Established 27 June 2006, originally it was "My Little Contribution" [to the internet], and was mostly just for my mom. 💕 She's gone now, it's just me here with my random thoughts and interests and hopes and dreams, and for-real the struggles!
Yay @ Personal Business Allowance!
Ouch. More Please.
Ok, so I facebook-friended a very senior client. I value his opinion, but receiving constructive criticism is not something I'm accustomed to or familiar with. He said "* You do need to work a bit on your Facebook posts. Many fall into the category “I am eating soup now,” which is hard for me to imagine others find very interesting. There is a fine line between keeping friends and colleagues up to date on important things in your life and internet assisted navel gazing.”
Irony
I've also been tinkering w/Phoebe's blog, which is what led me to tinker w/rss feeds, which is what led to the extensive tinkering of both my smfuller and mypsgs blogs. Neat. Distracting. Not nearly as distracting though as facebook still is! My friends list is mostly MDIHS'ers, many of whom are still on the Island, or elsewhere in Maine. Their status notes make me miss home. Well, not all that rain, good lord.
I'm the unofficial code social coordinator - we end up having a pot luck lunch about once every two months - today we're having Taco's. I'm off to find some sort of teambuilding/icebreaker activity or game or something. :)
Shape Up or Ship Out
Good News - a Raise!
My 4.6% increase didn't at first seem all that great, until I put it in perspective - it's kinda like compound interest - 4.6% of my fresh-out-of-college salary wasn't much - but THIS 4.6% is just over $350/month (before taxes anyway) - that should make a noticeable difference (even after taxes).
Rather than normal bills, I'm hoping to redirect this raise to an online investment account. I still have to find and setup said investment account, but I'm determined to get investing. I'm already looking forward to the fun of tracking and managing - better get my horse in front of the cart. :)
Birdy Family
Seriously Need a Break
First Layoffs
The Circle Game
But boy... the circle game is kicking my ASS lately. My daily grind is reasonably palatable, but it's still the daily grind. I need to train myself to be my own life coach, to be a better prioritizer, to be my own motivator, always trying to set a better example. I think my parents were better parents than their parents were, I want to be even better, and I want Phoebe to strive for even better! That's a tall order on all accounts.
Okay, off to try for a productive day at work. I'm fighting off a cold or something, and it's easier and more restful to go to work than it is to stay home w/JR & Christopher! What a nut job I married.
The Gospel of Mary
Mourning the End of an Era
Then I remind myself that our nursing had turned into a game for him - lets see how Mommy reacts when I bite this one! I wonder if it'll hurt when I smack the other one! Latch on. Let go. Latch on. Let go. So it wasn't really all that quiet intimacy I like to remember anymore anyway. :)
Wholly Unproductive
Another factor is my mgmt. I was brought on by the "prior administration" who was familiar with my strenghts, he knew how to utilize my talents, and did so without much regard to office politics. When I spoke w/the current CDR about my being more helpful to her, she kinda said professional development wasn't her bailywick and din't offer much guidance. The current civilian manager won't do much for fear of stepping on union toes. And my PSGS management is absolutely 100% clueless regarding my day-to-day work, if my customers don't complain and keep awarding task order extensions, then PSGS considers my performance "distinguished"!
Another, less approachable factor, is federal bureaucracy. I have long been frustrated that the Navy can safely oversee the construction of nuclear-powered vessels, but can't manage to track its own commitments. C'mon! Even if I was a govt civilian, I wouldn't be able to push the change that needs to happen in that organization, and I ESPECIALLY can't do it as a contractor!
Ok, more later, I'm off the walk the doggy, good night! XOXO :) SMF
President Obama
An Epiphany
After my epiphany, I got up at 2am and had a bowl of Honey Smacks, played again, then went back to bed and slept soundly until two snoozes after the alarm first went off. Phoebe had gone to bed early as promised, Christopher had slept through the night, so my day got off to a reasonable start. I even managed to get Phoebe onto the bus, which came early, despite having gotten her off to a 25min late start. I am Mom, hear me roar.
I Still ❤️ VII Corps
My beef was always only with racist individuals and spineless enablers. I never held a grudge against the Army or VII Corps. In 2009 I established and still administer the now 1.6K member U.S. Army VII Corps Facebook Group.