a real update
Feb. 15th, 2005 04:27 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
brightbluegirlUgh. I hab a cod. I went to work anyway yesterday, to have my review, which of course was at the end of the day. But I'm taking today off. The cold has woken me up at 3am, and today I'm coughing, even though I took a bunch of vitamin C and 3 shots of oregano oil yesterday.
It's really unattractive to be constantly sopping at a runny nose. Bleh.
Anyway, I'm certain my coworkers will be relieved that I'm not at work today.
Other than my sickness, my Valentines Day evening was lovely. We had planned nothing, because I didn't want to make my brother feel left out. He's fragile right now, and an overly commercialized holiday for couples isn't THAT important to me.
Anyway, we planned a yummy meal, and then it turned out that Gonzo was going to leave us alone anyway - although I told him he didn't have to, he really wanted to work out, so he did that instead. So our yummy dinner for 3 became a yummy dinner for 2 with candles, which is nice.
Andrew even wore an outfit he knows I like, and put on the awesome scent I love so much on him (it's actually a moisturizer, scent=hinoki, so it's not overly strong. I HATE aftershaves and colognes, they're always too strong, it seems). That's so cute. Me, I kept a snot rag close at hand and tried not to whine TOO much about my sinuses. Timing is everything. *sigh*
And for dessert, we had EXTREMELY yummy cupcakes that![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
zaftigvegan had brought over for a surprise! What a sweetheart.
Anyway, we had a leisurely dinner and talked about my review and tried to firm up what we want and need for the summer, and then he ran me a bath, which I put several drops of peppermint essential oil into, and we just did our own thing for a while.
It was good.
Well, it wasn't really a REVIEW, per se. It was more a discussion of options available and what would I prefer and that sort of thing.
My raise was only 5%, to be reviewed again in the summer when the new org hierarchy is in place. If, at that time, I'm a Senior QA Specialist, I will get a raise.
And let me tell you, I strongly said that I expected to be a Senior QA Specialist, and I DO. If I don't get a Senior Position, then I guess I really will look elsewhere.
Senior QA Specialists will be team leads and technical leads, which is right up my alley.
Anyway. There are a lot of interesting jobs coming down the pipeline. And because I have the breadth of technical knowledge and experience that many others do not, we actually talked for 1 1/2 hours - 60 minutes longer than most of these meetings went.
We also talked about my need to have some time off. I know that I will have to be on this particular project until March 31, but after that, I told him, I need time off.
I have a meeting with the VP of HR next Monday to discuss what's doable, but what T felt was best was that I take all my vacation in April, and try to create some banked time throughout March, so that I can take as much vacation as I can in April, and therefore get as much $ out of it as possible.
The only problem is, I don't want to use up all my vacation, and have nothing left for the rest of the year, and ONLY get a month out of it. You know?
I think what I want to do, though, is: I should be able to bank enough hours such that with my vacation, I'd have 3 paid weeks. But I'd like to take 2 full months. If I take a 2 month break (April and May), then I won't mind as much having to work June through Dec with only whatever banked hours I create in that time, and statutory holidays.
T assured me that taking time off will not hurt my chances of being Senior QA. We'll see.
Anyway, it looks like I will probably be doing it that way, and not getting laid off. This way we'll still have our medical benefits paid for, my resume will not show a break in being an employee, and etc etc etc.
We'll see how it goes.
And really, I have nothing holding me back from dyeing my hair now... oh yeah, except for not being able to afford bleach this month. Heh.
It's really unattractive to be constantly sopping at a runny nose. Bleh.
Anyway, I'm certain my coworkers will be relieved that I'm not at work today.
Other than my sickness, my Valentines Day evening was lovely. We had planned nothing, because I didn't want to make my brother feel left out. He's fragile right now, and an overly commercialized holiday for couples isn't THAT important to me.
Anyway, we planned a yummy meal, and then it turned out that Gonzo was going to leave us alone anyway - although I told him he didn't have to, he really wanted to work out, so he did that instead. So our yummy dinner for 3 became a yummy dinner for 2 with candles, which is nice.
Andrew even wore an outfit he knows I like, and put on the awesome scent I love so much on him (it's actually a moisturizer, scent=hinoki, so it's not overly strong. I HATE aftershaves and colognes, they're always too strong, it seems). That's so cute. Me, I kept a snot rag close at hand and tried not to whine TOO much about my sinuses. Timing is everything. *sigh*
And for dessert, we had EXTREMELY yummy cupcakes that
zaftigvegan had brought over for a surprise! What a sweetheart.Anyway, we had a leisurely dinner and talked about my review and tried to firm up what we want and need for the summer, and then he ran me a bath, which I put several drops of peppermint essential oil into, and we just did our own thing for a while.
