off with a greeting, so there you have it.)

This work week was not as maniacally stressful as some of the prior ones. I managed to close a bunch of real estate sales, and quite a few of my clients (and their realtors) are very pleased with me at the moment. Some have even relayed their appreciation to The Boss, which is always helpful.

Am I starting to acclimate to the New Job? Maybe, maybe not. But what I have come to realize is that my biggest obstacle is dealing with the structure of the new firm. There are rules for everything. There are even rules for bathroom use!

And everything (well, except bathroom use) must be documented not only in the physical, paper file but also on the electronic file. Each electronic entry takes only a few seconds – but during a day, those seconds add up, so that making those entries takes up a good chunk of my work time. Chunks of time that could be used for reviewing files, chatting with clients, following up on post-closing matters.

No wonder I’m having a hard time keeping up.

On my last job, I had my files, dealt with my files, made the clients happy – mostly without ever having to kowtow to anyone, electronically or otherwise. On this job, even the slightest misstep is noted, and documented.

It took me 20 minutes to respond to The Boss’ email? Not acceptable.

I didn’t immediately log that delay into the electronic file? Also not acceptable.

I took time in between to have a sip out of my water bottle? You get the drift.

Recently, a co-worker nearly went apoplectic when I let slip that I never look at a calendar. Sure, I keep track of all those necessary deadlines – and yes, they are on the one calendar I do occasionally look at – and yes, I care about the deadlines, to the point that they become a part of that ongoing inner dialog in my brain and to the point that I dream about missing a deadline and having to deal with the aftermath. Maybe that’s why I never actually miss a deadline – it’s seared into my brain until after matter has been finished.

But the calendar? Do I care that Betty had to leave at 3:00 pm to watch little Tiffany’s ballet performance, or that Peter is going to be in late because he had to see his proctologist? No, I don’t – not unless those events somehow affect my own files. If I need a check for a closing, I might care that the bookkeeper isn’t going to be in on a particular day, but beyond that, I just come in, do my work and go home – and try not to dream about potential missed deadlines.

It all comes down to mindset.

There are those of us with scientific, technical minds – people like that tend to become engineers, lawyers, architects. People like that keep their personal agenda books always at hand with every second of every day scheduled and documented. Heaven forbid there be any sudden changes affecting that agenda!

Then there are those of us with creative, artistic minds. We tend to take the day step-by-step. We may have a general timeline in our heads, but if something comes up (like Mrs. Smith is crying on the phone because her closing got delayed by her lender – again), we are perfectly capable of chucking the schedule to deal with the current situation. And maybe we get the schedule back on track afterwards, or maybe not. No one is likely to die because the schedule has been tweaked.

Those of you in the medical fields fall somewhere in between the two mindsets I’ve described. You need time to listen to your patients and to create solutions to their problems, but someone might actually die if a deadline missed or an error made. That makes me very glad that I opted out of medicine as a young woman.