It was good.
Well, it wasn't really a REVIEW, per se. It was more a discussion of options available and what would I prefer and that sort of thing.
My raise was only 5%, to be reviewed again in the summer when the new org hierarchy is in place. If, at that time, I'm a Senior QA Specialist, I will get a raise.
And let me tell you, I strongly said that I expected to be a Senior QA Specialist, and I DO. If I don't get a Senior Position, then I guess I really will look elsewhere.
Senior QA Specialists will be team leads and technical leads, which is right up my alley.
Anyway. There are a lot of interesting jobs coming down the pipeline. And because I have the breadth of technical knowledge and experience that many others do not, we actually talked for 1 1/2 hours - 60 minutes longer than most of these meetings went.
We also talked about my need to have some time off. I know that I will have to be on this particular project until March 31, but after that, I told him, I need time off.
I have a meeting with the VP of HR next Monday to discuss what's doable, but what T felt was best was that I take all my vacation in April, and try to create some banked time throughout March, so that I can take as much vacation as I can in April, and therefore get as much $ out of it as possible.
The only problem is, I don't want to use up all my vacation, and have nothing left for the rest of the year, and ONLY get a month out of it. You know?
I think what I want to do, though, is: I should be able to bank enough hours such that with my vacation, I'd have 3 paid weeks. But I'd like to take 2 full months. If I take a 2 month break (April and May), then I won't mind as much having to work June through Dec with only whatever banked hours I create in that time, and statutory holidays.
T assured me that taking time off will not hurt my chances of being Senior QA. We'll see.
Anyway, it looks like I will probably be doing it that way, and not getting laid off. This way we'll still have our medical benefits paid for, my resume will not show a break in being an employee, and etc etc etc.
We'll see how it goes.
And really, I have nothing holding me back from dyeing my hair now... oh yeah, except for not being able to afford bleach this month. Heh.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 01:48 pm (UTC)Why do you want 2 months off so badly? I can think of obvious reasons, and I was just talking to someone recently who worked for a company who used to give a month extra off (taken consecutively) which didn't include their vacation, but they stopped that. So, I understand it's probably very therapuetic, but necessary? It seems a little difficult to work your way up the latter by taking 2 months off.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 02:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 01:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 02:01 pm (UTC)When I got laid off during the dot.com crash, I found that months of time off are good for me. It's not that I just lay around and whatnot, so much that I focus on those things I let go fallow when I'm focussing on work... like art and friendships, and extra workouts and such. I could really use that reaffirming of focus again, and my body is telling me so by continuing to get sick.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 02:06 pm (UTC)Hrm, did you join that community center? Do you think you need more time alone, or just more time not working? When I get stressed, i need more time *alone* - so sometimes working out at home is a bad idea, I need to get away. I know I relate all solutions to exercise, but I think you're with me on that.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 02:13 pm (UTC)I haven't joined the community center *yet* but I did get a packet of 10 visits, which is pretty cheap, which I've been using to fill out my weekly workouts with. It was cheaper, and made more sense for the "trying you out" period. I'll probably continue to do that even when I'm not working, because now that it's spring, it's running season, and I prefer running outside cuz it's pretty.
When I'm stressed, I definitely need alone time, although I also am really looking forward to just not having to get up every day and go through the same thing. Shower, eat, travel to work, work, travel back, eat, workout, stretch, do one or two small projects, sleep, repeat...
Andrew has a job, which started yesterday, and which they SAID will be full time after at most a month. He's still looking for more work, though. Anyway, he'll be gone sometimes, as a result, as will my brother, so I'll be able to have lots of time alone. I'm really excited!
I can tell just knowing I'll have the time off is relaxing me, because I'm actually catching up on my personal emails, writing lists of the little things I need to do, and actually writing real posts again...
no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 08:44 pm (UTC)i really think the arrangement you made to take your extended vacation sounds like a great option.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-15 09:17 pm (UTC)YUMMY!!!!!!
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D
Thanks!
no subject
Date: 2005-02-16 03:52 am (UTC)i'm glad you are both our valentines. tee hee!
no subject
Date: 2005-02-16 05:26 am (UTC)SMOOCH
no subject
Date: 2005-02-16 04:38 am (UTC)Glad your dinner turned into something more romantic.
I'm glad your "review" went well. Now that you have had time to think about it some more, does it change any of your thoughts on time off? Sounds like your boss is receptive to the notion, though. That's a plus.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-16 05:25 am (UTC)I complain about this company sometimes, but there are some things I wouldn't give up for anything, like having a boss that understands the importance of things outside work - I've worked places that didn't, and I don't EVER want that again.